Create a Dynamic Horizontal ListView in Flutter with Default Selection

Learn how to effortlessly create a dynamic horizontal ListView in Flutter, highlighting the first item by default. Explore sample code and valuable tips for customization.
---

Visit these links for original content and any more details, such as alternate solutions, latest updates/developments on topic, comments, revision history etc. For example, the original title of the Question was: Create dynamic horizontal listview of items and select the first item by default in flutter

If anything seems off to you, please feel free to write me at vlogize [AT] gmail [DOT] com.
---
Create a Dynamic Horizontal ListView in Flutter with Default Selection

When developing an application in Flutter, you may encounter scenarios where you want to display a collection of items in a horizontal manner. For instance, you may want to showcase categories or options as horizontal buttons (or containers) where a default item is highlighted upon loading the page. This guide will guide you through creating a Dynamic Horizontal ListView in Flutter, with particular emphasis on automatically selecting the first item in the list.

Problem Overview

In many applications, especially those requiring user interaction, it’s essential to have a clear display of options. Imagine a situation where you have a list of items (e.g., categories or features), and you want them shown in a horizontal layout while ensuring that one item is selected by default. How can you achieve this in Flutter?

Solution Breakdown

We will go through the steps necessary to set up a horizontal ListView in Flutter, using a simple and effective approach to dynamically highlight options based on user selection.

Step 1: Declare the Required Variables

To begin with, you will need to declare a variable to hold the index of the currently selected item. Moreover, create a list that will store the items that you'll be displaying in the ListView:

[[See Video to Reveal this Text or Code Snippet]]

selectedIndex: This variable is initialized to 0, which means the first item will be selected.

yourList: This list contains the elements you want to display in your horizontal ListView.

Step 2: Set Up the Horizontal ListView

[[See Video to Reveal this Text or Code Snippet]]

Key Features:

SizedBox: Sets a fixed height for the ListView.

Container: Each item is wrapped in a container with a width and height, allowing for visual representation.

Color Condition: Checks if the current index matches the selectedIndex to alter the background color (green for the selected item and red for others).

Step 3: Customize the Highlighting Effect

The example provided highlights the selected item by changing its color. However, you can customize this by adding borders or altering the design further to suit your aesthetic needs. For example, you could introduce a border around the selected container for better visualization.

Conclusion

Creating a dynamic horizontal ListView in Flutter while ensuring a default item is selected is straightforward with the right approach. By utilizing basic Flutter widgets and variables, you can easily implement this feature in your applications.

Feel free to modify styles, such as padding or shapes, to enhance the user experience even further. Happy coding!