v7 Support Libraries

There are several libraries designed to be used with Android 2.1 (API level 7) and higher. These libraries provide specific feature sets and can be included in your application independently from each other.

v7 appcompat library

This library adds support for the Action Bar user interface design pattern. This library includes support for material design user interface implementations.

Note: This library depends on the v4 Support Library. If you are using Ant or Eclipse, make sure you include the v4 Support Library as part of this library's classpath.

Here are a few of the key classes included in the v7 appcompat library:

ActionBar - Provides an implementation of the action bar user interface pattern. For more information on using the Action Bar, see the Action Bar developer guide. AppCompatActivity - Adds an application activity class that can be used as a base class for activities that use the Support Library action bar implementation. AppCompatDialog - Adds a dialog class that can be used as a base class for AppCompat themed dialogs. ShareActionProvider - Adds support for a standardized sharing action (such as email or posting to social applications) that can be included in an action bar. This library is located in the /extras/android/support/v7/appcompat/ directory after you download the Android Support Libraries. The library contains user interface resources. To include it in your application project, follow the instructions for Adding libraries with resources.

The Gradle build script dependency identifier for this library is as follows:

com.android.support:appcompat-v7:21.0.0

v7 cardview library

This library adds support for the CardView widget, which lets you show information inside cards that have a consistent look on any app. These cards are useful for material design implementations, and are used extensively in layouts for TV apps.

This library is located in the /extras/android/support/v7/cardview/ directory after you download the Android Support Libraries. The library contains user interface resources. To include it in your application project, follow the instructions for Adding libraries with resources.

The Gradle build script dependency identifier for this library is as follows:

com.android.support:cardview-v7:21.0.0

v7 gridlayout library

This library adds support for the GridLayout class, which allows you to arrange user interface elements using a grid of rectangular cells. For detailed information about the v7 gridlayout library APIs, see the android.support.v7.widget package in the API reference.

This library is located in the /extras/android/support/v7/gridlayout/ directory after you download the Android Support Libraries. The library contains user interface resources. To include it in your application project, follow the instructions for Adding libraries with resources.

The Gradle build script dependency identifier for this library is as follows:

com.android.support:gridlayout-v7:21.0.0

v7 mediarouter library

This library provides MediaRouter, MediaRouteProvider, and related media classes that support Google Cast.

In general, the APIs in the v7 mediarouter library provide a means of controlling the routing of media channels and streams from the current device to external screens, speakers, and other destination devices. The library includes APIs for publishing app-specific media route providers, for discovering and selecting destination devices, for checking media status, and more. For detailed information about the v7 mediarouter library APIs, see the android.support.v7.media package in the API reference.

The v7 mediarouter library is located in the /extras/android/support/v7/mediarouter/ directory after you download the Android Support Library. It's provided as a library project with a dependency on the v7 appcompat library, so you'll need to include both libraries in your build path when setting up your project. For more information on how to set up your project, follow the instructions in Adding libraries with resources. If you are developing in Eclipse/ADT, make sure to include both the android-support-v7-mediarouter.jar and android-support-v7-appcompat.jar files.

If you are using Android Studio, all you need to do is specify the Gradle build script dependency identifier com.android.support:support-v7-mediarouter:, where "" is the minimum revision at which the library is available. For example:

com.android.support:mediarouter-v7:21.0.0

The v7 mediarouter library APIs introduced in Support Library r18 are subject to change in later revisions of the Support Library. At this time, we recommend using the library only in connection with Google Cast.

v7 palette library

The v7 palette support library includes the Palette class, which lets you extract prominent colors from an image. For example, a music app could use a Palette object to extract the major colors from an album cover, and use those colors to build a color-coordinated song title card.

This library is located in the /extras/android/support/v7/palette/ directory after you download the Android Support Libraries. The library does not contain user interface resources. To include it in your application project, follow the instructions for Adding libraries without resources.

The Gradle build script dependency identifier for this library is as follows:

com.android.support:palette-v7:21.0.0

v7 recyclerview library

The recyclerview library adds the RecyclerView class. This class provides support for the RecyclerView widget, a view for efficiently displaying large data sets by providing a limited window of data items.

This library is located in the /extras/android/support/v7/recyclerview/ directory after you download the Android Support Libraries. The library contains user interface resources. To include it in your application project, follow the instructions for Adding libraries with resources.

The Gradle build script dependency identifier for this library is as follows:

com.android.support:recyclerview-v7:21.0.0