Refresh indicators

A refresh indicator is a visual cue to indicate that data is being updated or reloaded. It typically appears as a circular icon that animates (often by spinning) when a user performs a "swipe to refresh" by pulling down on a list.

This indicator provides feedback to the user that the system is processing their request to update content, ensuring a responsive and interactive user experience. The refresh indicator disappears once the data has been fully updated, signaling to the user that the latest content is now displayed.

Implementation

How to show a "refresh indicator" while some action that implements a refresh is running?

In Flutter apps, a RefreshIndicator widget asks for a future that complete when the async refresh process is done. This future can be provided by the dispatchAndWait() method.

An example:

// When the user pulls down the list
Future<void> downloadStuff() => dispatchAndWait(DownloadStuffAction());

// In the widget
return RefreshIndicator(
    onRefresh: downloadStuff;
    child: ListView(...),

Or, if you have multiple actions that need to be called to refresh the screen, you can use dispatchAndWaitAll.

Try running the: Dispatch Future Example.