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NativeScript Core

CSS Animations

CSS animations are based on the simple and easy to use standard CSS3 animations API. You can use them to animate almost every native view without even having to know JavaScript. You have the potential to alter the appearance and behavior of an element whenever a state change occurs, such as when it is touched or activated. You can use multiple frames and change the animation direction. Finally, with CSS animations, you can separate the animation code from your application logic.

CSS animations consist of two components: a style describing the CSS animation and a set of keyframes that indicate the start and end states of the animation's style, as well as possible intermediate waypoints. You can change as many animatable CSS properties you want, as many times you want.

Example 1 binds the "example" animation to the button element. The animation lasts 4 seconds. It will gradually change the background-color of the button element from "red" to "green".

Example 1: How to create simple animation using CSS. 

@keyframes example {
    from { background-color: red; }
    to { background-color: green; }
}

.view {
    animation-name: example;
    animation-duration: 4s;
    animation-fill-mode: forwards;
}

To get an animation to work, you must bind the animation to an element: 

view1.className = "example";

view1.className = "example";

<Button id="myButton" text="{N}" class="example"/>

If the animation-duration property is not specified, the animation will use a default value - 0.3 seconds.

Animatable properties

CSS animations support the same animatable properties used in code-based animations:

  • opacity
  • background-color: Corresponds with the backgroundColor.
  • transform: translate: Corresponds with translateX and translateY properties.
  • transform: scale: Corresponds with scaleX and scaleY properties.
  • transform: rotate: Corresponds with the rotate property.

You cannot set a single x or y field in scale and translate. If you set only x in translate, y will be assumed 0; If you set only y in scale, x will be assumed 1.

Animation properties

A CSS animation is defined by using the animation property and its sub-properties. Those include timing, duration, delay and other animation properties. The actual animation appearance is defined with the @keyframes rule.

The following list presents all animation properties:

  • animation-name: Specifies the name of the @keyframes rule that should be used.
  • animation-delay: Specifies the time between the style is applied and the beginning of the animation.
  • animation-duration: The length of the animation in seconds.
  • animation-iteration-count: Specifies how many times the animation should be played. Default is 1. To repeat an animation forever, use infinite.
  • animation-timing-function: Defines how the animation transitions through keyframes by establishing acceleration curves.
  • animation-fill-mode: Configures what values are applied by the animation after it is executing.
  • animation-direction: Configures whether or not the animation should alternate direction on each run through the sequence or reset to the start point and repeat itself.
  • animation: The shorthand property allows setting all animation properties in a single line.

Animation keyframes

To set multiple points at which an element should undergo a transition, use the @keyframes rule, shown in Example 2. It includes the animation name, any animation breakpoints, and the properties intended to be animated.

Example 2: How to use @keyframes rule. 

@keyframes example {
    from { background-color: red; }
    to { background-color: green; }
}

Example 2 defines an animation with two keyframes. The "from" represents 0% (the start of the animation) and "to" represents 100% (the final value). You can add more keyframes by using percent.

Example 3 shows how to change the background color when the animation is 25% complete, 50% complete, and again when the animation is 100% complete.

Example 3: Changing background color in different animation stages. 

@keyframes example {
    0%   { background-color: red; }
    25%  { background-color: yellow; }
    50%  { background-color: blue; }
    100% { background-color: green; }
}

You can set multiple properties in a keyframe, as shown in Example 4.

Example 4: Changing multiple properties in different animation stages. 

@keyframes example {
    0%   { background-color: red; transform: translate(0, 0); }
    25%  { background-color: yellow; transform: translate(200, 0); }
    50%  { background-color: blue; transform: translate(200, 200);  }
    75%  { background-color: green; transform: translate(0, 200); }
    100% { background-color: red; transform: translate(0, 0); }
}

You can combine keyframes, as shown in Example 5.

Example 5: Set up properties for several keyframes 

@keyframes example {
    0%, 50% { background-color: red; transform: translate(0, 0); }
    25%, 75% { background-color: yellow; transform: translate(200, 0); }
    100% { background-color: red; transform: translate(0, 0); }
}

Delay an animation

The animation-delay property specifies a delay (in seconds) before the animation starts:

Example 6: Set up a delay before the animation starts 

.view {
    background-color: red;
    animation-name: example;
    animation-duration: 4s;
    animation-delay: 2s;
}

Set how many times an animation should run

The animation-iteration-count property defines the number of times an animation should run. The animation in Example 7 will play two times before it stops.

Example 7: How to use animation-iteration-count property 

.view {
    background-color: red;
   animation-name: example;
   animation-duration: 4s;
   animation-iteration-count: 2;
}

If you want to play an animation forever, set this property to "infinite". 

animation-iteration-count: infinite;

Specify the speed curve of the animation

The animation-timing-function property specifies the speed curve of the animation. It can have one of the following values:

  • ease: Specifies an animation with a slow start, then fast, then end slowly (this is the default).
  • linear: Specifies an animation with the same speed from start to end.
  • ease-in: Specifies an animation with a slow start.
  • ease-out: Specifies an animation with a slow end.
  • ease-in-out: Specifies an animation with a slow start and slow end.
  • spring: Specifies a spring animation.
  • cubic-bezier(n,n,n,n): Lets you define your own values in a cubic-bezier function, as shown in Example 8.

Example 8: How to specify the speed curve using cubic-bezier function. 

.view {
    animation-name: example;
   animation-timing-function: cubic-bezier(0.1, 0.1, 1.0, 1.0);
}

Determine the result when the animation ends

The animation-fill-mode property determines the element style when the animation finishes. Its default value is "none". In this case, all animated values will be reset to the state before the animation started. You should choose "forwards" in order to preserve the property values set during the animation.

Example 9: How to use animation-fill-mode property 

.view {
    background-color: red;
    animation-name: example;
    animation-duration: 2s;
    animation-fill-mode: forwards;
}

Animation direction

You can use the animation-direction property to play a CSS animation in reverse direction, as shown in Example 10.

Example 10: How to reverse animation direction. 

.view {
    background-color: red;
    animation-name: example;
    animation-duration: 4s;
    animation-direction: reverse;
}

Animation shorthand

The animation property allows setting all seven animation properties with a single line:

Example 11: How to use animation shorthand property 

.view {
    animation: example 4s ease-in-out 2s infinite reverse forwards;
}

The supported syntax is:

animation: name duration timing-function delay iteration-count direction fill-mode;

You can combine two animations in the animation property by using commas:

Example 12: How to combine several animations in the animation property 

.view {
    animation: example 4s ease-in-out 2s infinite reverse, second-animation-example 5s ease-out;
}

Pseudo selectors

A pseudo selector is used to define a special state of an element. For example, when a button is touched by the user. You can use pseudo selectors to trigger animations:

Example 13: How to trigger animation on element special state 

.button {
    background-color: green;
}

.button:highlighted {
    animation-name: highlight;
    animation-duration: 2s;
    animation-fill-mode: forwards;
}

@keyframes highlight {
    from { background-color: yellow; }
    to { background-color: red; }
}

As of version 2.0, only the Button component has a built-in special state "highlighted" to indicate that it is touched by the user.

Animations - width and height

Example 14: How to animate view's width and height. 

<GridLayout rows="* *" columns="*" class="home-panel">
        <StackLayout row="0">
            <Label text="{N}" class="big-label first-view" textWrap="true" />
        </StackLayout>
        <StackLayout row="1">
            <Label text="{N}" class="big-label second-view" textWrap="true" />
        </StackLayout>
</GridLayout>

.first-view {
    animation-name: example-width;
    animation-duration: 5s;
    animation-fill-mode: forwards;
}

.second-view {
    animation-name: example-height;
    animation-duration: 5s;
    animation-fill-mode: forwards;
}

@keyframes example-width {
    from { width:140; }
    to { width:200; }
}

@keyframes example-height {
    from { height:140; }
    to { height:200; }
}

Demo

Access CSS animations from code

The simplest way to trigger a CSS animation is by changing the element className property:

Example 15: How to trigger CSS animation

var view = page.getViewById("view");
view.className = "transparent";

let view = page.getViewById<viewModule.View>("view");
view.className = "transparent";

All keyframes defined in CSS can be accessed with code by using the getKeyframeAnimationWithName method. This allows further customization of animation properties:

Example 16: Accessing CSS defined keyframe in the code via getKeyframeAnimationWithName method 

import { KeyframeAnimation } from "@nativescript/core";

var view = page.getViewById("view");
var animationInfo = page.getKeyframeAnimationWithName("bounce");
animationInfo.duration = 2000;
var animation = KeyframeAnimation.keyframeAnimationFromInfo(animationInfo);
animation.play(view).then(() => {
    console.log("Played with code!");
});

import { KeyframeAnimation, View } from "@nativescript/core";

let view = page.getViewById<View>("view");
let animationInfo = page.getKeyframeAnimationWithName("bounce");
animationInfo.duration = 2000;
let animation = KeyframeAnimation.keyframeAnimationFromInfo(animationInfo);
animation.play(view).then(() => {
    console.log("Played with code!");
});
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