Android上的MVVM与DataBinding或RxJava？

Question

I am building an Android app and am fairly new to both MVVM and data binding concepts on Android.

I have read at a few places ( like here ) that both RxJava and Google's DataBinding library can be used for implementing MVVM pattern.

I went through the official Android documentation for DataBinding and am going through a project referenced by Google on Mvvm using DataBinding. However, I have no idea how RxJava works as of yet, which might be obvious from the question.

My question is, keeping in mind the long term goals of extending my app, is it worth investing effort in learning RxJava? Or does DataBinding suffice as a complete substitute for it? I don't know RxJava at all but by reading about it online gives me the impression that it can solve a wide range of problems.

I do not mind investing time in learning RxJava but is it worth the effort than simply using Google's DataBinding (which I have some sort of grasp on)?

Answer 1

RxJava is a completely different concept than DataBinding. It's more of a way of handling concurrency than it is about binding data. I 100% think it's worth learning. The Android community has embraced it with open arms.

Shameless plug: I compiled a list of RxJava resources awhile back - http://gregloesch.com/dev/2014/10/20/resources-for-learning-rxjava-android.html