Setting Up Article Placeholders In React App

by SLV Team 45 views
Setting Up Article Placeholders in a React App: A Comprehensive Guide

Hey guys! Today, we're diving into a crucial step in building our React application: setting up placeholders for our Articles pages. This might sound like a small task, but it's super important for laying the groundwork for future development. We'll be focusing on adding these placeholders and integrating them into App.js and AppNavbar.js. Let's break it down!

Why Placeholders? The Chicken and Egg Problem

You might be wondering, "Why bother with placeholders?" Well, it all comes down to a classic software development dilemma often referred to as the "chicken and egg" problem. Think of it this way: we can't fully test our navigation and routing (App.js and AppNavbar.js) without having some kind of page to route to. But, we also can't fully test our new pages (ArticlesIndexPage, ArticlesCreatePage, ArticlesEditPage) until they're actually connected to our application's routing.

Placeholders act as temporary stand-ins, allowing us to bridge this gap. They provide a basic structure and functionality so we can ensure our routing and navigation are working correctly before we dive into the full implementation of our Articles feature. It's like building the scaffolding before you start laying the bricks – essential for a stable and well-organized structure.

Acceptance Criteria: What We Need to Achieve

Before we start coding, let's outline our goals. We need to ensure the following:

  • Navigation Link: A link to Articles should be present in the main navigation bar, directing users to the ArticlesIndexPage at the /articles URL.
  • Index Page Links: The ArticlesIndexPage should include links to both ArticlesCreatePage (at /articles/create) and ArticlesEditPage (at /articles/edit/1).

These criteria will serve as our checklist, ensuring we've successfully set up the placeholders and their basic navigation.

Implementation Steps: Let's Get Coding!

Okay, let's get our hands dirty with some code! We'll follow these steps to implement our placeholders:

1. Create Placeholder Page Components

Our first task is to create the three placeholder page components. Under the frontend/src/main/pages/Articles/ directory, we'll create the following files:

  • ArticlesCreatePage.js
  • ArticlesEditPage.js
  • ArticlesIndexPage.js

We'll model these after the existing PlaceholderCreatePage.js, PlaceholderEditPage.js, and PlaceholderIndexPage.js files. The primary change needed here is updating the component names. For example, in ArticlesCreatePage.js, we'll change the default export from PlaceholderCreatePage to ArticlesCreatePage:

export default function ArticlesCreatePage() {
  // ...
}

This ensures our components have the correct names for import and usage throughout the application. This is a crucial step, guys, so double-check those names!

2. Create Placeholder Test Files

Next up, we need to create corresponding test files for our new components. Under the frontend/src/tests/pages/Articles/ directory, we'll create:

  • ArticlesCreatePage.test.js
  • ArticlesEditPage.test.js
  • ArticlesIndexPage.test.js

Similar to the page components, we'll model these after the existing placeholder tests (PlaceholderCreatePage.test.js, etc.). The main change here is updating the import statements to reflect the new component names. This will ensure our tests target the correct components.

3. Update App.js with Article Routes

Now, we'll integrate our new pages into the application's routing. In frontend/src/App.js, we'll add routes for our Articles components, following the pattern used for Restaurants, UCSBDates, and the Placeholder components.

First, we'll add import statements for our three new page components:

import ArticlesIndexPage from "main/pages/Articles/ArticlesIndexPage";
import ArticlesCreatePage from "main/pages/Articles/ArticlesCreatePage";
import ArticlesEditPage from "main/pages/Articles/ArticlesEditPage";

Then, we'll copy and paste the code block used for the other sections, adapting it for our Articles routes:

{
  hasRole(currentUser, "ROLE_USER") && (
    <>
      <Route exact path="/articles" element={<ArticlesIndexPage />} />
    </>
  )
}
{
  hasRole(currentUser, "ROLE_ADMIN") && (
    <>
      <Route exact path="/articles/edit/:id" element={<ArticlesEditPage />} />
      <Route exact path="/articles/create" element={<ArticlesCreatePage />} />
    </>
  )
}

This code snippet ensures that the appropriate components are rendered when a user navigates to the corresponding /articles URLs. Pay close attention to matching the paths and components correctly!

4. Update AppNavbar.js with Articles Link

Our final coding step involves adding a link to Articles in the navigation bar. In frontend/src/main/components/Nav/AppNavbar.js, we'll add a section of code similar to the one used for Restaurants. We'll copy and paste the existing code, making sure to update the path and display name:

{
  hasRole(currentUser, "ROLE_USER") && (
    <>
      <Nav.Link as={NavLink} to="/articles">Articles</Nav.Link>
    </>
  )
}

This adds a new link to our navigation bar, allowing users to easily access the ArticlesIndexPage. Making sure the text and the path match is key here.

5. Fire Up the App and Test!

With our code changes in place, it's time to test! We'll fire up our local development server and navigate to the Articles link in the navigation bar. We should see placeholder pages similar to the ones at the Placeholder link. We'll also test the links within the ArticlesIndexPage to ensure they navigate to the correct Create and Edit placeholder pages. This step is super important to catch any typos or routing errors.

Reminders and Best Practices

Before we wrap up, let's quickly review some important reminders and best practices:

  • Node Version: Always start by setting your node version using nvm use 22.18.0. This ensures consistency across our development environment.
  • Testing: Run tests frequently using npm test. This helps us catch errors early and ensures our code is working as expected.
  • Formatting: Use npm run format to automatically format our code with Prettier, maintaining a consistent code style.
  • Linting: Check for linting errors using npx eslint --fix .. Linting helps us identify potential issues and improve code quality.
  • Mutation Coverage: For more advanced testing, we can check mutation coverage using npx stryker run. This helps us ensure our tests are effectively covering our code.

What's Next?

Now that we've successfully set up our article placeholders, we're ready to move on to the next steps! We'll:

  • Create a Pull Request (PR): We'll follow our usual PR process to submit our changes for review.
  • Review Other PRs: We'll help our teammates by reviewing their PRs.
  • Start Working on the "Create Page for Articles" Issue: We'll dive into implementing the actual functionality for our Articles feature, starting with the create page.

Conclusion

Alright guys, we've made some great progress today! Setting up these placeholders is a fundamental step in building a robust and well-structured application. By addressing the "chicken and egg" problem early on, we've paved the way for smoother development and more effective testing. Remember to always test your code thoroughly and follow best practices to ensure a high-quality end product. Now, let's keep the momentum going and tackle the next challenge! Happy coding!