I Coded 10,000+ React Components, Here is What I Learned...

Summary

Pedro, a full-stack software engineer with 6 years of React experience, shares valuable insights on building maintainable React components. He emphasizes the importance of structure, consistency, and the use of custom hooks to simplify large components. Pedro also discusses the significance of adhering to React's rules, such as purity and proper hook usage, and advises developers on selecting the right state management tools. Highlighting the power of server state managers like React Query, he stresses the importance of evolving as a programmer by continuously learning and adapting to new tools and methods in the ever-changing React ecosystem.

Takeaways

• 😀 Structure is key when working with React components, especially as projects scale up. Consistency in how you structure components will help navigate your codebase more easily.
• 😀 Separating logic from UI by using custom hooks improves maintainability. It simplifies debugging, testing, and overall management of components.
• 😀 When structuring a React component, define states first, followed by refs, custom hooks, effects, logical functions, and event handlers before returning JSX.
• 😀 The more 'dumb' or 'presentational' your components are, the better. This makes them easier to test and debug.
• 😀 React components should be pure—avoid side effects in your render functions to prevent unpredictable behavior and bugs.
• 😀 Always call hooks at the top level of your components. Calling hooks conditionally or inside loops or nested functions can cause unpredictable rendering behavior.
• 😀 There is no 'perfect' state manager in React. Each one, whether it's Redux, Zustand, or Context API, has its strengths and weaknesses. Choose the tool based on your project's needs and your familiarity with it.
• 😀 For managing server state in React, use libraries like React Query, Apollo Client, or RTK Query instead of relying on useEffect for fetching data. These tools optimize data fetching, caching, and synchronization.
• 😀 Over time, react developers should adapt their approaches, learn from others, and not cling to one specific methodology. React evolves constantly, and so should your development practices.
• 😀 Avoid writing large, monolithic React components. Splitting them into smaller, focused components improves maintainability and scalability in the long run.
• 😀 Continuous learning is vital in React development. As frameworks evolve, so do best practices. Stay updated with new features, releases, and community-driven improvements.

Q & A

What is the most important thing to consider when structuring React components?

The most important thing is maintaining a consistent structure throughout the project. By adhering to a clear and predictable structure, you make your codebase more navigable and maintainable, especially as your project grows.

What should be the order of operations when structuring a React component?

The recommended order is: first define your states, then define any refs, followed by custom hooks, then handle side effects, and finally include logical functions or event handlers. End by returning the JSX or TSX to render the UI.

How can separating logic from UI improve React component development?

By separating logic into custom hooks, you can make your components simpler and easier to manage. This results in more maintainable, debuggable, and testable components, where the UI and logic are distinct.

What are custom hooks, and how do they benefit React development?

Custom hooks encapsulate logic that can be reused across multiple components, helping to keep components smaller and more focused on rendering. This separation of concerns makes debugging, testing, and maintenance much easier.

Why is it important to follow React's 'purity' rule in components and hooks?

Purity ensures that your components and hooks have no side effects in their render function, which prevents unpredictable behavior. Avoiding direct DOM manipulation and data mutation during rendering helps prevent bugs in the long run.

What is the rule about where hooks should be called in a React component?

Hooks must be called at the top level of your component, not inside loops, conditions, or nested functions. This ensures that React's rendering process remains predictable and consistent.

How does using a server state manager like React Query improve React applications?

Server state managers like React Query streamline data fetching, caching, and synchronization. They abstract away common issues like fetching data on every render, allowing you to manage server data more effectively and improving the performance of your app.

Why does the speaker recommend using React Query over directly fetching data in useEffect?

React Query offers better handling of server state, including automatic caching, synchronization, and background refetching. It removes the complexity and inefficiency of managing server data manually inside useEffect, leading to cleaner, more performant code.

What is the speaker's view on using different state managers in React?

There is no one-size-fits-all state manager; each tool has its strengths and weaknesses. The speaker emphasizes understanding the underlying concepts behind state management rather than getting attached to a particular tool. Tools like Redux, Context API, and Zustand all serve different purposes based on your project's needs.

What does the speaker mean by 'the dumber your component, the better'?

Simpler components that only focus on UI rendering are easier to maintain and debug. By isolating logic into separate custom hooks or services, the component becomes 'dumber' (more focused) and much easier to handle, test, and scale.