React.js is a sure winner when it comes to the creation of robust web applications. First of all, it is very exciting because it brings on board something that has not been found in another web development frameworks for many years now. Many web developers love it because it gives then a chance to develop different and very interactive web applications. It has it all, therefore it is hard to miss out in the creation of a web application that will be very useful in the long run.

One thing you should note about React.js, is that your applications will always be written in an expressively-interactive manner by default allowing you to consistently bring robustness into the dynamic sites. It’s great and it is hard to create any fault whenever you are building an application through React.js.

In the creation of a robust web application with React.js, there are several tips as well as processes which are worth trying out and very useful especially if you are new to the framework. These will help you a great deal in the creations you will be making in the future. You will also be able to create your applications faster than you could imagine.

Prototypes

If you want to create an application with React.js, you can easily and quickly prototype it in your browser without necessarily going through the initial tooling setup. This is as easy as it sounds. For instance, if you chose to write your components using the optional JSX syntax, they will be authored in a way that looks exactly like HTML.

What you need to get started here is a simple document that has both React.js and JSX transformer. Below is an illustration:

<script src="https://fb.me/react-0.13.0.js"></script>
<script src="https://fb.me/JSXTransformer-0.13.0.js"></script>
</head>
<body>
<script type="text/jsx">
/** @jsx React.DOM */
</script>
</body>
</html>

The component hierarchy

Applications in React.js must be assembled with components which have been arranged in a hierarchical manner. If you want to have an easy time in the creation of each part of the application, you will have to determine the responsibility for each part of the hierarchy at a time as you draw a box around it. What this means, is that each component must handle one task. In case a complex component, be sure to break it down into many simpler components that will handle one thing at a time. This is the only way to achieve the results that you are looking for.

The props and the state

There are mainly two types of data in React.js:

  • Props: this is the data that is passed in between components
  • State: this is the data which is stored in the component itself.

Components’ props (information posing between it) are unchangeable and immutable but a component is always able to change its state (information inside it). This in the end shows that in React.js, there is always one source of truth.

Therefore, when you are creating an application with react.js, the main decision that you have to make as the architecture in web app development is – the kind of data that each component will have and what the main source of that data will be. Once you find this out, you can be sure to create your apps with ease.

Only three pieces of data are required in this case:

  • The network data
  • The user input
  • The predictions data

An illustration is as below:

illustration

The network data will be taken in by the network and line components. It is usually a large amount of data and in order not to slow things down, you will have to deal with it externally, then you can leave it to the application you are creating.

Also Read: 10 Resources to Get You Started with ReactJS

The component communication

Data here is designed to flow down the component hierarchy, but you will need it to flow up the hierarchy as well so as to have an application that is interactive. In this case, you have to come up with a technique that will be utilised to allow data to flow upwards. There are ways that you can achieve this with ease:

  • You can provide a callback prop as the best and simplest solution in case a component only requires to share data with its direct ancestor. React.js will bind the component methods for every instance automatically, so maintaining the scope will not be a major issues in this case. Below is an illustration:
return ;
}
});

var Child = React.createClass({
render: function() {
return Click me;
}
});
  • If you are aiming at other reaching notifications, you can use a system to publish/subscribe. It is very flexible and easy to maintain. Use a library like PubSubJS, then you can bind and unbind with the lifecycle methods of a component.

An illustration is as below:

var Parent = React.createClass({
handleMyEvent: function(e) {...},
componentWillMount: function() {
window.addEventListener("my-event", this.handleMyEvent, false);
},
componentWillUnmount: function() {
window.removeEventListener("my-event", this.handleMyEvent, false);
},
render: function() {...}
});

var Grandchild = React.createClass({
handleClick: function(e) {
var customEvent = new CustomEvent("my-event",  {
detail: { ... },
bubbles: true
});
React.findDOMNode(this.refs.link).dispatchEvent(customEvent);
},
render: function() {
return Click me;
}
});

The component lifecycle

Components always have a lifecycle which are hooked up to their APIs. The lifecycle in this case is mounting, updates and unmounting. This is the only functionality that has been included in the definition of the component. Example:

componentWillMount and componentWillUnmount methods have been used to incorporate or take away event listeners. There are so many other methods that will allow you to have control over your component state and props.

Once you set up an in-browser environment, you are to deconstruct your UI into simple components. Now work out what data is required in the application, where the data will be and how it will be shared in the application. When this is done, you can now demonstrate your created application.

It is very easy to develop robust web applications using React.js. This is mainly because all the features you will need are provided and the framework itself is designed in such a manner that it creates extraordinary applications.