Devlog-OSS-Finder-03: Good First Issues and Testing

#opensource #testing #aws #webdev

Date: January 26, 2026

Status: Feature Complete — Testing Added

What I Built

A major feature update that transforms OSS Finder from a repository search tool into a complete platform for open-source contribution discovery.

New Capabilities

Good First Issues page — Find beginner-friendly issues across GitHub
Tab navigation — Switch between Repositories and Issues views
TanStack Query caching — Smart data caching for better performance
Testing infrastructure — Vitest + Testing Library for both frontend and backend
Tests in CI/CD — Automated testing on every PR

What I Learned

Caching Is a Game-Changer (TanStack Query)

Before TanStack Query, every search hit the GitHub API:

User searches "react" → API call
User changes page → API call
User goes back to page 1 → API call again (even though we just fetched it)

Now with TanStack Query:

The first search triggers an API call (cached for 5 minutes)
Subsequent identical searches are instant (served from cache)
Automatic background refetching when data goes stale
Built-in loading and error states

Implementation was straightforward. I refactored useRepositories and created useIssues to use useQuery:

const { data, isLoading, error } = useQuery({
  queryKey: ['issues', params],
  queryFn: () => apiService.searchIssues(params),
  staleTime: 5 * 60 * 1000, // 5 minutes
})

Caching isn't just about performance — it's about respecting API rate limits and creating a snappier user experience. GitHub's API has strict limits, and unnecessary calls burn through them fast. Previously, I thought "I'll add caching later if needed." Now I understand: caching should be part of the architecture from the start, not a performance afterthought.

Testing

I added the testing stack and wired it into CI:

Vitest for frontend and backend
Testing Library for React
Tests + lint + format on every PR

Coverage is small, but the pipeline is there, so adding tests is cheap.

That’s it for this iteration: Good First Issue feature, caching is in, tests are running in CI, and the app is ready for the next round of features.

Cheers,
B.

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