I'm a software engineer working as a full-stack developer using JavaScript, Node.js, and React. I write about my experiences in tech, tutorials, and share helpful hints.
I agree on React's official tutorial, the game example didn't get me any closer to actually building a website using React. While it does highlight some of the key features, the focus seemed to be on showing what it could do rather than how you should use it.
I also thought the official tutorial was unappealing to beginners using the library for the first time. Going into it I was a skeptic because React initially looked to me like a messy legacy PHP or ColdFusion file (but React Hooks looks to help a great deal, so I am excited to try those). My concerns about code maintainability were not alleviated by the tutorial, since we end up with a single file with all of the game components in it. Having the tutorial dive right into class components, rendering, props, and state was a little overwhelming. I was looking for why building an app with React would be beneficial for me and my team and how I could sell them on it, but I left with more questions than answers. I think they could improve it by doing as you did and making it a practical website example and starting out a little more basic with function components/breaking up an app into components.
Thanks for the thoughtful comment Ryan. Indeed I'm also confused.. React's a library meant for developing UIs, making them reusable and reactive to changes. Why not make tutorials that shows its strength in situations webdevs most likely to encounter on their daily work?
But maybe it's also the community's job to help teach each other. So I just try to write this tutorial. Enjoy the post :)
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I agree on React's official tutorial, the game example didn't get me any closer to actually building a website using React. While it does highlight some of the key features, the focus seemed to be on showing what it could do rather than how you should use it.
I also thought the official tutorial was unappealing to beginners using the library for the first time. Going into it I was a skeptic because React initially looked to me like a messy legacy PHP or ColdFusion file (but React Hooks looks to help a great deal, so I am excited to try those). My concerns about code maintainability were not alleviated by the tutorial, since we end up with a single file with all of the game components in it. Having the tutorial dive right into class components, rendering, props, and state was a little overwhelming. I was looking for why building an app with React would be beneficial for me and my team and how I could sell them on it, but I left with more questions than answers. I think they could improve it by doing as you did and making it a practical website example and starting out a little more basic with function components/breaking up an app into components.
Nice job on this tutorial.
I agree. I did the official tutorial and it barely helped. This one here is much more useful.
Thanks for the thoughtful comment Ryan. Indeed I'm also confused.. React's a library meant for developing UIs, making them reusable and reactive to changes. Why not make tutorials that shows its strength in situations webdevs most likely to encounter on their daily work?
But maybe it's also the community's job to help teach each other. So I just try to write this tutorial. Enjoy the post :)