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Week 8

Goals

Here are the goals for this week:

  • Build a static <Sidebar /> component.

Recap and a Quick Note...

I know a lot of people couldn't finish implementing state during last week's session, and that is ok! The concept of state is non-trivial and much harder to implement on your own than tasks from prior weeks.

Which brings me to my note...

If you have free time, go watch a YouTube video and go back in to try again! Even better, read the documentation!

I hate to admit it, but reading documentation is something I only really started doing a few months ago, and I realize now that it is extremely useful and a high ROI for your skills as a programmer/student/human imo.

Try it out!

Now for the objective...

Your Objective

Right now, our Kudos Board is just a form and some cards on a blank page. "Real" apps have navigation, a persistent header, and a consistent layout. When you click a menu button on a mobile site, you naturally expect a sidebar to behave and feel a certain way.

Let's build this.

Your goal this week is to build that static app layout. You'll create a static <Sidebar /> (side menu) using TypeScript.

Motivation

You might be thinking, "Why are we making an individual Sidebar.tsx file? Couldn't I just dump all the HTML into App.tsx?"

Welllll yes, you couldddd, BUT you'd be setting yourself up for a massive headache later.

This idea of breaking your UI into small, self-contained pieces is one of the most important concepts in React (and web dev).

Here's some reasons why:

  • DRY (Don't Repeat Yourself): This is a core programming principle. If you find yourself copying and pasting the same chunk of HTML/CSS/JS, you should probably make it a component. Why? Because if you need to change it, you only have to change it in one file, not 10.
  • It's just easier 🫣...
    • Easier to Fix (Maintainability): If your navbar has a bug, you know exactly where to look: Sidebar.tsx. You don't have to hunt through a giant 1000-line App.tsx file to find the broken <div>.
    • Easier to Read (Readability): When someone else (or you, 6 months from now) looks at your App.tsx, they won't see a wall of code. They'll see <Sidebar />, <KudosForm />and <KudosCards />. You instantly know what the page is made of.
    • Easier to Grow (Scalability): Need another sidebar on a different page down the line? Just import <Sidebar />. You can pass it a prop to change its behavior. This makes building new features way faster.

By building a clean component today, you're building a something that you can trust, understand, and reuse anywhere, which is key to building large, complex projects.

Task Outline

Implement a responsive navigation layout. This will involve creating a <Sidebar /> component.

Your Checklist

To get this done, you'll need to:

  1. Create a new component file Sidebar.tsx (and a CSS file, Sidebar.css).
  2. Build the <Sidebar />.
    • It should be a vertical bar positioned on the left side of the screen.
    • Add a few placeholder links inside like "Home," "Give Kudos," and "Profile." (don't worry about them not going anywhere yet!)
  3. Style with CSS: Now, go into your .css files and make it look good!
    • In Navbar.css, style the .navbar class to be a bar across the top. You might use position: fixed; or sticky; to keep it in view.
    • In Sidebar.css, style the .sidebar class to be a vertical bar that's always visible on the left.
  4. Assemble the Layout: In your main App.tsx, arrange your components. You'll likely have the <Navbar /> at the top, and then the <Sidebar /> and your main content (the Kudos board) sitting side-by-side.

Some Hints...

  • CSS Layout: This is the new challenge! How do you make the main content flow around the static sidebar?
    • Flexbox Method: You could wrap your sidebar and main content in a parent div with display: flex;.
    • Padding Method: If you use position: fixed; for the sidebar, you must add padding-left to your main content container (and padding-top for the fixed navbar) to create space and prevent your content from being hidden underneath.

Also, here's some icons for your sidebar. Simply copy this code and paste (define) at the top of your Navbar.tsx file.

I'm done... what's next!?

Nice! You've got a fully functional layout.

This is a huge step. Next week, we'll look into how to make those sidebar links actually go to different pages by introducing React Router!

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