Learning React, 2nd Edition

Preface

This book is for developers who want to learn the React library while learning the latest techniques currently emerging in the JavaScript language. This is an exciting time to be a JavaScript developer. The ecosystem is exploding with new tools, syntax, and best practices that promise to solve many of our development problems. Our aim with this book is to organize these techniques so you can get to work with React right away. We’ll get into state management, React Router, testing, and server rendering, so we promise not to introduce only the basics and then throw you to the wolves.

This book does not assume any knowledge of React at all. We’ll introduce all of React’s basics from scratch. Similarly, we won’t assume that you’ve worked with the latest JavaScript syntax. This will be introduced in Chapter 2 as a foundation for the rest of the chapters.

You’ll be better prepared for the contents of the book if you’re comfortable with HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. It’s almost always best to be comfortable with these big three before diving into a JavaScript library.

Along the way, check out the GitHub repository. All of the examples are there and will allow you to practice hands-on.

Conventions Used in This Book

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Italic

Indicates new terms, URLs, email addresses, filenames, and file extensions.

Constant width

Used for program listings, as well as within paragraphs to refer to program elements such as variable or function names, databases, data types, environment variables, statements, and keywords.

Constant width bold

Shows commands or other text that should be typed literally by the user.

Tip

This element signifies a tip or suggestion.

Note

This element signifies a general note.

Warning

This element indicates a warning or caution.

Using Code Examples

Supplemental material (code examples, exercises, etc.) is available for download at https://github.com/moonhighway/learning-react.

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Acknowledgments

Our journey with React wouldn’t have started without some good old-fashioned luck. We used YUI when we created the training materials for the full-stack JavaScript program we taught internally at Yahoo. Then in August 2014, development on YUI ended. We had to change all our course files, but to what? What were we supposed to use on the front-end now? The answer: React. We didn’t fall in love with React immediately; it took us a couple hours to get hooked. It looked like React could potentially change everything. We got in early and got really lucky.

We appreciate the help of Angela Rufino and Jennifer Pollock for all the support in developing this second edition. We also want to acknowledge Ally MacDonald for all her editing help in the first edition. We’re grateful to our tech reviewers, Scott Iwako, Adam Rackis, Brian Sletten, Max Firtman, and Chetan Karande.

There’s also no way this book could have existed without Sharon Adams and Marilyn Messineo. They conspired to purchase Alex’s first computer, a Tandy TRS 80 Color Computer. It also wouldn’t have made it to book form without the love, support, and encouragement of Jim and Lorri Porcello and Mike and Sharon Adams.

We’d also like to acknowledge Coffee Connexion in Tahoe City, California, for giving us the coffee we needed to finish this book, and its owner, Robin, who gave us the timeless advice: “A book on programming? Sounds boring!”