Reactive VS Code Extension

Overview

Reactive is a powerful VS Code extension designed to enhance the development experience for React applications. Developed as part of the OSLabs program, this tool provides a comprehensive visual representation of your React component structure, making it easier to understand and navigate React projects.

Installation

1. Open VS Code.
2. Go to the Extensions view (Ctrl+Shift+X).
3. Search for "Reactive".
4. Click Install.

Usage

1. Open a React project in VS Code.
2. Access the Reactive from the VS Code sidebar.
3. Click on components in the tree to collapse.
4. Click on State within component node to open State details

Features

• Component Tree Visualization: Procure a clear, hierarchical view of your React component structure.
• Component Type Differentiation: Easily distinguish between functional and class components.
• Language Identification: Quickly identify TypeScript and JavaScript components.
• Full App Structure: Visualize the entire structure of your React application.
• State Inspection: Identify state variables across components.

Product Description

Oftentimes as applications scale, it becomes increasingly challenging to keep track of the structure of an app. As a result, this extends the amount of time it takes for new developers to understand the application landscape and makes it impractical to keep track of code migration progress.

Reactive aims to solve this problem by generating a visual representation of your app's component landscape within VS Code. This extension enables greater visibility into the architecture of the React app and is especially valuable for teams transitioning from class-based components to functional components, as well as from JavaScript to TypeScript.

Contributing to Reactive 🤝

We love your input! Reactive is an open-source project, and we welcome contributors of all skill levels.

Quick Start

# Fork and clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/your-username/reactive.git

# Install dependencies
npm install

# Start development environment
npm run dev

Ways to Contribute

• Fix bugs and issues
• Add new features
• Improve documentation
• Submit feature requests
• Report bugs
• Review code

Getting Started

• First Time Contributors: Check out our First-Time Contributors Guide
• Ready to Code: See our Contribution Guidelines
• Looking for Tasks: Browse our good first issues

For detailed setup instructions, coding guidelines, and best practices, see our CONTRIBUTING.md.

Development Setup

For Contributors

1. Fork & Clone

   # Fork the repository first on GitHub, then:
   git clone https://github.com/your-username/reactive.git
   cd reactive

2. Install Dependencies

   npm install

3. Initial Build

   npm run build

4. Start Development

   # Watch mode for automatic rebuilds
   npm run watch

5. Launch Extension in Debug Mode

   • Press F5 in VS Code to open Extension Development Host
   • OR select Run > Start Debugging
   • A new VS Code window will open with the extension loaded

6. Test the Extension

   • Open a React project in the Extension Development Host
   • Press Ctrl+Shift+P (Windows/Linux) or Cmd+Shift+P (Mac)
   • Type and select Reactive: Start
   • Select the highest-level component in your React application
   • The component tree visualization will appear

Common Development Commands

# Start or Refresh debugger/Extension Development Host
fn F5

Production Build & Testing

# Create production build
npm run build:prod

# Package extension into .vsix file
npm run package

# Test the packaged extension
# 1. In VS Code, in the Extensions view click the '...' menu (top left)
# 2. Select 'Install from VSIX...'
# 3. Choose the generated .vsix file
# 4. Press `Ctrl+Shift+P` (Windows/Linux) or `Cmd+Shift+P` (Mac)
# 5. Type and select `Reactive: Start`
# 6. Select the highest-level component in your React application
#  The component tree visualization will appear

Debugging Tips

• Use VS Code's Debug Console to view extension logs
• Set breakpoints in the TypeScript files
• Use console.log in the webview (outputs to DevTools in Extension Development Host)
• Access Extension Development Host's Developer Tools:
  • Help > Toggle Developer Tools

Common Issues

• If the extension bla bla bla:
  1. Stop the extension
  2. Run ``
  3. Restart debugging (F5)
• If webview bla bla bla:
  1. Run Command ? (Ctrl+Shift+P)
  2. Execute "bla bla bla"

Technologies Used

Core Technologies

• VS Code Extension API - For extension development and VS Code integration
• React 18 - Frontend framework for the webview interface
• TypeScript/JavaScript - Primary development languages
• D3.js - For component tree visualization and dendrograms
• Webpack 5 - Module bundling for both extension and webview

Development Tools

• Babel - JavaScript/TypeScript compilation and React preprocessing
• ESLint - Code quality and style checking
• Mocha - Testing framework

Extension Architecture

• Backend: Node.js-based VS Code extension (TypeScript/JavaScript)
• Frontend: React-based webview (TypeScript/JavaScript)
• Parser: Custom React component parser using Babel

Project Structure

reactive/
├── src/                    # Source code
│   ├── server/            # Extension backend (TS/JS)
│   ├── webview/           # React frontend (TS/JS)
│   └── test/              # Test suites
├── dist/                  # Frontend production builds
└── out/                   # Backend builds (dev/prod) & frontend dev builds

Documentation

• Contributing Guidelines
• VS Code Development Guide
• Changelog
• License

Development Team

Name	Role	GitHub	Email
Colin Rooney	Full Stack Developer	@12mv2	[email protected]
Micah Zeigler	Full Stack Developer	@MZiegler96	[email protected]
Susana Lam	Full Stack Developer	@susanalam	[email protected]

Support

If you encounter any issues or have feature requests, please file an issue on our GitHub repository Reactive, https://github.com/oslabs-beta/reactive.

OSLabs

React Visualizer is a project developed through OSLabs, a nonprofit tech accelerator focused on advancing open-source software and fostering innovation in the tech industry. OSLabs is dedicated to supporting engineers and leaders building high-impact, collaborative open-source tools.

OSLabs' Mission: OSLabs is devoted to furthering open-source innovation by supporting engineering talent in creating developer tools that contribute to the software engineering community and industry as a whole.

For more information about OSLabs:

• Visit: OSLabs Website
• Email: [email protected]
• Phone: (601) 207-4517

OSLabs Programs

• Engineering Fellowship: A paid 6-month program where engineers create and oversee open-source dev tool projects.
• Beta Program: A 3-month initiative where participants receive mentorship to build their open-source skills.
• Hackathons: Co-hosted hackathons with open-source-focused organizations.

Acknowledgements

This project was developed as part of the OSLabs program. We'd like to thank OSLabs for their support and resources.

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Happy coding with Reactive!