Develop Reference

unable to find a React.Component by id

I have a React.Component with render() declared this way:
render(){
return <div>
<button id="butt" onClick={()=> $("#noti").change("test") }>click me</button>
<Notification id="noti" onMounted={() => console.log("test")}/>
</div>
}
And this is my Notification class:
class Notification extends React.Component {
constructor(props) {
super(props)
this.state = {
message: "place holder",
visible: false
}
}
show(message, duration){
console.log("show")
this.setState({visible: true, message})
setTimeout(() => {
this.setState({visible: false})
}, duration)
}
change(message){
this.setState({message})
}
render() {
const {visible, message} = this.state
return <div>
{visible ? message : ""}
</div>
}
}
As the class name suggests, I am trying to create a simple notification with message. And I want to simply display the notification by calling noti.show(message, duration).
However, when I try to find noti by doing window.noti, $("#noti") and document.findElementById("noti"), they all give me undefined, while noti is displayed properly. And I can find the butt using the code to find noti.
How should I find the noti? I am new to front end so please be a little bit more specific on explaining.

It's not a good idea using JQuery library with Reactjs. instead you can find a appropriate react library for notification or anything else.
Also In React we use ref to to access DOM nodes.
Something like this:
constructor(props) {
super(props);
this.noti = React.createRef();
}
...
<Notification ref={this.noti} onMounted={() => console.log("test")}/>
more info: https://reactjs.org/docs/refs-and-the-dom.html

I have hardcoded the id to 'noti' in the render method. You can also use the prop id in the Notification component.I have remodelled the component so that you can achieve the intended functionality through React way.
class App extends React.Component {
constructor(props) {
super(props);
this.state = {
messageContent: 'placeholder'
}
}
setMessage = (data) => {
this.setState({messageContent : data});
}
render() {
return (
<div className="App">
<button id='butt' onClick= {() => this.setMessage('test')} />
<Notification message = {this.state.messageContent} />
</div>
);
}
}
class Notification extends React.Component {
render () {
const {message} = this.props;
return (
<div id='noti'>
{message}
</div>
)
}
}

Before beginning: Using id/class to reach DOM nodes is not suggested in React.js, you need to use Ref's. Read more at here.
In your first render method, you give id property to Notification component.
In react.js,
if you pass a property to some component, it becomes a props of that
component. (read more here)
After you give the id to Notification, you need to take and use that specific props in your Notification component.
You see that you inserted a code line super(props) in constructor of Notification? That means, take all the props from super (upper) class and inherit them in this class.
Since id is HTML tag, you can use it like:
class Notification extends React.Component {
constructor(props) {
// inherit all props from upper class
super(props);
this.state = {
message: "place holder",
visible: false,
// you can reach all props with using this.props
// we took id props and assign it to some property in component state
id: this.props.id
}
}
show(message, duration){
// code..
}
change(message){
// code..
}
render() {
const {visible, message, id} = this.state
// give that id to div tag
return <div id={id}>
{message}
</div>
}
}

You can't pass id/class to a React Component as you would declare them in your normal HTML. any property when passed to a React Component becomes a props of that component which you have to use in the component class/function.
render() {
const {visible, message} = this.state
// give your id props to div tag as id attr
return <div id={this.props.id}>
{message}
</div>
}

This answer does not provide the exact answer about selecting a component as you want. I'm providing this answer so you can see other alternatives (more React way maybe) and improve it according to your needs.
class App extends React.Component {
state = {
isNotiVisible: false
};
handleClick = () => this.setState({ isNotiVisible: true });
render() {
return (
<div>
<button onClick={this.handleClick}>Show Noti</button>
{this.state.isNotiVisible && (
<Noti duration={2000} message="This is a simple notification." />
)}
</div>
);
}
}
class Noti extends React.Component {
state = {
visible: true
};
componentDidMount() {
setTimeout(() => this.setState({ visible: false }), this.props.duration);
}
render() {
return this.state.visible && <div>{this.props.message}</div>;
}
}
ReactDOM.render(<App />, document.getElementById("root"));
<script src="https://cdnjs.cloudflare.com/ajax/libs/react/16.6.3/umd/react.production.min.js"></script>
<script src="https://cdnjs.cloudflare.com/ajax/libs/react-dom/16.6.3/umd/react-dom.production.min.js"></script>
<div id="root" />

React Native - Cascade state updates from parent to child

I'm trying to cascade a state change from a parent component down to a child.
export default class App extends React.Component {
constructor(props) {
super(props);
this.listUpdater = new_list_updater();
this.state = {
schoollist: this.listUpdater.update_list(),
}
}
listUpdateCallback = () => {
console.log("Callback triggered!");
console.log(this.state.schoollist.slice(1,3));
this.setState({schoollist: this.listUpdater.update_list()});
console.log(this.state.schoollist.slice(1,3));
}
render() {
return (
<SafeAreaView style={styles.container}>
<Header updateCallback={this.listUpdateCallback}/>
<SchoolList school_list={this.state.schoollist}/>
</SafeAreaView>
);
}
}
listUpdater.update_list() is a method in a class that implements getISchools and ShuffleArray and stores the list of schools that are being shuffled. It returns the shuffled list of schools.
import { shuffleArray } from './Shuffle'
import { getISchools } from './iSchoolData'
class ListUpdater{
constructor() {
console.log("Initiating class!");
this.currentSchoolList = [];
}
update_list() {
console.log("Updating list!");
if (this.currentSchoolList.length == 0){
this.currentSchoolList = getISchools();
}
else{
shuffleArray(this.currentSchoolList);
}
return(this.currentSchoolList);
}
}
export function new_list_updater(){
return new ListUpdater();
}
As far as I can tell everything works. When I press a refresh button in the Header component, it triggers the updateCallback, which updates the list stored in the state variable (verified by logging to console and ComponentDidUpdate()
This is the Component not refreshing:
import React from 'react';
import { StyleSheet, Text, View, SafeAreaView, FlatList } from 'react-native';
export default class SchoolList extends React.Component {
constructor(props) {
super(props);
}
render() {
return (
<SafeAreaView style={styles.listArea}>
<FlatList
data = {this.props.school_list}
renderItem = {({item}) =>
<View style={styles.row}>
<View style={styles.num_area}>
<Text style={styles.num_text}>{item.key}</Text>
</View>
<View style={styles.text_area}>
<Text style={styles.univ_text}>{item.univ}</Text>
<Text style={styles.school_text}>{item.school}</Text>
</View>
</View>
}
/>
</SafeAreaView>
);
}
componentDidUpdate(){
console.log("SchooList Updated!");
}
}
The flow I'm expecting is:
Parent passes updateCallback reference to Header (child)
Refresh button in Header triggers updateCallback in Parent
updateCallback in Parent updates state with setState
Parent and relevant children that use state variable re-render, displaying new list
1-3 appear to be working, 4 is not!

Maybe your componenet is not re-rendering when you use setState for some reason. Try adding a warn in the render method to check this. I also noticed you are mutating the array this.currentSchoolList, winch is passade as reference for your state (all objects are passed as refence). Try replaceing this making a copy of the array beforing calling shuffleArray(this.currentSchoolList).
You can copy the array this way (this is ES6 sintax): newArray = [...oldArrray];
Or using other methods.

React Component receive props but doesn't render it, why?

I have a page displaying user's books.
On this MyBooks page, React component mount. When it's mounted it fetch user's books through API. Then it update component's state with user's books.
mount component
fetch books through API
when we have results, update component's state
render again BooksList component (but it's not happening)
Here is my code for MyBooks component :
class MyBooks extends Component {
// TODO: fetch user info
constructor(props) {
super(props);
this.state = {
books: [],
errors: []
};
this.fetchBooks = this.fetchBooks.bind(this);
}
componentDidMount() {
console.log('component mounted!');
this.fetchBooks();
}
fetchBooks() {
let _this = this;
BooksLibraryApi.getBooks().then(foundBooks => {
console.log('books found:', foundBooks);
_this.setState({
books: foundBooks
});
});
}
render() {
console.log('MyBooks state:', this.state);
return (
<Section>
<Container>
<h1>My books</h1>
<BooksList books={this.state.books} />
</Container>
</Section>
);
}
}
export default withRouter(MyBooks);
Here is the result for console.log('books found:', foundBooks):
Here is my code for BooksList component :
class BooksList extends React.Component {
render() {
console.log('BooksList props:', this.props);
return (
<Columns breakpoint="mobile">
{this.props.books.map((book, i) => {
console.log(book);
return (
<Columns.Column
key={i}
mobile={{ size: 'half' }}
desktop={{ size: 2 }}
>
<BookCard book={book} />
</Columns.Column>
);
})}
</Columns>
);
}
}
export default BooksList;
Here is the code for BookCard component:
class BookCard extends React.Component {
constructor(props) {
super(props);
console.log('props', props);
this.readBook = this.readBook.bind(this);
this.addBook = this.addBook.bind(this);
this.deleteBook = this.deleteBook.bind(this);
this.wantBook = this.wantBook.bind(this);
}
readBook() {
BooksLibraryApi.readBook(this.props.book.id);
}
addBook() {
BooksLibraryApi.addBook(this.props.book.id);
}
wantBook() {
BooksLibraryApi.wantBook(this.props.book.id);
}
deleteBook(e) {
BooksLibraryApi.deleteBook(this.props.book.id, e);
}
render() {
return (
<div className="card-book">
<Link to={`/book/${this.props.book.id}`}>
{this.props.book.doHaveThumbnail ? (
<Image
alt="Cover"
src={this.props.book.thumbnailUrl}
size={'2by3'}
/>
) : (
<div className="placeholder">
<span>{this.props.book.title}</span>
</div>
)}
</Link>
<Button fullwidth color="primary" size="small" onClick={this.wantBook}>
Add to wishlist
</Button>
</div>
);
}
}
export default withRouter(BookCard);
The console.log in BooksList component is not called. Which means that the component is render only one time, when the this.props.books array is empty.
I don't understand why BooksList is not rendered again when his props are updated (when MyBooks component has his state updated).
Strange behavior: I'm using React Router, and when I first click on the link "My books" (which go to my MyBooks component), it doesn't work, but when I click again on it, everything works fine. Which means that something is wrong with rendering / component's lifecyles.
Thanks.

How can I wrap the Children of a Parent component in a HOC and render them in React?

Let me start by saying that this example is very simple and can be solved with React.cloneElement. But I want more freedom and the project will be more complex, so I'd like to find a solution.
I would also like to understand what I'm missing :/
I want to be able to augment the children of a Parent component with props and methods (hence the HOC). It would start from here:
<Parent>
<aChild />
<anotherChild />
<yetAnotherChild />
</Parent>
And this is the Parent component (called Sequence in my project), so far:
import React, { Component } from 'react';
const withNotification = handler => Component => props => (
<Component onAnimationEnd={handler} {...props} />
);
class Sequence extends Component {
constructor(props) {
super(props);
this.state = {
pointer: 0,
};
this.notifyAnimationEnd = this.notifyAnimationEnd.bind(this);
this.Children = React.Children.map(this.props.children, Child =>
withNotification(this.notifyAnimationEnd)(Child)
);
}
notifyAnimationEnd() {
// do stuff
}
render() {
return (
<div>
{this.Children.map((Child, i) => {
if (i <= this.state.pointer) return <Child />;
return <div>nope</div>;
})}
</div>
);
}
}
export default Sequence;
I get the following error:
You can play with the code here: https://codesandbox.io/s/6w1n5wor9w
Thank you for any help!

This answer will not solve your problem but maybe gives a hint why this is not possible. At first I was surprised why your code does not work, even though I'm not an experienced React developer it seems ok map this.props.children through with React.Children.map and return the desired Component with your HOC. But it did not work.
I tried to debug it a little bit and did some search. I've learned props.children actually contains the elements itself not the instances of components. Even, React.Children.map does not have any effect on this.
Here is a working snippet proves that your problem is not related with the HOC. I've used an array of components instead of mapping through props.children.
class Line1 extends React.Component {
componentDidMount() {
setTimeout(this.props.onAnimationEnd, 1000);
}
render() {
return <div>Line 1</div>;
}
}
class Line2 extends React.Component {
componentDidMount() {
setTimeout(this.props.onAnimationEnd, 1000);
}
render() {
return <div>Line 2</div>;
}
}
class Line3 extends React.Component {
componentDidMount() {
setTimeout(this.props.onAnimationEnd, 1000);
}
render() {
return <div>Line 3</div>;
}
}
const withNotification = handler => Component => props => (
<Component onAnimationEnd={handler} {...props} />
);
class Sequence extends React.Component {
constructor(props) {
super(props);
this.state = {
pointer: 0
};
this.notifyAnimationEnd = this.notifyAnimationEnd.bind(this);
this.Arr = [ Line1, Line2, Line3 ];
this.Children = this.Arr.map(Child =>
withNotification(this.notifyAnimationEnd)(Child)
);
}
notifyAnimationEnd() {
this.next();
}
next() {
// Clearly, render the next element only if there is, a next element
if (this.state.pointer >= this.Arr.length - 1) {
return;
}
this.setState({ pointer: this.state.pointer + 1 });
}
render() {
return (
<div>
{this.Children.map((Child, i) => {
if (i <= this.state.pointer) return <Child />;
return <div>nope</div>;
})}
</div>
);
}
}
ReactDOM.render(
<Sequence />,
document.getElementById("app")
);
<script src="https://cdnjs.cloudflare.com/ajax/libs/react/15.1.0/react.min.js"></script>
<script src="https://cdnjs.cloudflare.com/ajax/libs/react/15.1.0/react-dom.min.js"></script>
<div id="app"></div>

You are returning <Child /> instead of Child in Sequence.js render method. Here is my edited copy - codesandbox

What's the proper way to pass dependencies between components in React?

Imagine that Component A creates a list of items that Component B needs to display. What's the proper way to pass data from Component A to Component B from their parent?
For example, let's say that Component A's constructor creates a list of items and has a function _getListItems() that returns that list. I'm hoping the parent can then pass that list on to other components via props.
My naive (non-working) implementation has their parent attempting to render the components like this:
render () {
return (
<div>
<h1>Data Test</h1>
<ComponentA ref='compa'/>
<ComponentB items={this.refs.compa._getListItems()}/>
</div>
);
}
....although the code above doesn't work, I hope it illustrates what I'm trying to do.
ps. nOOb to react and javascript, so forgive me if the answer to my question's obvious...

Divide your components into two separate categories.
Presentational Component that has responsibility to display a thing. This component should not have state (except for UI state).
Container Component that knows the data.
https://medium.com/#dan_abramov/smart-and-dumb-components-7ca2f9a7c7d0#.skmxo7vt4
So, in your case the data should created by parent of ComponentA and ComponentB and pass the data to both ComponentA and ComponentB via props.
Example:
render(){
let items = this._getListItems();
return (
<div>
<ComponentA items={items} />
<ComponentB items={items} />
</div>
);
}
Edit
Rewrite OP's approach in the comment:
class MyContainer extends React.Component {
constructor(props) {
super(props);
this.state = { stuff: [1,2,3] };
}
render() {
return (
<div>
<ComponentA items={this.state.stuff} />
<ComponentB items={this.state.stuff} />
</div>
);
}
}

Following the accepted answer above, I've just had a (related) EUREKA moment, so I'm going to expand on the answer; when the parent uses its own state to pass props to its children, whenever the parent's state changes, its render() function is called, thus updating the children with the updated state. So you can do stuff like this:
class MyContainer extends React.Component {
constructor(props) {
super(props);
let sltd = this.props.selected
this.state = {
stuff: [1,2,3],
selected: sltd
};
}
_handleAStuff(value) {
this.setState(selected: value)
//do other stuff with selected...
}
_handleBStuff(value) {
this.setState(selected: value)
//do other stuff with selected...
}
render() {
return (
<div>
<ComponentA items={this.state.stuff} selected={this.state.selected} parentFunc={this._handleAStuff.bind(this)} />
<ComponentB items={this.state.stuff} selected={this.state.selected} parentFunc={this._handleBStuff.bind(this)} />
</div>
);
}
}
MyContainer.defaultProps = {
selected: 0
}
class ComponentA extends React.Component {
constructor(props) {
super(props)
}
_handleSelect(value) {
this.props.parentFunc(value.label)
}
render() {
const itm = this.props.items.map(function(values) {
return { value: values, label: values}
})
return (
<div>
<Select
options={itm}
value={this.props.selected}
onChange={this._handleSelect.bind(this)}
/>
</div>
);
}
}
// ComponentB...
The callback pattern above means that ComponentA and ComponentB do not need to maintain state, they simply 'render stuff', which is also pretty cool. I'm beginning to see the power of REACT...