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TechStack

Comprehensive overview of the technology stack for modern user interface development.

Overview​

This document covers the essential technologies, frameworks, and tools used in modern UI development. Understanding this tech stack will help you make informed decisions when building user interfaces.

Frontend Frameworks​

React​

React is a JavaScript library for building user interfaces with a component-based architecture.

Key Features:

  • Virtual DOM for efficient updates
  • Component-based architecture
  • Unidirectional data flow
  • Rich ecosystem
  • JSX syntax

Installation:

npm create vite@latest my-app -- --template react
cd my-app
npm install
npm run dev

Basic Example:

import { useState } from 'react';

function App() {
  const [count, setCount] = useState(0);

  return (
    <div>
      <h1>Count: {count}</h1>
      <button onClick={() => setCount(count + 1)}>
        Increment
      </button>
    </div>
  );
}

export default App;

When to Use:

  • Large-scale applications
  • Need for extensive third-party libraries
  • Teams familiar with JavaScript
  • SEO-friendly apps (with Next.js)

Vue.js​

Progressive JavaScript framework for building user interfaces.

Key Features:

  • Template syntax
  • Reactive data binding
  • Component composition
  • Easy learning curve
  • Single-file components

Installation:

npm create vue@latest my-app
cd my-app
npm install
npm run dev

Basic Example:

<template>
  <div>
    <h1>Count: {{ count }}</h1>
    <button @click="increment">Increment</button>
  </div>
</template>

<script setup>
import { ref } from 'vue';

const count = ref(0);

const increment = () => {
  count.value++;
};
</script>

When to Use:

  • Projects needing gentle learning curve
  • Integration with existing projects
  • Teams preferring template syntax
  • Progressive enhancement

Angular​

Full-featured framework for building web applications.

Key Features:

  • TypeScript-based
  • Two-way data binding
  • Dependency injection
  • Comprehensive tooling
  • RxJS for reactive programming

Installation:

npm install -g @angular/cli
ng new my-app
cd my-app
ng serve

Basic Example:

import { Component } from '@angular/core';

@Component({
  selector: 'app-counter',
  template: `
    <div>
      <h1>Count: {{ count }}</h1>
      <button (click)="increment()">Increment</button>
    </div>
  `
})
export class CounterComponent {
  count = 0;

  increment() {
    this.count++;
  }
}

When to Use:

  • Enterprise applications
  • Teams using TypeScript
  • Need for built-in solutions
  • Large, complex projects

State Management​

Redux​

Predictable state container for JavaScript applications.

Installation:

npm install @reduxjs/toolkit react-redux

Example:

import { createSlice, configureStore } from '@reduxjs/toolkit';

const counterSlice = createSlice({
  name: 'counter',
  initialState: { value: 0 },
  reducers: {
    increment: state => {
      state.value += 1;
    },
  },
});

export const { increment } = counterSlice.actions;

export const store = configureStore({
  reducer: {
    counter: counterSlice.reducer,
  },
});

Use Cases:

  • Complex state logic
  • Multiple components sharing state
  • Need for time-travel debugging
  • Large applications

Zustand​

Lightweight state management solution.

Installation:

npm install zustand

Example:

import { create } from 'zustand';

const useStore = create((set) => ({
  count: 0,
  increment: () => set((state) => ({ count: state.count + 1 })),
}));

// Usage in component
function Counter() {
  const { count, increment } = useStore();
  return <button onClick={increment}>{count}</button>;
}

Use Cases:

  • Small to medium applications
  • Need for simplicity
  • Minimal boilerplate
  • Quick prototypes

MobX​

Simple, scalable state management through observables.

Installation:

npm install mobx mobx-react-lite

Example:

import { makeAutoObservable } from 'mobx';
import { observer } from 'mobx-react-lite';

class CounterStore {
  count = 0;

  constructor() {
    makeAutoObservable(this);
  }

  increment() {
    this.count++;
  }
}

const counterStore = new CounterStore();

const Counter = observer(() => (
  <button onClick={() => counterStore.increment()}>
    {counterStore.count}
  </button>
));

Use Cases:

  • Object-oriented programming preference
  • Automatic reactivity needed
  • Complex domain models
  • Teams familiar with OOP

Styling Solutions​

CSS-in-JS​

Styled Components​

npm install styled-components
import styled from 'styled-components';

const Button = styled.button`
  background-color: ${props => props.primary ? 'blue' : 'gray'};
  color: white;
  padding: 8px 16px;
  border-radius: 4px;
  border: none;
  cursor: pointer;

  &:hover {
    opacity: 0.8;
  }
`;

// Usage
<Button primary>Primary Button</Button>

Emotion​

npm install @emotion/react @emotion/styled
import styled from '@emotion/styled';

const Button = styled.button`
  background-color: blue;
  color: white;
  padding: 8px 16px;
`;

Utility-First CSS​

Tailwind CSS​

npm install -D tailwindcss postcss autoprefixer
npx tailwindcss init -p
const Button = ({ children, primary }) => (
  <button
    className={`
      px-4 py-2 rounded font-semibold
      ${primary ? 'bg-blue-500 hover:bg-blue-600' : 'bg-gray-500 hover:bg-gray-600'}
      text-white transition-colors
    `}
  >
    {children}
  </button>
);

CSS Modules​

/* Button.module.css */
.button {
  background-color: blue;
  color: white;
  padding: 8px 16px;
  border-radius: 4px;
}

.button:hover {
  opacity: 0.8;
}
import styles from './Button.module.css';

const Button = ({ children }) => (
  <button className={styles.button}>{children}</button>
);

UI Component Libraries​

Material-UI (MUI)​

React components implementing Material Design.

npm install @mui/material @emotion/react @emotion/styled
import Button from '@mui/material/Button';
import TextField from '@mui/material/TextField';

function Form() {
  return (
    <div>
      <TextField label="Email" variant="outlined" />
      <Button variant="contained" color="primary">
        Submit
      </Button>
    </div>
  );
}

Ant Design​

Enterprise-level UI design system.

npm install antd
import { Button, Input, Form } from 'antd';

function LoginForm() {
  return (
    <Form>
      <Form.Item label="Email">
        <Input />
      </Form.Item>
      <Form.Item>
        <Button type="primary">Submit</Button>
      </Form.Item>
    </Form>
  );
}

Chakra UI​

Accessible component library for React.

npm install @chakra-ui/react @emotion/react @emotion/styled framer-motion
import { Button, Input, Stack } from '@chakra-ui/react';

function Form() {
  return (
    <Stack spacing={4}>
      <Input placeholder="Email" />
      <Button colorScheme="blue">Submit</Button>
    </Stack>
  );
}

Build Tools​

Vite​

Next-generation frontend tooling.

Features:

  • Lightning-fast HMR
  • Optimized builds
  • Built-in TypeScript support
  • Plugin ecosystem
npm create vite@latest my-app
cd my-app
npm install
npm run dev

Webpack​

Module bundler for JavaScript applications.

npm install --save-dev webpack webpack-cli webpack-dev-server

webpack.config.js:

module.exports = {
  entry: './src/index.js',
  output: {
    path: path.resolve(__dirname, 'dist'),
    filename: 'bundle.js',
  },
  module: {
    rules: [
      {
        test: /\.jsx?$/,
        use: 'babel-loader',
        exclude: /node_modules/,
      },
    ],
  },
};

TypeScript​

Typed superset of JavaScript.

Installation:

npm install --save-dev typescript @types/react @types/react-dom

Example:

interface User {
  id: string;
  name: string;
  email: string;
}

interface UserCardProps {
  user: User;
  onEdit: (user: User) => void;
}

const UserCard: React.FC<UserCardProps> = ({ user, onEdit }) => {
  return (
    <div>
      <h2>{user.name}</h2>
      <p>{user.email}</p>
      <button onClick={() => onEdit(user)}>Edit</button>
    </div>
  );
};

Testing Libraries​

Jest​

JavaScript testing framework.

npm install --save-dev jest @testing-library/react @testing-library/jest-dom
import { render, screen } from '@testing-library/react';
import Button from './Button';

test('renders button with text', () => {
  render(<Button>Click me</Button>);
  expect(screen.getByText('Click me')).toBeInTheDocument();
});

React Testing Library​

Testing utilities for React components.

import { render, screen, fireEvent } from '@testing-library/react';

test('button increments counter', () => {
  render(<Counter />);

  const button = screen.getByText('Increment');
  fireEvent.click(button);

  expect(screen.getByText('Count: 1')).toBeInTheDocument();
});

Cypress​

End-to-end testing framework.

npm install --save-dev cypress
describe('Login Flow', () => {
  it('should login successfully', () => {
    cy.visit('/login');
    cy.get('input[name="email"]').type('user@example.com');
    cy.get('input[name="password"]').type('password');
    cy.get('button[type="submit"]').click();
    cy.url().should('include', '/dashboard');
  });
});

API Integration​

Axios​

HTTP client for making API requests.

npm install axios
import axios from 'axios';

const api = axios.create({
  baseURL: 'https://api.example.com',
  timeout: 5000,
});

// GET request
const fetchUsers = async () => {
  const response = await api.get('/users');
  return response.data;
};

// POST request
const createUser = async (userData) => {
  const response = await api.post('/users', userData);
  return response.data;
};

React Query (TanStack Query)​

Data fetching and caching library.

npm install @tanstack/react-query
import { useQuery, useMutation, QueryClient, QueryClientProvider } from '@tanstack/react-query';

const queryClient = new QueryClient();

function App() {
  return (
    <QueryClientProvider client={queryClient}>
      <Users />
    </QueryClientProvider>
  );
}

function Users() {
  const { data, isLoading } = useQuery({
    queryKey: ['users'],
    queryFn: () => fetch('/api/users').then(res => res.json()),
  });

  if (isLoading) return <div>Loading...</div>;
  return <div>{data.map(user => <div key={user.id}>{user.name}</div>)}</div>;
}

Performance Tools​

React Developer Tools​

Browser extension for debugging React applications.

Lighthouse​

Automated tool for improving web page quality.

Web Vitals​

Library for measuring performance metrics.

npm install web-vitals
import { getCLS, getFID, getFCP, getLCP, getTTFB } from 'web-vitals';

getCLS(console.log);
getFID(console.log);
getFCP(console.log);
getLCP(console.log);
getTTFB(console.log);

Modern React Stack​

  • Framework: React 18+
  • Build Tool: Vite
  • State Management: Zustand or Redux Toolkit
  • Styling: Tailwind CSS
  • Component Library: Material-UI or Chakra UI
  • Data Fetching: React Query
  • Forms: React Hook Form
  • Testing: Jest + React Testing Library

Enterprise Stack​

  • Framework: Angular
  • Build Tool: Angular CLI
  • State Management: NgRx
  • Styling: Angular Material
  • Forms: Reactive Forms
  • Testing: Jasmine + Karma

Lightweight Stack​

  • Framework: Vue 3
  • Build Tool: Vite
  • State Management: Pinia
  • Styling: CSS Modules + SCSS
  • Component Library: Naive UI
  • Data Fetching: Axios
  • Testing: Vitest

Development Tools​

Package Managers​

  • npm: Default Node.js package manager
  • yarn: Fast, reliable package manager
  • pnpm: Efficient disk space usage

Version Control​

  • Git: Distributed version control
  • GitHub/GitLab/Bitbucket: Code hosting platforms

Code Editors​

  • VS Code: Most popular code editor
  • WebStorm: JetBrains IDE for JavaScript

Browser DevTools​

  • Chrome DevTools
  • Firefox Developer Tools
  • React DevTools
  • Redux DevTools

Best Practices​

1. Choose the Right Tool​

Select tools based on:

  • Project requirements
  • Team expertise
  • Performance needs
  • Scalability requirements
  • Community support

2. Keep Dependencies Updated​

npm outdated
npm update

3. Use TypeScript for Large Projects​

TypeScript provides type safety and better developer experience for large codebases.

4. Implement Proper Testing​

Use a combination of unit, integration, and e2e tests.

5. Optimize Bundle Size​

Use code splitting and lazy loading:

import { lazy, Suspense } from 'react';

const Dashboard = lazy(() => import('./Dashboard'));

function App() {
  return (
    <Suspense fallback={<div>Loading...</div>}>
      <Dashboard />
    </Suspense>
  );
}