In this episode of Syntax, Scott and Wes talk about React State libraries, should you use them, pros, cons, and more!
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Show Notes
01:24 - Context
- Have we used?
- Pros
- Built into React
- As simple or complex as you want
- Cons
- Takes effort to optimize
- Takes effort to plan and organize aka can get out of hand quickly
08:49 - Redux
- Have we used?
- Pros
- Huge user base
- Legacy of growth and improvements
- Modern API
- Even though it’s hard to learn, it has a clear “how to build with it” path
- Dev tools
- Cons
- Complex
- Thing that calls a thing that calls a thing that calls a thing
- Confusion around what additional packages are needed, e.g. ducks, saga, whatever
17:08 - XState
- Have we used?
- Pros
- Cons
- Knowledge overhead - having to understand state machines
- Complex syntax
23:26 - Zustand
- Have we used?
- Pros
- Fast, scalable, easy to use
- Simpler
- No context providers
- Cons
- Smaller community 2.6k stars on Github
- Can inform components transiently (without causing render)
27:04 - Apollo Client
- Have we used?
- Pros
- Fits in well with your GraphQL API
- Dev tools
- Cons
- Complex, large syntax for simple operations
- Dev tools
- SSR story is really complex. It’s hard because they aren’t also the framework.
31:35 - RXJS
- Have we used?
- Observable based
33:02 - React Query
- Have we used?
- Pros
- Fast growing community
- Awesome dev tools
- Cons
- Not sure if this can be used for application state or just data
35:37 - Recoil
- Have we used?
- Pros
- Very good for complex, splintered state needs
- Cons
- Overly complex for most use cases
38:34 - MobX
- Have we used?
- Pros
- Big community
- Not just React
- Powerful
- Observable capabilities
- Cons
- Uses decorators, but doesn’t have to?
43:15 - Easy Peasy
- Have we used?
- Pros
- Simple API (easy peasy)
- Redux dev tools supported
45:06 - Meteor ReactiveDict / ReactiveVar
- Have we used?
- Pros
- Very simple
- Get, set
- Is Reactive
- Cons
46:19 - Final Thoughts On State
- Wes: Go for simpler solutions
- Scott: I think application state should be separate from application data, but maybe that’s because there isn’t a solution that does both how I want
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