Day 20 Progress Journal: Implementing the Frontend for Comment Box (MERN Stack Instagram Clone)

Today's achievement centered around developing the frontend for the comment box feature, enabling users to engage with posts by leaving comments. This is a significant advancement in enhancing social interaction within the application.

Steps and Achievements:

1. Designing the Comment Box Interface:

   • Created a comment box component that allows users to enter and submit their comments on posts.
   • The interface includes:
     • A textarea for users to write their comments.
     • A submit button to send the comment to the server.
     • Basic styling to ensure the comment box fits seamlessly with the overall layout of the Instagram clone.
   • Implemented a responsive design to guarantee that the comment box is visually appealing on all devices, utilizing CSS flexbox and media queries.

2. Linking the UI with Backend API:

   • Connected the frontend to the backend API for comment submission:
     • When a user types a comment and clicks the submit button, the information is sent to the backend through a POST request.
     • The comment includes the post ID, content, and user authentication token to ensure proper linkage to the post and server validation.
   • Incorporated error handling to display a relevant message if the API encounters an issue (e.g., if the user is not logged in).

3. Showing Existing Comments:

   • Developed a section within each post to showcase existing comments retrieved from the backend. This includes:
     • Displaying the username and content of each comment.
     • Styling the comment section to align with Instagram’s design, ensuring it is user-friendly and easy to read.
   • Utilized React state to dynamically manage the list of comments, ensuring it updates when a new comment is added.

4. User Experience Improvements:

   • Introduced a loading indicator while comments are being retrieved from the server, enhancing the overall user experience.
   • Made sure that the comments section is intuitive and engaging for users.

5. Implemented basic checks for comment content to avoid the submission of empty comments.

6. Test-Driven Development (TDD):

   • Adopted a test-driven methodology to confirm that the comment box and submission features function as intended.
   • Developed unit tests to ensure:
     • The comment box displays correctly.
     • Submitting a comment transmits the data to the backend.
     • Comments are accurately shown after being fetched from the server.

7. Testing the UI:

   • Employed React Testing Library to assess the UI components, making sure the comment box operates properly in various scenarios.
   • Mimicked user actions such as entering text in the comment box and submitting comments to confirm that the submission process works as expected.

8. Reflections and Learnings:

   • I discovered how to effectively connect backend APIs with the frontend in a React application, facilitating a smooth transition between data submission and dynamic content display.
   • I also gained insights into managing form submissions, validation, and error handling in a way that enhances user experience.
   • My skills in responsive design improved, ensuring the UI adjusts well to different screen sizes.

Next Steps:

Moving forward, I will concentrate on enhancing the styling and interactivity of the comment section. This will include refining the UI for better visual appeal and ensuring it operates seamlessly across all devices. Additionally, I will prioritize performance optimization to manage a high volume of comments in upcoming phases.