Book Image

React Native By Example

By : Richard Kho
Book Image

React Native By Example

By: Richard Kho

Overview of this book

React Native's ability to build performant mobile applications with JavaScript has resulted in its popularity amongst developers. Developers now have the luxury to create incredible mobile experiences that look and feel native to their platforms with the comfort of a well-known language and the popular React.js library. This book will show you how to build your own native mobile applications for the iOS and Android platforms while leveraging the finesse and simplicity of JavaScript and React. Throughout the book you will build three projects, each of increasing complexity. You will also link up with the third-party Facebook SDK, convert an app to support the Redux architecture, and learn the process involved in making your apps available for sale on the iOS App Store and Google Play. At the end of this book, you will have learned and implemented a wide breadth of core APIs and components found in the React Native framework that are necessary in creating great mobile experiences.
Table of Contents (17 chapters)
Title Page
Credits
Foreword
About the Author
About the Reviewer
www.PacktPub.com
Customer Feedback
Preface

Platform


When your files have such little variance in the differences between their iOS and Android functionalities, it's okay to use the same file. Utilizing the Platform API, we can identify the type of mobile device the user is on and conditionally send them down a specific path.

Import the Platform API along with the rest of your React Native components:

import { Platform } from 'react-native';  

Then call its OS property within a component:

  _platformConditional () { 
    if (Platform.OS === 'ios') { 
      doSomething(); 
    } 

    if (Platform.OS === 'android') { 
      doSomethingElse(); 
    } 
  } 

This lets us control the path our app takes and allows for a little bit of code reuse.

Note

Android-specific filesIf we need to create a file that is supposed to only run on Android devices, simply name it <FILENAME>.android.js, just like the two index files. React Native will know exactly which file to build with, and this lets us create components that are platform-specific when...