 Courses from Laurie Barth

A series of lessons to help you get more familiar with modern JavaScript syntax.

JavaScript® (often shortened to JS) is a lightweight, interpreted, object-oriented language with first-class functions, most known as the scripting language for Web pages, but used in many non-browser environments as well such as node.js or Apache CouchDB. It is a prototype-based, multi-paradigm scripting language that is dynamic, and supports object-oriented, imperative, and functional programming styles.

javascript

ES6 and Beyond

MDX is an authorable format that lets you seamlessly use JSX in your markdown documents. You can import components, like interactive charts or notifications, and export metadata. This makes writing long-form content with components a blast.



Laurie Barth walks us through MDX v2's syntax by trying to break it. She starts at markdown syntax and takes us through increasingly complex applications of MDX, including passing dynamic props to .mdx files imported into other .mdx files.

MDX v2 Syntax

Learn how to use the features of `gatsby-theme-blog` version 2.0.

Gatsby is a blazing fast static site generator built with React. Gatsby gives you all of the modern JavaScript tools you want; set up and ready to go out of the box.

gatsby

Blog Theme 2.0

Set up `gatsby-theme-blog` in order to add pre-built blog functionality to your Gatsby site.

Install and Configure Gatsby Blog Theme

Use the built-in `prismPreset` option to add prism highlighting to `gatsby-theme-blog`.

Note that this is only available in Blog Theme 2.0 and beyond.

Add Prism Highlighting to a Gatsby Blog Theme site

You can use optional chaining to access elements in an array. If the array is null or undefined, attempting to access an element with optional chaining prevents an error from being thrown, returning undefined instead.

Safely Access a Property on a JavaScript Array with Optional Chaining

You can use optional chaining to access properties of an object. If the parent property exists, it acts as a typical dot accessor. If not, optional chaining prevents an error from being thrown and instead returns undefined.

Safely Access a Property on a JavaScript Object with Optional Chaining

Learn how to use splice with one, two or three+ arguments.
With one argument splice removes all elements past that index.
With two arguments it removes the number of elements specified past the first argument index.
With three+ arguments it removes the elements specified and adds all elements passed into the function.

Add and Remove Elements in an Array Using Splice

Visual Studio Code is an integrated development environment (IDE) built and maintained by Microsoft. It is offered free of charge.

vscode

Use the Peacock extension to assign colors to the border of each VS code window or project.

Apply Colors to your VS Code border to Differentiate Between Windows

Determine whether a keybinding in VS Code is duplicated and change the binding to a unique set of keys so you can use the shortcut.

Find and Fix Keybinding Clashes in VS Code

Cascading Style Sheets bring order and beauty to our applications.

Use the hover pseudo-class to apply conditional styling when a user interacts with an element but has not yet activated it.

Conditionally Apply Style on Hover with the CSS Hover Pseudo-class

Use the focus-within pseudo-class to conditionally assign styling to a parent element when its child receives focus.

Conditionally Assign Style to a Parent Element with Focus-Within Pseudo-class

Use the focus pseudo-class to assign conditional styling when I user selects an element.

Conditionally Style an Element with the Focus Pseudo-class

Use nested destructuring to access the value of an object within an object.

Nested Destructuring for Objects

Use the flatMap function to both map and flatten at the same time.

Array.prototype.flatMap from ES2019

Use the spread operator to copy a flat object. Note that this is a shallow copy.

Copy an Object with the Spread Operator

Arrays can be iterated through using both for...in and for...of, but there are differences. This video shows that for...of accesses the values of each element and for...in accesses the indexes of each element.

For...in Loop vs. For...of Loop

Use the spread operator to merge multiple arrays. This example uses two, but the same pattern can be used.

Merge Arrays using the Spread Operator

Using the spread operator you can merge objects. This example uses two objects, but the syntax is the same for more. Note that duplicate keys will be overridden.

Merge Objects with JavaScript's Spread Operator

Use the spread operator to create a copy of a flattened array.

Copy an Array with the Spread Operator

Use these functions in order to flip back and forth between an Object and an Array.

Convert an Object to an Array and back again with Object.entries and Object.fromEntries


Using Cursor Chat, you can easily reference an entire directory of files and ask it to generate anything based on those files. This opens up the possibility of using your current code as a reference guide to create new code that follows existing patterns. With this approach, the result can be a polished prompt you can use with any AI to generate consistent and reliable output.

Focus less on crafting the perfect prompt upfront - what matters most is testing and iterating based on the AI's responses. The more results you see from the prompt, the more you can reinforce the good results and prune out the bad results until your prompt is polished enough that you can rely on the prompt to give you consistent quality results.


Create AI Prompts Based on a Directory of Files


With Cursor's "Composer" feature, you can select and entire directory and make changes to every file. This video walks through the process of selecting a folder and refactoring all the files from JavaScript to TypeScript. It also demonstrates other tips around generating terminal commands and customizing your main Cursor "Rules for AI".


Run an AI Refactor on Every File in a Directory with Cursor


This lesson breaks down the concept of asynchronous iterators and generators in JavaScript. Using the Node.js glob function as a practical example, you'll learn how Array.fromAsync facilitates the creation of arrays from asynchronous iterables and how generators can improve performance in file processing tasks.

Efficient File Processing in Node.js with Async Generators and Array.fromAsync

Learn the concept of asynchronous iterators and generators in JavaScript and Node.js Array.fromAsync


With the introduction of Svelte 5, the Svelte team has created a CLI, `sv`, that unifies all the tasks that previously spread across a handful of CLIS (create, add plugins, and migrate).

This lesson will create a Svelte project using the new `sv` CLI and build a counter component to showcase the new `$state`, `$derived`, and `$effect` runes that ship with the new version.



Get Started with Svelte 5 using the sv CLI

You'll create a SvelteKit project using the sv CLI and build a counter component showcasing Svelte $state, $derived, and $effect runes.



pnpm ships with a streamlined, easy way of managing Node.js versions for youself and your team. This video demonstrates why pnpm uses a specific version of Node.js, how to configure it globally, and how to set up your project so that anyone who is running your project will automatically use the same version of Node.js even if that version of Node.js is not installed.


use pnpm as a Node.js version manager

How you build with Angular has changed quite a lot over the years.

For example, the `inject` function was introduced in version 14 but you might still be familiar with Angular's constructor injection.

Similarly, structural directives like `ngif` or `ngfor` have been replaced with `@if` and `@for` blocks since version 17 and beyond.

These are patterns that need to be adjusted if you want to stay up-to-date with the latest Angular has to provide.

Luckily, Angular gives you great tools in the form of a migration CLI for supporting your migration efforts as you incrementally update your App from older version features and patterns. 

When you're done with this course you'll know how to target specific features, folders, and files to migrate to the latest Angular version.

You'll learn how to 'migrate':
- Structural directives with control flow syntax
- Constructor dependency inject to inject function
- Make components standalone
- Lazy load routes
- Input/Output decorators to signal-based API


Angular Migrations in Practice

Migrate old Angular patterns for version 18 and beyond

When we import assets in React components outside of the `public` folder that Nitro reads for assets by default when running the development server we need to tell Nitro how to find them with the `devProxy` configuration option.

```typescript
export default defineNitroConfig({
  renderer: './renderer.ts',
  devProxy: {
    '/app/assets': 'http://localhost:5173/app/assets'
  }
})
```

This is ultimately inadequate in scenarios where you want to import assets arbitrarily and have them "just work" but works in a pinch.



Use devProxy in Nitro Config to Serve Static Imported Assets in Dev Mode via Vite

Learn how to use devProxy in Nitro Config with Vite to serve static assets in React components in dev mode.

Start with a basic Vite React TypeScript app and enhance it for production use by integrating Nitro as the server. 

This requires a custom Vite plugin for nitro as well as a custom renderer and manually creating Nitro config.

The other way to approach this would be to add Vite to a Nitro app instead. Same basic result.

The [Nitro config reference](https://nitro.unjs.io/config) is a great read of you'd like to explore more options.


Configure a Vite React TypeScript Application on a Basic Nitro Server

Configure a Vite React TypeScript app by integrating Nitro for production, using custom plugins, renderers, and configs.

Quick Get Started style introduction to Vite using `pnpm create vite` with the React TypeScript template.

See [more in the official docs](https://vite.dev/guide/).

Create a Vite App with the React TypeScript Preset

Quick guide to start a Vite app using React TypeScript template with pnpm.

Over the years, your application have grown huge. Sometimes, really HUGE.

Many developers have contributed to the codebase. One day they pushed one coding style, a different one another day. Sometimes even different patterns and solutions for similar problems.

You want to keep your codebase consistent. In the Angular ecosystem, there were well established patterns for doing things the right way ™️. But the old solutions are being challenged by signal-based approach.

Eventually, you ask yourself the key question: **Should you integrate with the NEW solutions or stick to the battle-tested ones, but already considered LEGACY**?

That's a very good question indeed. Don't rush with architectural decisions 🤓.

## First, think of what problems you want to solve by introducing the change.

Do you have 1k LoC Angular components? Maybe even 2k? Do you and your team enjoy working with these? 😏

Where does the **domain logic and state management code** belong to - do you have a clear guidance on which code should be put where? Have you spot that different devs implement similar features in totally different ways?

Do you keep on asking the same questions over and over again: **whether this certain piece of code** should be **imperative** (plain old object properties and variables) or **reactive** (streams)? It'd be nice to keep all thinga reactive, but more often than not, it introduces complexity.

## Second, think of long-term consequences.

You are going to have more than one way to **manage the state**. But is that really an issue? If your codebase is modular, separate modules should not depend on each other in any way. Inner abstractions of one should be invisible to the other, etc.

You are going to introduce a **new tool**. On one hand, you need to learn it, and so does your team. But on the other hand, it's a breathe of fresh air. And it's useful to question the way you've been doing things so far. Maybe there's a more effective way?

You are going to embrace signal-based APIs. And that means taking taking advantage of Zoneless Angular. This means using all modern Angular APIs. And you know that signals are the future. Why would you want to stick to the **less performant, less type-safe, less flexible and, objectively, less effective solutions**?

## Finally, plan your INCREMENTAL integration.

INCREMENTAL is the absolute keyword here. You don't want to tell your PM you need to stop delivering features because of a refactor.

Actually, there's no need for a "refactor". Just pick the first new feature to be implemented. Or pick the one that needs to be extended.

NGRX Signal Store allows you to create both very simple & small stores, as well as bigger ones. **Composition** is the key here.

**Start simple**.

Create a `withState` section with the signals that hold the state. That's already reactive. And relatively simple.

```ts
const initialState: CartState = {
  items: ...,
  rebate: ...,
}

export const CartStore = signalStore(
  withState(initialState)
);
```

Create a `withMethods` section to provide ways to change the state:

```ts
export const CartStore = signalStore(
  ...
  withMethods((store) => ({
    addItem(item: ShoppingItem): void {
      patchState(store, (state) => ({ items: [ ...state.items, item ] }));
    },
    ...
);
```

Create a `withComputed` section to provide all derived computations:

```ts
export const CartStore = signalStore(
  ...
  withComputed(({ items }) => ({
    totalPrice: computed(() => items().reduce(...))
    ...
);
```

**Start simple**.

Now you can (literally) **`inject` this code into your existing solution**. All you need is to inject your brand new NGRX Signal Store implementation into a component, or a service:

```ts
@Injectable()
class ExistingBigService {
  cartStore = inject(CartStore)
  //...  
}
```

and that's it! What's beatiful is that NGRX Signal Store should remain an implementation details (of a component, service, etc). It **shouldn't leak outside to the entire application unintentionally**. Small NGRX Signal Stores help us to **keep logic more modular**.

Don't hesitate - give NGRX Signal Store a try! Start with the [_**Scalable Signals Angular Architecture with NGRX Signal Store**_](https://egghead.io/courses/scalable-signals-angular-architecture-with-ngrx-signal-store-a33abd39) course now!

Integrating NGRX Signal Store with an existing Angular application

Integrate NGRX Signal Store into your Angular app incrementally for modular, reactive state management. Improve consistency and performance with modern APIs.

Laurie Barth

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