ctr-loader

Description

An unopinionated-ish loader specifically designed to work hand-in-hand with ctr and its Javascript API. The loader itself is pretty damn simple, and the heavy lifting is done through the ctr Javascript API. Nevertheless, without working knowledge of both ctr and it's complementary Javascript API this loader will be of little use.

Documentation

The documentation is on docs.ctr-lang.com because I can control the format and presentation. The following links correspond to the various parts of the documentation.

• ctr-loader
  • Info
  • webpack.config.js
  • Mode of Operation
  • requireWatch
  • Loader Options

The Gist

module.exports = {
  // ...
  module: {
    rules: [{
      test: /\.ctr(\.js|\.yml|\.yaml)$/,
      use: ['style-loader', 'css-loader', 'ctr-loader']
    }]
  }
  // ...
};

Test's

I love tests, and I try to treat every test like a mini-demo or an example in and of itself. Accordingly, the tests not only validate the raw mechanics of Webpack but also to give a better understanding of the modes of action ctr can facilitate. In fact, I would go as far as to say the tests focus more on the mode of action compared to the Webpack mechanics, although, you can't have one without the other. I highly encourage you to cruise on over to /__tests__ because I can only convey limited context through wordz.

Thoughts on Naming Conventions

I'm a big fan of the [filename].ctr.js and [filename].ctr.yml file extension naming convention for a few reasons, but primarily because it eliminates potential ambiguities. However, this naming convention by no means is mandatory, and you can use any test Regex you desire for the loader.

In the tests, for the main ctr entry point, I employ the naming convention of _index.ctr.js. My thinking behind this convention is it ensures the entry file is always at the top of the folder directory. Nonetheless, I should note, this convention could confuse other developers since the underscore typically signals a private meaning of sorts.

Individual ctr styles, depending on size and grouping should be in split into separate files when it makes sense. Then if possible the file names should correspond to the styles selector, i.e. box.ctr.js, nav.ctr.js. This naming convention builds upon the .ctr.js filename extension convention to quickly allow you to navigate to specific style files though a fuzzy file search.

Thoughts on Structure

My current thoughts regarding a pure Javascript ctr structure is quite malleable, but in my opinion, you should focus your project around single entry points. That is, for a component style, depending on size, I would break the ctr file down into corresponding style elements and have a single entry point in which you coalesce those styles via requireWatch. At the same time, writing ctr styles in Javascript is a pain in the butt, and you should consider a structure that favors the YAML flavor of ctr.

Generally speaking, I recommend you utilize CSS preprocessor architectures like ITCSS. There's no reason to reinvent the wheel even if you're trendy cat CSS'ing in JS. In relative terms, requireWatch is the same thing as a CSS preprocessor's @import. Also, keep in mind, requireWatch can accept an Array of file paths, so you don't have to wear out your little weary fingers by having to type requireWatch a billion times like you have to do with @import.

In terms of ctr classes, you should and can leverage them. As I mention in the documentation, don't rely on webpack's loading order of require. One would think you could, or at least I did at one point, however, during production builds specifically about ~8% of the time things get fucked in more or less words. As far as I can ascertain the fault lies in ctr but as to why I'm not all to sure, and I can only assume it's a combination of factors like the weather. In retrospect, regardless of this bug/error, I believe this implicit structure is by it's nature an anti-pattern. Rather I suggest you use a declarative approach when it comes to classes in which you use requireWatch at the head of a style. This not only solves the build bug/error, but more importantly it indicates to other developers that you're using classes and the location of said classes.

Webpack 1.x.x Tests?

Sorry, don't got the time to spin up all those rhymes.

Best, te