Package: django-view-composer
Django View ComposerExtending the Django template system so that you can include a view inside another viewSimple view composition- based on template tagsReusable components- turn any class based view into a reusable componentLightweight- no framework, no core Javascript and no additional Python dependenciesReactive, if you want- integrates nicely with HTMX{%loadview_composer%}<nav>{%view'myapp.views.NavBar'%}</nav>{%viewblock'myapp.views.ListView'%}{%view'myapp.views.ListFilter'%}{%endviewblock%}Quick startDjango View Composer is released on PyPi so you can install using Pip:pipinstalldjango-view-composeror Poetry:poetryinstalldjango-view-composerOnce installed, add to yourINSTALLED_APPSsetting to register the template tags:INSTALLED_APPS=[..."django_view_composer",...]Using theviewtagThe{% view %}tag renders a class based view and includes the content in the current template.It has 1 required argument which is the import string for the view:{%loadview_composer%}{%view'myapp.views.MyView'%}You can also provide a variable for the import string which will be resolved from the current template's context:{%viewview_to_render%}Context variablesSimilar to the{% include %}tag which operates on templates, the included view will be provided with the same context variables from the current template it is being rendered into.These are provided as extra, so they won't replace any context variables the child view might be setting itself.If any context variable names conflict, whatever the child view sets in it's ownget_context_datawill take precedence.You can pass additional context from the template tag:{%view'myapp.views.MyView'withfoo='bar'%}Additional variables can be resolved from the current template's context to pass to the included view:{%view'myapp.views.MyView'withfoo=foo%}Useonlyto limit contextIf you want to render the included view only with the variables provided (or even no variables at all), use the only option. No other variables will be provided to the included view.{%view'myapp.views.MyView'withfoo='bar'only%}View keyword argumentsIf your view requires kwargs in the URL, such as a pattern likeurl_patterns=[path("item/<pk:pk>/edit",ItemEditView.as_view(),name="item-edit-view"),]you can supply these in the template tag directly after the import string and before thewithkeyword:{%view'myapp.views.ItemEditView'pk=pkwithextra_food="spam"%}or without any extra context variables:{%view'myapp.views.ItemEditView'pk=pk%}These kwargs are the ones passed to the view'ssetup(), not to the__init__methodUsing theviewblocktagThe{% viewblock %}tag renders a class based view and includes the content in the current template, but provides a block for additional nodes which are rendered first and made available in the included view’s context.This tag must be closed with a corresponding endviewblock. It has 1 required argument which is the import string for the view:{%loadview_composer%}{%viewblock'myapp.views.MyView'%}<h2>An excellent view!</h2>{%endviewblock%}In the template for themyapp.views.MyView, you can use the children context variable to decide where to render the block content:<div>{{children}}</div>Context variables are supported in the same way as theviewtag.
However, since the block content is renderedbeforethe included view, the additional nodes in the block can only access the current template's context - not the context of the view being included.Nesting viewsTwo different forms of nesting are possibleyou can put a{% view %}or a{% viewblock %}inside a{% viewblock %}in the same templateyou can include a view where its own template includes other viewsViews are rendered in the order that the tags appear in the template.A{% viewblock %}renders the block contentfirstand then renders the view being included.Handling POST viewsMost of the time the views being composed will have GET handlers which return a template response.One of the powerful features of view composition (compared to template includes) is the ability to bring in additional logic, such as including a view which handles a form.However, included views are all rendered with the same HTTP request object which originates from the root view - the top most one which was handled by a URL pattern.If you need to handle a different method in an included view, such as a child view that contains a form POST, you mustmap the included view to a URL pattern as wellmake the request to the view's direct URL, instead of the current URL, when it is submittedUsing the form as an example:from.viewsimportItemCreateViewapp_name="myapp"url_patterns=[path("item/create",ItemCreateView.as_view(),name="item-create-view"),]<formmethod="post"action="{%url'myapp:item-create-view'%}">...</form>Now you can include this view inside another one like{% view 'myapp.views.ItemCreateView' %}and when the form is POSTed it will send the request to the correct view.Modify view dispatchIn some cases you might need to modify how the view is dispatched so it works well when included inside another (or several levels of) view.For example, the Django generic editing views usually return a redirect response. You might want to return another blank instance of the form in the response to a successful POST, or you might want to return a confirmation with an 'Add another' button to bring up a new form.Django View Composer will not render anything if the view being included does not return a template response.ReactiveAn important concept in the view composer is thatthe same views can be included via a template tag or rendered normally via a URL pattern.This provides a foundation for reactivity when coupled withHTMX:initial render of the page- including views via template tagsreactive updates of individual views on a page- calling the view's direct URL pattern and replacing the content in the pageRemember, the view composer is not a framework - its just a template tag that lets you render a view inside another view.
It does not fundamentally change the Django request lifecycle even if you choose to include some reactivity with HTMX.Running testsThere is a growing test suite which can be run$ poetry install
$ poetry shell
$ cd tests
$ ./manage.py testContributingWelcome!