React Custom Hook Controller Pattern: Creating a Sortable Table
Tags: react, tutorial, typescript, webdev
Published: 2024-05-15 09:21:08

In React development, custom hooks are a handy tool for sharing logic between components, but they're not limited to just that. They are particularly useful for managing complex state interactions or combining multiple hooks. In this article, we'll explore how custom hooks can be used to create a sortable table in a React app. We'll discuss their benefits and show how to implement them for this specific use case.

## The problem

In many situations in React development, when we need to add complex features, we often find it hard to do so in a way that keeps the code clean and easy to manage. If we don't have a clear plan, putting this feature directly into the component can make the code too complicated and hard to work with. In this case, let's consider a very simple example:

{% embed https://gist.github.com/JBassx/99b709d06ab15c36ae3339ac5aefaf1d %}


## Understanding Custom Hook Controllers

React's custom hook controllers serve as central hubs for managing complex state and behavior across components. They enhance the concept of custom hooks by providing a structured approach to encapsulate detailed logic. By consolidating logic within these controllers, developers can streamline their codebases, making them cleaner and more manageable. This organizational approach facilitates code comprehension, debugging, and collaboration. Additionally, the modular nature of custom hook controllers simplifies testing, as logic is encapsulated within reusable functions. 

## Implementing the pattern

Let's review the previous code and see how we can improve it using custom hook controllers. We'll start by refining the existing code to create a custom hook controller named useSortableTable, which effectively encapsulates the sorting logic:

{% embed https://gist.github.com/JBassx/1936c8ea3c30f41a2261b6aab0d0b62d  %}

Now that we have defined the `useSortableTable` custom hook controller, let's integrate it into our table:

{% embed https://gist.github.com/JBassx/362085917faf70dba10a82974354de7c %}

In this updated `SortableTable`, we import and use the `useSortableTable` hook controller. It returns the sorted data (`sortedData`), the current sort key (`sortKey`), the sort direction (`sortDirection`), and a function to toggle sorting by key (`sortByKey`). We utilize these values to render the table headers with appropriate sorting indicators and to display the sorted data in the table body.

## Adding new features

One of the advantages of using custom hook controllers is the ease of adding new features to your components. Let's enhance our sortable table component by adding a feature to toggle the selection of table rows.

We can simply add `selected` property in each `TableDataItem`, which indicates whether an item is selected or not. To implement the toggle selection feature, we can utilize this property along with the `toggleSelect` function provided by our `useSortableTable` hook controller.

{% embed https://gist.github.com/JBassx/14532589c577d41219ef7a585af3b6f0 %}

Now that we have updated our `useSortableTable` hook to include the `toggleSelect` function, let's integrate it into our `SortableTable` component:

{% embed https://gist.github.com/JBassx/b571bc81b22cf45045f8fcacbdd04a67 %}

In this updated `SortableTable` component, we've added a new column for selection in the table. Each row contains a checkbox input that reflects the `selected` property of the corresponding `TableDataItem`. We use the `toggleSelect` function from the `useSortableTable` hook controller to toggle the selection state when the checkbox is clicked.

This new feature enhances the functionality of our sortable table component, allowing users to select or deselect individual table rows with ease.

## Conclusion

React's custom hook controllers provide an effective approach to managing complex state interactions within applications. By encapsulating intricate logic within a centralized custom hook controller, developers can achieve cleaner and more maintainable codebases. This approach not only promotes better code organization but also facilitates testing and enhances reusability.

Furthermore, the flexibility and extensibility of custom hook controllers allow for seamless integration of new features, demonstrating their versatility in handling evolving application requirements. In summary, leveraging custom hook controllers empowers developers to build scalable and maintainable React applications by promoting code separation, facilitating testing, and enhancing reusability. Embracing this approach can lead to more efficient development workflows and robust applications in the long run.

[Github repo](https://github.com/JBassx/react-patterns-sortable-table)
[LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/in/josephciullo/)