Top 7 Things for React Native Developer to Follow
Tags: javascript, reactnative, news, programming
Published: 2023-03-01 06:42:26

Once upon a time, there was a talented programmer who was happy, fulfilled, and admired. He was **well-paid** and **living the dream**. His team was growing, and the project they worked on was improving. His boss thought he was the luckiest man in the world to have him on board.

However, there was one thing that ruined his career. Just one little thing and…
It all fell apart.

He couldn’t get a rise.
**No one wanted to hire him anymore.**
All his teammates left the team, and he had to work alone.

Can you guess what the problem was? Do you know what did he do wrong?

That’s right! **He failed to stay up to date with his knowledge!**

The world he once excelled in moved forward so quickly. And **he didn’t keep up**.
His knowledge became outdated. He didn’t know about new features, new techniques, new ways of doing things. **He was stuck in the past.**

It’s like you’re still on version 0.52 and you don’t even know there’s an update! So horrible.

Please don’t be like that guy. Do you know how bad did he end up?
That’s a huge step towards [Burnout](https://dev.to/wilkuintheair/i-was-sick-of-coding-luckily-i-got-fired-and-it-changed-my-life-5afd)!

It’s essential to stay informed and up to date.

Please make sure **you’re up to date**.

In this blog post, we’ve compiled an alphabetical list of the **top seven things that every React Native developer should follow**.

## 1. [AppJS Conference](https://appjs.co/)
> App.js Conf is a React Native & Expo-focused conference organized by Software Mansion. The last edition was a blast! We’ve brought together over 330 developers from all around the world, listened to over 20 talks by React Native professionals, discussed the present and the future of mobile development and danced till morning at the afterparty!

A great conference full of **insightful** and **inspiring** talks, takes place in Krakow, Poland. I think that’s my favourite. I’ve attended it twice and I must say – it’s really well organised.

The main focus is on React Native but there’s also a lot about **Expo**. I used to think (like many React Native Developers i talked to) that Expo is good for newbies, just to start moving around quickly.

But AppJS made me try it once again (after 5 years of using React Native) and now I see why it becomes the **default way of doing React Native apps**! No more Expo related problems for advanced apps and weird edge cases! It all works like a charm together.

There are 2 different ticket types – one for the conference only and one for the conference + workshops.

And the **workshops** are run by top class contributors from the React Native world, like **Krzysztof Magiera** or **William Candillon**!

## 2. [React Working Group](https://github.com/reactwg/)
I think Github is undervalued source of knowledge, opinions or news. There are not only Code, Issues and Pull requests tabs there!

I personally like to visit [React Working Groups](https://github.com/reactwg) repo. There are tons of **valuable Discussions** (yes, remember to visit the Discussions tab). Those 2 repositories are absolutely minimum to follow.

### [React Native Releases](http://github.com/reactwg/react-native-releases/discussions)
> This repository is dedicated to coordinating React Native releases; if you want to learn more about how a release is worked on, please refer to the releases documentation.****

If you’re waiting for a **new release** to come, you can check the progress in the react-native-releases repo.

### [React Native New Architecture](https://github.com/reactwg/react-native-new-architecture)
> This is a discussion-only repository to coordinate and support the rollout of the React Native New Architecture. You can access to the working group via the Discussions Tab on Github.
> 
> The intention of this group is to offer a space where the community can meet and discuss about the New Architecture of React Native (being the Fabric Rendered and the TurboModule system). Moreover, we’re going to use this working group to share information and updates with the wider community for the sake of transparency.

The long-awaited **New Architecture** has recently became reality. There are many mysteries about how it work, so for in-depth knowledge about the New Architecture there’s no better place then react-native-new-architecture repo.

## 3. [React Native EU Conference](https://www.react-native.eu/)
> React Native EU is the biggest community conference in Europe focused exclusively on React Native. This is a unique place where React Native developers can expand their knowledge by learning from Core Contributors and the best industry leaders. Every September since 2017 we bring the React Native community together and create ample opportunities for inspiration and growth.

Previous editions were full of React Native world’s celebrities and influencers among speakers, from companies like **Meta, Microsoft, Stripe, Shopify, Skype, Wix** – just to name few.

I’ve attended its online version twice. I must say – it’s the best organized online conference I’ve seen! I hope next time I’ll make it to attend in person.

## 4. [React Native Radio Podcast](https://reactnativeradio.com/)
> A weekly podcast exploring React Native workflows, industry news.

That’s a funny one! I love the jokes and funny stories that open each episode 😂

There’s a wide variety of topics (but all around React Native) – from discussing the latest changes, through **popular libraries**, concepts, challenges, to **comparing React Native** to other crossplatform tools like Flutter.

If you’re a podcast guy like me – this is a must listen!

## 5. [The React Native Newsletter](https://reactnativenewsletter.com/)
> A curated, fun to read newsletter all about React Native Free bi-weekly summary of React Native news, articles, libraries, apps, and more! 12,000+ subscribers and counting

One of the very few newsletters I read on a regular basis. Each issue published every other week is full of the most important, **hand-picked news** from the React Native world. If you want to stay up to date and don’t have too much time – The React Native Newsletter is **the only thing** you have to read.

I really encourage you to subscribe and try it for yourself!

## 6. [The React Native Show Podcast](https://www.callstack.com/podcast-react-native-show)
> In this series we talk about the most intriguing and relevant aspects of React Native and its ecosystem.
– What’s coming up with the latest updates of open source libraries?
– What are the plans for the future development of React Native?
– How can React Native and its open source libraries help in business development and make developers’ work more efficient?
> 
> And many more!

I like this one because of wonderful guests being invited to episodes. Library creators, **core maintainers**, great people from Meta, Microsoft and other big companies. The hosts of this podcast (Mike Grabowski and Lukasz Chludziński) are going deeply into **advanced details** of the topic which makes you understand what’s the backstage view from the guest’s perspective.

## 7. [William Candillon – YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/@wcandillon)
> Maker of the “Can it be done in React Native?” YouTube series ⚛️🎥

William Candillon provides **detailed tutorials** on complex React Native topics and showcases some of the most complex and **creative projects** using React Native.

He mostly focuses on outstanding look and feel using **advanced animation techniques**. William not only shows you how to build a nice user experience but also explains in detail how and why it works like that.

He also covers the latest React Native news, updates and features.

His videos are a great **source of inspiration** for developers looking to learn more about React Native.

## Summary
It is so important to follow what’s going on in the industry you’re in. You can be the most successful person in the team or company. But if you don’t follow, you’ll be left behind sooner than you think.

Top 7 Things for React Native Developer to Follow is made of resources I’m personally following. **I really love each one of them** because they bring **so much value** to my professional life.

What is your Thing that you’re passionately following related to React Native? I’d love to keep this list growing!