Build for Scale: Use a Design System in your React Native app. Part 1: Introduction to the Design System

Introduction

This series of build for scale: Is About the advanced way to use React native app.

I will talk about methods, best practices, how-to use guides, and advanced approaches on how to use the most used tools, and packages. Taking into account how to structure it in your app, how to architect the solution, and advanced approaches for a performant, secure, and scalable app.

This series is perfect for React Native developers of all levels who want to take their skills to the next level and build apps that stand the test of time. Whether you’re a seasoned professional or just starting, you’ll find invaluable knowledge and practical guidance to transform your React Native development journey I explained in the previous article how to optimise

In this article, I will talk about the Design system in general. I divide it into three parts, where the first part will be mostly Theoric to understand the concept of a Design system and what it must include.?

What is a Design?System

Have you ever encountered a mobile app where the buttons look like they came from a different app on each screen? Or maybe the fonts seem to change their minds as you navigate? Inconsistent UI can be a real eyesore for users, making it difficult to learn and navigate your app. This is a common challenge faced by development teams working without a Design System.

A Design System in Mobile is like a set of Legos for your app’s UI. It’s a central hub containing all the reusable components, design guidelines, and code snippets that define your app’s visual language. Imagine it as a single source of truth for everything that makes your app look and feel the way it does.

What is the benefit of using a design?system

By using a Design System, you can:

• Ensure Consistency: No more rogue buttons or font rebels! A Design System enforces a consistent look and feel across your entire app, making it feel polished and user-friendly.
• Boost Efficiency: Pre-built, reusable components save development time. Instead of reinventing the wheel for every screen, developers can simply pull components from the Design System, freeing them to focus on core functionality.
• Improved Collaboration: Design Systems bridge the gap between designers and developers. Designers establish the visual language, while developers translate it into reusable components, fostering a smoother workflow.

Example of big companies design?system

• Google Material Design: [Material Design by Google] This comprehensive system defines the look and feel of Google’s digital products, ensuring a consistent user experience across platforms.
• Apple Human Interface Guidelines: [Apple Human Interface Guidelines] Apple’s detailed guidelines outline how to design interfaces for Apple products, resulting in a unified experience across their ecosystem.
• Microsoft Fluent Design System: [Microsoft Fluent Design System ON Microsoft ] Microsoft’s Fluent Design System provides a set of tools and guidance for creating user interfaces for their applications, promoting a cohesive look and feel.

What does a Design system?include?

Reusable UI Components:

• Atoms: These are the basic building blocks like buttons, text inputs, icons, and pickers.
• Molecules: These are groups of atoms that form functional units like navigation bars, search bars, or form groups.
• Organisms: Molecules come together to create more complex UI components like modals, product cards, or article previews.

Design Guidelines:

• Color Palette: A set of approved colors for backgrounds, text, accents, and other UI elements.
• Typography: Specifications for fonts, sizes, weights, and line heights used throughout the app.
• Spacing: Guidelines for margins, padding, and white space to ensure a balanced and consistent layout.
• Accessibility: Standards for color contrast, focus states, and other features to ensure your app is usable by everyone.

Code Snippets and Documentation:

• Component Code: Reusable code for each UI component, ensuring consistent implementation across the app.
• Usage Documentation: Clear instructions and examples on how to use each component effectively.
• Design Principles: The overarching design philosophy that guides the visual language of your app.

Additional Considerations:

• Voice and Tone: Guidelines for the language used within the app, ensuring a consistent brand voice.
• Interaction Design: Standards for animations, transitions, and touch interactions to create a smooth and intuitive user experience.
• Design Tools: Resources like Sketch libraries or React Native component libraries to streamline the design and development process.

Design System in Action: Building Consistent Text?Inputs

Text Inputs, those workhorses for user interaction, are another prime example of components benefiting from a Design System. Here’s how it streamlines their development and use:

• Visual Style: The Design System defines the look and feel of TextInputs. This includes properties like background color, border style, corner radius, font styles (size, weight, color), and potentially placeholder text appearance.
• Functionality: The Design System might specify default behaviors for TextInputs, such as auto-correction, auto-capitalization, keyboard type (numeric, email, etc.), and text selection/editing functionalities.
• Accessibility: A well-designed Design System ensures TextInputs are accessible to all users. This includes proper color contrast for text and background, along with clear visual indications for focus and error states (like red borders for invalid input).

Example: Text Inputs in Action

Imagine your app has different types of TextInputs:

1. Username Input: This requires alphanumeric characters. The Design System might define this TextInput with a standard background color, a clear border, and a placeholder text reminding users to “Enter Username.”
2. Password Input: Security is paramount here. The Design System could define this TextInput with a similar background and border but with password masking (showing dots instead of characters) and a placeholder text like “Enter Password.”

By using these pre-defined TextInput components, developers can ensure consistency across the app. Users will instantly understand the purpose of each TextInput based on its visual cues. This not only improves the user experience but also saves development time by eliminating the need to code styles and behaviors for each TextInput.

This is just a glimpse into how Design Systems can standardize TextInputs within your React Native app. The same principles apply to various other UI components, promoting a cohesive and efficient development process.

Conclusion

In this first part, I didn’t go into details of technical implementation until the next article, but it will help you Engineer your design system in a better way than copying and pasting code that you don’t even understand.

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