use-react-native-navigation (Experimental)

A utility library for easier use of react-native-navigation library.

Installation

npm: npm install use-react-native-navigation

yarn: yarn add use-react-native-navigation

Prerequisite

This library assumes that your React-Native project has integrated the following libraries:

• React-Native-Navigation
• MobX and Mobx-React /Mobx-React-Lite

How to get started

When you are registering your RNN screen, you need to wrap your screen with a HOC to add useTrackNavigation to hook into RNN event listener.

Step 1 - Create a HOC with useTrackNavigation hook

// HOC.tsx
import React from 'react'
import { observer } from 'mobx-react' // 'mobx-react-lite'
import { useTrackNavigation } from 'use-react-native-navigation'
 
export const wrapRNNScreen = (WrappedComponent) => {
  const HOC = observer(function HOC(props) {
    // This will allow the library to hook into RNN event listeners such as
    // componentDidAppear, componentDidDisappear and modalDismissed.
    useTrackNavigation(props.componentId)
 
    return <WrappedComponent {...props} />
  })
 
  // Hoise RNN options.
  HOC.options = WrappedComponent.options
  return HOC
}

Step 2 - Register your screen with HOC

// index.js
import { Navigation } from 'react-native-navigation'
import { wrapRNNScreen } from './HOC'
import { App } from './App'
 
// Register your screens with wrapRNNScreen HOC.
Navigation.registerComponent('App', () => wrapRNNScreen(App))

Step 3 - Using useNavigation hook

// App.tsx
import React from 'react'
import { Button } from 'react-native'
import { observer } from 'mobx-react' // 'mobx-react-lite'
import { useNavigation, NavigationUtility } from 'use-react-native-navigation'
 
export const App = observer(function App() {
  const navigation = useNavigation()
 
  const push = () => {
    // Notice that we are not using componentId!
    navigation.push(
      NavigationUtility.setLayoutComponent({
        name: 'PushScreen', // name of other registered screen.
      })
    )
  }
 
  return (
    <View>
      <Button title="Push!" onPress={push} />
    </View>
  )
})

That's it! Now you should be able to push, pop, dismissModal and dismissOverlay from anywhere in the component tree.

Limitation

Immediate availability of tracked componentId

As the library relies on the Navigation events, specifically componentDidAppear, componentDidDisappear and modalDismissed, emitted from React-Native-Navigation, the most recent componentId will only be available after the screen is visible/invisible to the user.

For example, if you try to perform navigation before the screen is visible to the user, you might encounter an unexpected behaviour.

// App.tsx
const App = () => {
  const navigation = useNavigation()
 
  // You should NOT do this as `componentId` is not guaranteed to be upto date.
  useEffect(() => {
    navigation.push({ ...layout })
  }, [navigation.push])
 
  // You can do this instead.
  useEffect(() => {
    // You can assume if `updating === false` then the navigation event has completed.
    if (navigation.status.updating) return
    navigation.push({ ...layout })
  }, [navigation.status.updating])
 
  // However it's best used with component interaction. As `componentId`
  // is almost guaranteed to be available if the component is shown.
  return <Button onPress={() => navigation.push({ ...layout })} />
}

NavigationUtility

These navigation utility functions aim to abstract some of the RNN Layout boilerplate required. These functions are also compatible with the vanilla RNN navigation functions.

setLayoutComponent

Create a single layout component.

// Vanilla RNN
import { Navigation } from 'react-native-navigation'
 
Navigation.push(
  'screenComponentId',
  NavigationUtility.setLayoutComponent<PushScreenProps>({
    name: 'PushScreen',
    passProps: {
      // ...props
    },
    option: {
      // ...navigation options
    }
  })
)
 
// useNavigation
import { useNavigation } from 'use-react-native-navigation'
 
const navigation = useNavigation()
navigation.push(
  NavigationUtility.setLayoutComponent<PushScreenProps>({
    name: 'PushScreen',
    passProps: {
      // ...props
    },
    option: {
      // ...navigation options
    }
  })
)

setLayoutStackComponents

Create a stack layout component.

// Vanilla RNN
import { Navigation } from 'react-native-navigation'
 
Navigation.setRoot({
  root: NavigationUtility.setLayoutStackComponents<RootScreenProps>([
    {
      name: 'RootScreen',
      passProps: {
        // ...props
      },
      option: {
        // ...navigation options
      },
    },
  ]),
})
 
// useNavigation
import { useNavigation } from 'use-react-native-navigation'
 
const navigation = useNavigation()
navigation.setRoot({
  root: NavigationUtility.setLayoutStackComponents<RootScreenProps>([
    {
      name: 'RootScreen',
      passProps: {
        // ...props
      },
      option: {
        // ...navigation options
      },
    },
  ]),
})