Basic Concepts

Understanding these fundamental concepts will help you make the most of FlowCraft's AI-powered design-to-code capabilities.

Core Concepts

1. Design Recognition

FlowCraft uses advanced computer vision and machine learning to analyze your designs:

Supported Input Types

Design Files: Figma, Sketch, Adobe XD files
Image Files: PNG, JPG, SVG, WebP
Wireframes: Hand-drawn sketches and mockups
URLs: Live website screenshots
Descriptions: Text-based component descriptions

What FlowCraft Detects

🎯 Layout Structure
   ├── Grid systems
   ├── Flexbox layouts
   ├── Component hierarchy
   └── Spacing patterns

🎨 Visual Elements
   ├── Colors and gradients
   ├── Typography styles
   ├── Images and icons
   └── Borders and shadows

📱 Responsive Breakpoints
   ├── Mobile layouts
   ├── Tablet adaptations
   └── Desktop variations

🔧 Interactive Elements
   ├── Buttons and links
   ├── Form controls
   ├── Navigation menus
   └── Modal patterns

2. Component Generation

FlowCraft transforms designs into production-ready code:

Generation Process

Analysis: AI examines design structure and elements
Mapping: Components are identified and categorized
Code Generation: Clean, optimized code is created
Optimization: Performance and accessibility improvements
Validation: Code quality and standards compliance

Output Formats

// React Component (Default)
const MyComponent = ({ title, subtitle }) => {
  return (
    <div className="component-wrapper">
      <h1>{title}</h1>
      <p>{subtitle}</p>
    </div>
  );
};

// Vue Component
<template>
  <div class="component-wrapper">
    <h1>{{ title }}</h1>
    <p>{{ subtitle }}</p>
  </div>
</template>

// Angular Component
@Component({
  selector: 'app-my-component',
  template: `
    <div class="component-wrapper">
      <h1>{{ title }}</h1>
      <p>{{ subtitle }}</p>
    </div>
  `
})

3. Styling Systems

FlowCraft supports multiple styling approaches:

Tailwind CSS (Recommended)

<div className="bg-blue-500 text-white p-4 rounded-lg shadow-md hover:bg-blue-600">
  Tailwind styled component
</div>

Benefits:

Utility-first approach
Consistent design system
Excellent performance
Easy customization

CSS Modules

import styles from './Component.module.css';

<div className={styles.container}>
  CSS Modules component
</div>

Styled Components

const StyledButton = styled.button`
  background: #3b82f6;
  color: white;
  padding: 1rem 2rem;
  border-radius: 0.5rem;
`;

4. Responsive Design

FlowCraft automatically generates responsive components:

Breakpoint System

/* Mobile First Approach */
.component {
  /* Mobile styles (default) */
  padding: 1rem;
}

@media (min-width: 640px) {
  /* Tablet styles */
  .component {
    padding: 2rem;
  }
}

@media (min-width: 1024px) {
  /* Desktop styles */
  .component {
    padding: 3rem;
  }
}

Responsive Utilities

// Tailwind responsive classes
<div className="p-4 md:p-8 lg:p-12">
  <h1 className="text-2xl md:text-4xl lg:text-6xl">
    Responsive heading
  </h1>
</div>

5. Component Architecture

FlowCraft follows modern React patterns:

Functional Components

// Modern functional component with hooks
import React, { useState, useEffect } from 'react';

const ModernComponent = ({ initialValue = 0 }) => {
  const [count, setCount] = useState(initialValue);
  
  useEffect(() => {
    document.title = `Count: ${count}`;
  }, [count]);

  return (
    <div>
      <p>Count: {count}</p>
      <button onClick={() => setCount(count + 1)}>
        Increment
      </button>
    </div>
  );
};

Props and PropTypes

import PropTypes from 'prop-types';

const Button = ({ 
  children, 
  variant = 'primary', 
  size = 'medium',
  onClick,
  disabled = false 
}) => {
  return (
    <button
      onClick={onClick}
      disabled={disabled}
      className={`btn btn-${variant} btn-${size}`}
    >
      {children}
    </button>
  );
};

Button.propTypes = {
  children: PropTypes.node.isRequired,
  variant: PropTypes.oneOf(['primary', 'secondary', 'danger']),
  size: PropTypes.oneOf(['small', 'medium', 'large']),
  onClick: PropTypes.func,
  disabled: PropTypes.bool
};

FlowCraft automatically includes accessibility features:

ARIA Attributes

<button
  aria-label="Close dialog"
  aria-expanded={isOpen}
  role="button"
  tabIndex={0}
>
  ×
</button>

Semantic HTML

<article>
  <header>
    <h1>Article Title</h1>
    <time dateTime="2024-01-15">January 15, 2024</time>
  </header>
  <main>
    <p>Article content...</p>
  </main>
  <footer>
    <nav aria-label="Article navigation">
      <a href="#prev">Previous</a>
      <a href="#next">Next</a>
    </nav>
  </footer>
</article>

const handleKeyDown = (event) => {
  if (event.key === 'Enter' || event.key === ' ') {
    event.preventDefault();
    onClick();
  }
};

<div
  role="button"
  tabIndex={0}
  onKeyDown={handleKeyDown}
  onClick={onClick}
>
  Custom clickable element
</div>

Advanced Concepts

1. Design Tokens

FlowCraft extracts design tokens from your designs:

// Generated design tokens
export const tokens = {
  colors: {
    primary: '#3b82f6',
    secondary: '#6366f1',
    success: '#10b981',
    warning: '#f59e0b',
    error: '#ef4444'
  },
  spacing: {
    xs: '0.25rem',
    sm: '0.5rem',
    md: '1rem',
    lg: '1.5rem',
    xl: '2rem'
  },
  typography: {
    fontFamily: {
      sans: ['Inter', 'system-ui', 'sans-serif'],
      mono: ['Fira Code', 'monospace']
    },
    fontSize: {
      sm: '0.875rem',
      base: '1rem',
      lg: '1.125rem',
      xl: '1.25rem'
    }
  }
};

2. Component Composition

Build complex UIs from simple components:

// Base components
const Card = ({ children, className = '' }) => (
  <div className={`bg-white rounded-lg shadow-md p-6 ${className}`}>
    {children}
  </div>
);

const CardHeader = ({ children }) => (
  <div className="border-b pb-4 mb-4">{children}</div>
);

const CardContent = ({ children }) => (
  <div>{children}</div>
);

// Composed component
const UserProfile = ({ user }) => (
  <Card className="max-w-md">
    <CardHeader>
      <h2 className="text-xl font-semibold">{user.name}</h2>
    </CardHeader>
    <CardContent>
      <p className="text-gray-600">{user.bio}</p>
    </CardContent>
  </Card>
);

3. State Management

FlowCraft components support various state management patterns:

Local State (useState)

const [isOpen, setIsOpen] = useState(false);
const [items, setItems] = useState([]);

Global State (Context)

const ThemeContext = createContext();

const useTheme = () => {
  const context = useContext(ThemeContext);
  if (!context) {
    throw new Error('useTheme must be used within ThemeProvider');
  }
  return context;
};

External Libraries

// Redux Toolkit
import { useSelector, useDispatch } from 'react-redux';

// Zustand
import { useStore } from './store';

// Jotai
import { useAtom } from 'jotai';

Best Practices

1. Component Design

Keep components small and focused
Use meaningful prop names
Provide default values
Include PropTypes or TypeScript

2. Performance

Minimize re-renders with React.memo
Use useMemo and useCallback appropriately
Lazy load components when possible
Optimize images and assets

3. Maintainability

Follow consistent naming conventions
Write self-documenting code
Include comments for complex logic
Use TypeScript for better type safety

4. Testing

Write unit tests for components
Include accessibility tests
Test responsive behavior
Validate prop handling

Common Patterns

1. Compound Components

const Tabs = ({ children, defaultTab = 0 }) => {
  const [activeTab, setActiveTab] = useState(defaultTab);
  
  return (
    <TabsContext.Provider value={{ activeTab, setActiveTab }}>
      {children}
    </TabsContext.Provider>
  );
};

Tabs.List = TabsList;
Tabs.Tab = Tab;
Tabs.Panels = TabsPanels;
Tabs.Panel = TabPanel;

// Usage
<Tabs>
  <Tabs.List>
    <Tabs.Tab>Tab 1</Tabs.Tab>
    <Tabs.Tab>Tab 2</Tabs.Tab>
  </Tabs.List>
  <Tabs.Panels>
    <Tabs.Panel>Panel 1</Tabs.Panel>
    <Tabs.Panel>Panel 2</Tabs.Panel>
  </Tabs.Panels>
</Tabs>

2. Render Props

const DataFetcher = ({ url, children }) => {
  const [data, setData] = useState(null);
  const [loading, setLoading] = useState(true);
  
  useEffect(() => {
    fetch(url)
      .then(res => res.json())
      .then(data => {
        setData(data);
        setLoading(false);
      });
  }, [url]);
  
  return children({ data, loading });
};

// Usage
<DataFetcher url="/api/users">
  {({ data, loading }) => 
    loading ? <Spinner /> : <UserList users={data} />
  }
</DataFetcher>

3. Custom Hooks

const useToggle = (initialValue = false) => {
  const [value, setValue] = useState(initialValue);
  
  const toggle = useCallback(() => setValue(v => !v), []);
  const setTrue = useCallback(() => setValue(true), []);
  const setFalse = useCallback(() => setValue(false), []);
  
  return [value, { toggle, setTrue, setFalse }];
};

// Usage
const Modal = () => {
  const [isOpen, { toggle, setFalse }] = useToggle();
  
  return (
    <>
      <button onClick={toggle}>Open Modal</button>
      {isOpen && <ModalContent onClose={setFalse} />}
    </>
  );
};

Next Steps

Now that you understand FlowCraft's basic concepts:

Explore Features - Dive deep into specific capabilities
Follow Guides - Learn advanced workflows
Try Tutorials - Build real projects
Join Community - Connect with other users

Ready to build something amazing? Let's go! 🚀

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Last updated 13 days ago