3 ms·

> Create React App is a thin layer on top of Webpack and Babel. It doesn’t generate the project code for you, but it configures those tools in the recommended w

by samtho 10y ago

> Create React App is a thin layer on top of Webpack and Babel. It doesn’t generate the project code for you, but it configures those tools in the recommended way. TIL. I've been manually setting up my own configs for years now, and never touched this tool because I thought it was literally creating a sample/boilerplate app for you much like the express.js cli generator.

acemarke 10y ago
Yeah, CRA really isn't a "boilerplate". It's a prepackaged build system that can be upgraded. It doesn't come with dozens of app-level dependencies already installed and custom-configured, like most boilerplates do. Dan Abramov commented a while back on how CRA differs from boilerplates: https://www.reddit.com/r/reactjs/comments/5gt2c4/you_dont_need_a_boilerplate/ https://www.reddit.com/r/reactjs/comments/5gt2c4/you_dont_ne... . Also, I commented with some additional thoughts on why CRA is a better choice than "boilerplates" for someone who's trying to learn: https://www.reddit.com/r/reactjs/comments/5oem3g/recommended_reactredux_starter_kits/ https://www.reddit.com/r/reactjs/comments/5oem3g/recommended... . Overall, CRA serves three primary purposes: it allows React learners to set up an environment without having to learn Webpack and Babel first; it allows experienced React devs to spin up a project without having to do all the configuration work (or copy and paste it from somewhere); and it also provides a common starting point for instructions and tutorials. For example, my recent blog post on using the Cesium.js 3D globe library with Webpack and React ( http://blog.isquaredsoftware.com/2017/03/declarative-earth-p... http://blog.isquaredsoftware.com/2017/03/declarative-earth-p...) was able to start by just saying "Create a CRA project, eject, and modify these two config values".

3 ms·

> Create React App is a thin layer on top of Webpack and Babel. It doesn’t generate the project code for you, but it configures those tools in the recommended w

by samtho 10y ago

acemarke 10y ago
Yeah, CRA really isn't a "boilerplate". It's a prepackaged build system that can be upgraded. It doesn't come with dozens of app-level dependencies already installed and custom-configured, like most boilerplates do. Dan Abramov commented a while back on how CRA differs from boilerplates: https://www.reddit.com/r/reactjs/comments/5gt2c4/you_dont_need_a_boilerplate/ https://www.reddit.com/r/reactjs/comments/5gt2c4/you_dont_ne... . Also, I commented with some additional thoughts on why CRA is a better choice than "boilerplates" for someone who's trying to learn: https://www.reddit.com/r/reactjs/comments/5oem3g/recommended_reactredux_starter_kits/ https://www.reddit.com/r/reactjs/comments/5oem3g/recommended... . Overall, CRA serves three primary purposes: it allows React learners to set up an environment without having to learn Webpack and Babel first; it allows experienced React devs to spin up a project without having to do all the configuration work (or copy and paste it from somewhere); and it also provides a common starting point for instructions and tutorials. For example, my recent blog post on using the Cesium.js 3D globe library with Webpack and React ( http://blog.isquaredsoftware.com/2017/03/declarative-earth-p... http://blog.isquaredsoftware.com/2017/03/declarative-earth-p...) was able to start by just saying "Create a CRA project, eject, and modify these two config values".