handling-state1.js

// How we do this now

class CounterComponent extends React.Component {
  constructor(props) {
    super(props);
    this.state = {
      counter: 0,
    };
    this._divRef = null;
    this.increment = this.increment.bind(this);
  }
  increment() {
    this.setState(state => ({
      counter: state.counter + 1,
    }));
  }
  componentDidUpdate() {
    this._divRef.color = this.props.color;
  }
  render() {
    return (
      <div ref={divRef => this._divRef = divRef} onClick={this.increment}>
        Count: {#state.counter}
      </div>
    );
  }
}

handling-state2.js

// How we could do this with React.Provider
// inspiration from Redux + Reason React

function counterReducer(action, state) {
  switch (action) {
    case "INCREMENT": {
      return React.updateState({...state, {counter: counter + 1}});
    }
  }
}

// a normal functional component
function CounterComponent(props) {
  return (
    <React.Provider 
      initialState={() => ({
        counter: 0,
        divRef: React.createRef(),
      })}
      reducer={counterReducer}
      didUpdate={state => {
        state.divRef.color = props.color;
      }}
    >
    {(state, reduce) =>
      <div ref={state.divRef} onClick={() => reduce("INCREMENT"))}>
        Count: {state.counter}
      </div>
    }
    </React.Provider>
  );
}

handling-state3.js

// An alternative instead of the above

const CounterProvider = React.createProvider((action, state) => {
  switch (action) {
    case "INCREMENT": {
      return React.updateState({...state, {counter: counter + 1}});
    }
  }
});

// a normal functional component
function CounterComponent(props) {
  return (
    <CounterProvider 
      initialState={() => ({
        counter: 0,
        divRef: React.createRef(),
      })}
      didUpdate={state => {
        state.divRef.color = props.color;
      }}
    >
    {(state, reduce) =>
      <div ref={state.divRef} onClick={() => reduce("INCREMENT"))}>
        Count: {state.counter}
      </div>
    }
    </CounterProvider>
  );
}

handling-state4.js

// An alternative instead of the above

const counterState = React.createStateReducer((action, state) => {
  switch (action) {
    case "INCREMENT": {
      return React.updateState({...state, {counter: counter + 1}});
    }
  }
});

// a normal functional component
function CounterComponent(props) {
  return counterState({
     initialState: () => ({
       counter: 0,
       divRef: React.createRef(),
     }),
    didUpdate: state => {
      state.divRef.color = props.color;      
    },
    render(state, reduce) {
      return (
        <div ref={state.divRef} onClick={() => reduce("INCREMENT"))}>
          Count: {state.counter}
        </div>
      );
    }
  });
}

handling-state5.js

// add a new component API, but suffers the same issues before in regards to folding

const CounterComponent = React.createReducerComponent({
  initialState: (props) => ({
    counter: 0,
    divRef: React.createRef(),
  }),
  reducer: (action, state) => {
    switch (action) {
      case "INCREMENT": {
        return React.updateState({...state, {counter: counter + 1}});
      }
    }
  },
  didUpdate: (props, state) => {
    state.divRef.color = props.color;
  },
  render: (props, state, reduce, context) => (
    <div ref={state.divRef} onClick={() => reduce("INCREMENT"))}>
      Count: {state.counter}
    </div>
  ),
});

So handling-stage5.js might look very much like how components in React are today, so what do handling-stage2.js, handling-stage3.js or handling-stage4.js offer? Well, when it comes to component folding, it makes a big difference.

Component folding works by recursively progressing through React component trees, starting with a "root" component. The "root" component's props object is completely unknown at that point. Having a completely unknown object makes it much harder to do ahead of time optimizations as we have to assume everything is abstract until we find something that tells us something is "concrete". Concrete values allow us to statically resolve code ahead of time. Each time we come to a child component of the root that we can't fold (we call this a "bail out") we have to start a new tree, using the component that we couldn't fold as a root. That means, the props of this component start of as unknown objects again.

With handling-stage2, handling-stage3.js and handling-stage4, Providers do not have a render, but rather their children operate in the closure of the parent – allowing us to continue using the evaluated props of the parent – meaning far less bailing out will occur.