GraphQL Learner Dashboard Page Spike

Ari Rizzitano (Deactivated), Douglas Hall (Deactivated)

Goals

Primary

• Understand the performance and code complexity tradeoffs involved in using GraphQL as a data proxy
• Understand the additional UX and functional considerations involved in frontends making complex GraphQL queries
• Judge whether GraphQL is a viable tool for implementing and scaling a decoupled frontend architecture

Additional

• Prove out a decoupled frontend deployment pipeline
• Answer questions about Apollo (George Babey):
  • Determine whether Apollo local state should replace Redux
  • Recommend whether or not to use Apollo Boost
  • Determine whether to stick with Apollo Server

Functional Requirements

• Sandbox environment running an instance of Apollo Server
• Experimental implementation of learner dashboard page
  • React on top of Apollo Client
  • Hits multiple IDAs:
    • LMS
    • Discovery
    • ecommerce
    • credentials
  • Independently deployable (e.g. not part of LMS)

First Pass

• Sandbox environment
• Display a page showing a list of enrollments
  • Serve from LMS
  • React owns entire page, embedded within a Mako template
• Doug will handle setting up Apollo Server
• Ari will set up the frontend + Apollo Client

Questions, once we've accomplished the first pass

• Data modeling/schema?
• How to handle skeleton states for UI?
• How to independently deploy a React app?
• Separate header/footer?
• Performance and caching?