view method

  1. @override
String view()
override

Renders the current model state for display.

This method is called after every update to refresh the screen. It should return either a String or a View object.

Guidelines

  • Keep view functions pure - no side effects
  • View should only depend on model state
  • Use string interpolation or StringBuffer for complex views
  • Consider terminal width/height for responsive layouts

Example

@override
String view() {
  final buffer = StringBuffer();

  // Header
  buffer.writeln('╔════════════════════════════╗');
  buffer.writeln('║      My Application        ║');
  buffer.writeln('╚════════════════════════════╝');
  buffer.writeln();

  // Content
  if (loading) {
    buffer.writeln('Loading...');
  } else {
    for (final item in items) {
      final prefix = item == selectedItem ? '▸ ' : '  ';
      buffer.writeln('$prefix$item');
    }
  }

  buffer.writeln();

  // Footer
  buffer.writeln('↑/↓: Navigate  Enter: Select  q: Quit');

  return buffer.toString();
}

Implementation

@override
String view() {
  if (_files.isEmpty) {
    return _styles.emptyDirectory
        .height(_height)
        .maxHeight(_height)
        .render('Bummer. No Files Found.');
  }

  final buffer = StringBuffer();

  for (var i = 0; i < _files.length; i++) {
    if (i < _min || i > _max) continue;

    final file = _files[i];
    final isSelected = i == _selected;
    final disabled = !canSelect(file.name) && !file.isDirectory;

    if (isSelected) {
      _renderSelectedRow(buffer, file, disabled);
    } else {
      _renderNormalRow(buffer, file, disabled);
    }

    buffer.writeln();
  }

  // Pad with empty lines to fill height
  final lines = buffer.toString().split('\n');
  for (var i = lines.length; i <= _height; i++) {
    buffer.writeln();
  }

  return buffer.toString();
}