Creating a Task Management Application with Drag-and-Drop Features for College Assignments

Creating this application will not only provide hands-on experience in web development but also cover a range of topics like HTML, CSS, and JavaScript, making it a practical choice for developers looking to learn or improve these skills.

Prerequisites

Before starting, ensure you have a basic understanding of the following:

• HTML: To structure the web application.
• CSS: For styling and layout design.
• JavaScript: To handle drag-and-drop functionality and manage tasks dynamically.
• Optional familiarity with libraries/frameworks like React or Vue.js can further enhance the development process but isn’t mandatory for this project.

If you’re struggling with any of these topics, this service offers HTML assignment help, CSS assignment help, and JavaScript assignment help tailored to your needs.

Features of the Task Management Application

Here are the features we will implement:

• User Authentication: Secure login and signup.
• Task Creation and Categorization: Add tasks and assign them to categories such as "Urgent," "In Progress," and "Completed."
• Drag-and-Drop Functionality: Rearrange tasks within and between categories.
• Due Date Tracking: Highlight tasks nearing their deadlines.
• Responsiveness: Ensure the application works on both desktop and mobile devices.

Step 1: Setting Up the Project

Frontend Setup

1. Create the Project Directory:
2. mkdir task-manager

3. cd task-manager

   npx create-react-app frontend

4. Install Required Dependencies:

npm install react-dnd react-dnd-html5-backend

Backend Setup

1. Set Up the Server:
2. mkdir backend
3. cd backend
4. npm init -y

npm install express mongoose cors body-parser

5. Initialize Database: Use MongoDB for storing user and task data. For a simpler setup, you can use a cloud-based database like MongoDB Atlas.

Step 2: Designing the Frontend

1. Structure the Layout

Divide the application into three main sections:

• A sidebar for navigation
• A main content area for displaying tasks
• A header for user options (e.g., profile, logout)

Here’s an example layout using React:

import React from 'react'; import './App.css'; const App = () => { return ( <div className="app-container"> <Sidebar /> <MainContent /> </div> ); }; export default App;

2. Implement Drag-and-Drop

Use the react-dnd library to add drag-and-drop functionality:

import { DndProvider, useDrag, useDrop } from 'react-dnd'; import { HTML5Backend } from 'react-dnd-html5-backend'; const TaskCard = ({ task }) => { const [{ isDragging }, dragRef] = useDrag(() => ({ type: 'TASK', item: { id: task.id }, collect: (monitor) => ({ isDragging: monitor.isDragging(), }), })); return ( <div ref={dragRef} className="task-card" style={{ opacity: isDragging ? 0.5 : 1 }}> {task.name} </div> ); }; const Column = ({ tasks, onDrop }) => { const [, dropRef] = useDrop(() => ({ accept: 'TASK', drop: (item) => onDrop(item.id), })); return ( <div ref={dropRef} className="task-column"> {tasks.map((task) => ( <TaskCard key={task.id} task={task} /> ))} </div> ); }; export const DragAndDropBoard = ({ columns, moveTask }) => ( <DndProvider backend={HTML5Backend}> <div className="board-container"> {columns.map((column) => ( <Column key={column.id} tasks={column.tasks} onDrop={(taskId) => moveTask(taskId, column.id)} /> ))} </div> </DndProvider> );

This section is particularly useful if you’re looking for web development assignment help to improve your understanding of dynamic interfaces.

3. Styling the Application

Use CSS or a library like Tailwind CSS to design a clean, responsive UI. Ensure the drag-and-drop interface is intuitive with clear visual cues.

Step 3: Backend Implementation

1. User Authentication

Set up routes for user signup, login, and authentication:

const express = require('express'); const bcrypt = require('bcrypt'); const jwt = require('jsonwebtoken'); const User = require('./models/User'); const router = express.Router(); router.post('/signup', async (req, res) => { const { username, password } = req.body; const hashedPassword = await bcrypt.hash(password, 10); const user = new User({ username, password: hashedPassword }); await user.save(); res.status(201).json({ message: 'User created successfully!' }); }); router.post('/login', async (req, res) => { const { username, password } = req.body; const user = await User.findOne({ username }); if (!user || !(await bcrypt.compare(password, user.password))) { return res.status(401).json({ message: 'Invalid credentials' }); } const token = jwt.sign({ userId: user._id }, 'secret'); res.json({ token }); }); module.exports = router;

2. Task Management API

Create routes for adding, updating, and deleting tasks:

router.post('/tasks', async (req, res) => { const { userId, title, category } = req.body; const task = new Task({ userId, title, category }); await task.save(); res.status(201).json(task); }); router.put('/tasks/:id', async (req, res) => { const { id } = req.params; const updates = req.body; const task = await Task.findByIdAndUpdate(id, updates, { new: true }); res.json(task); }); router.delete('/tasks/:id', async (req, res) => { const { id } = req.params; await Task.findByIdAndDelete(id); res.status(204).send(); });

Step 4: Connecting Frontend and Backend

Use Axios to integrate the frontend with the backend. For example, fetch tasks when the app loads:

import axios from 'axios'; const fetchTasks = async () => { const response = await axios.get('/api/tasks'); setTasks(response.data); }; useEffect(() => { fetchTasks(); }, []);

Step 5: Testing and Deployment

• Testing: Test the application for bugs and edge cases, particularly around drag-and-drop functionality and API requests.
• Deployment:
• Host the frontend on platforms like Vercel or Netlify.
• Host the backend on services like Heroku, AWS, or Render.

Conclusion

Building a task management application with drag-and-drop features is a rewarding project for students and developers alike. Not only does it address a common pain point for college students, but it also enhances your coding skills. With a structured approach, incorporating features like user authentication, task categorization, and drag.