Introduction

⭐ Features

• Use HTML-like elements in Django templates, e.g. <dj-partial /> instead of {% include 'partial.html' %}

• Can be sprinkled in as needed, but does not remove existing Django functionality

• Pretend like you are writing React components, but without dealing with JavaScript at all

• Lets you excitedly tell your friends how neat the Shadow DOM is

• Since it looks like HTML, syntax highlighting mostly “just works”

• Wraps included templates in a custom element for easier debugging and targeted CSS styling

💥 Example

base.html

<dj-block name='content'>
</dj-block name='content'>

index.html

<dj-extends parent='base.html' />  <!-- {% extends 'base.html' %} -->

<dj-block name='content'>  <!-- {% block content %} -->
  <dj-include template='partial.html' />  <!-- {% include 'partial.html' %} -->

  <dj-verbatim>  <!-- {% verbatim %} -->
    This is verbatim: {% include %}
  </dj-verbatim>  <!-- {% endverbatim %} -->

  <dj-comment>  <!-- {% comment %} -->
    this is a comment
  </dj-comment>  <!-- {% endcomment %} -->

  <dj-#>this is another comment</dj-#>    <!-- {# this is another comment #} -->

  <dj-autoescape-on>  <!-- {% autoescape-on %} -->
    This is escaped
  </dj-autoescape-on>  <!-- {% endautoescape %} -->

  <dj-autoescape-off>  <!-- {% autoescape off %} -->
    This is not escaped
  </dj-autoescape-off>  <!-- {% endautoescape %} -->

  <dj-csrf />  <!-- {% csrf_token %} -->
  
  <dj-debug />  <!-- {% debug %} -->

  <dj-image src='img/django.jpg' />  <!-- <img src="{% static 'img/django.jpg' %}" /> -->
  <dj-css href='css/styles.css' />  <!-- <link href="{% static 'css/styles.css' %}" rel="stylesheet" /> -->
</dj-block name='content'>  <!-- {% endblock content %} -->

partial.html

<div>
  This is a partial: {{ now|date:"c" }}
</div>

🤔 How does this work?

The template HTML is passed through dj_angles.template_loader.Loader first, tags are matched (via good ole’ regex), some transformations happen based on the mappers defined, and then the normal template loaders process the resulting output.

✨ Inspiration

I have been interested in Django components and encapsulating functionality for a long time (see django-unicorn, dlitejs, etc), but had never thought of using HTML directly until I looked at Cotton by wrabit. dj-angles takes that basic idea further than just components to encompass more of the Django template tags.