Build and Deploy 5 JavaScript & React API Projects in 10 Hours - Full Course | RapidAPI

Introduction

In this tutorial, you'll learn how to build and deploy a comprehensive Google Search clone using React, Next.js, and RapidAPI. This project will not only enhance your understanding of working with APIs but also introduce you to modern UI design using Tailwind CSS. By the end of this tutorial, you will have a fully functional application capable of searching for images, news, and videos.

Chapter 1: Setting Up the Project

1. Create a Project Folder

   • Create a folder on your desktop and name it google-clone.
   • Open your code editor and drag the folder into it.

2. Initialize a Next.js Application

   • Open the terminal in your code editor.
   • Run the command:

     npx create-next-app@latest .
     

   • This will create a new Next.js application in your current directory.

3. Install Dependencies

   • After the application is created, install the necessary packages:

     npm install axios tailwindcss react-icons
     

   • Tailwind CSS will be used for styling, and Axios will facilitate API requests.

4. Set Up Tailwind CSS

   • Create a file named tailwind.config.js with the following content:

     module.exports = {
       content: [
         "./pages/**/*.{js,ts,jsx,tsx}",
         "./components/**/*.{js,ts,jsx,tsx}",
       ],
       theme: {
         extend: {},
       },
       plugins: [],
     };
     

   • Create a global CSS file in the styles folder (e.g., globals.css) and add Tailwind's directives:

     @tailwind base;
     @tailwind components;
     @tailwind utilities;
     

5. Import Global CSS

   • In your pages/_app.js file, import the global CSS:

     import '../styles/globals.css';
     

Chapter 2: Building the User Interface

1. Create Components

   • Create a new folder named components in your project directory.
   • Inside the components folder, create the following files:
     • Navbar.jsx
     • Footer.jsx
     • Search.jsx
     • Results.jsx

2. Implement the Navbar

   • In Navbar.jsx, create a responsive navigation bar using Tailwind CSS:

     import Link from 'next/link';
     
     const Navbar = () => {
       return (
         <nav className="flex justify-between p-5 bg-gray-800 text-white">
           <Link href="/">Google Clone</Link>
           <div className="flex space-x-4">
             <Link href="/search">Search</Link>
             <Link href="/images">Images</Link>
             <Link href="/news">News</Link>
             <Link href="/videos">Videos</Link>
           </div>
         </nav>
       );
     };
     
     export default Navbar;
     

3. Create the Footer

   • In Footer.jsx, create a simple footer:

     const Footer = () => {
       return (
         <footer className="text-center p-5 bg-gray-800 text-white">
           &copy; 2023 Google Clone
         </footer>
       );
     };
     
     export default Footer;
     

4. Set Up the Search Page

   • In Search.jsx, set up the search input field and handle user input:

     import { useState } from 'react';
     
     const Search = () => {
       const [searchTerm, setSearchTerm] = useState('');
     
       const handleSearch = (e) => {
         e.preventDefault();
         // Perform search
       };
     
       return (
         <form onSubmit={handleSearch} className="flex justify-center p-5">
           <input
             type="text"
             value={searchTerm}
             onChange={(e) => setSearchTerm(e.target.value)}
             className="border p-2"
             placeholder="Search..."
           />
           <button type="submit" className="ml-2 p-2 bg-blue-500 text-white">Search</button>
         </form>
       );
     };
     
     export default Search;
     

Chapter 3: Fetching Data from APIs

1. Set Up RapidAPI

   • Log into RapidAPI and subscribe to the Google Search API. Make sure to copy your API key.
   • Create a new file in the utils folder named fetchApi.js to handle API requests:

     import axios from 'axios';
     
     const fetchApi = async (url) => {
       const response = await axios.get(url, {
         headers: {
           'x-rapidapi-host': 'your-rapidapi-host',
           'x-rapidapi-key': 'your-rapidapi-key',
         },
       });
       return response.data;
     };
     
     export default fetchApi;
     

2. Implement Search Functionality

   • In Search.jsx, utilize fetchApi to fetch results based on user input.
   • Update the handleSearch function to:

     const handleSearch = async (e) => {
       e.preventDefault();
       const results = await fetchApi(`https://your-api-url?query=${searchTerm}`);
       // Process results
     };
     

Chapter 4: Displaying Results

1. Implement Results Component
   • In Results.jsx, render the search results:

     const Results = ({ results }) => {
       return (
         <div className="grid grid-cols-3 gap-4">
           {results.map((result) => (
             <div key={result.id} className="border p-5">
               <h2>{result.title}</h2>
               <img src={result.image} alt={result.title} className="w-full" />
               <p>{result.description}</p>
             </div>
           ))}
         </div>
       );
     };
     
     export default Results;
     

Chapter 5: Finalizing the Application

1. Integrate Components in the Home Page

   • In pages/index.js, integrate the Navbar, Search, and Footer components:

     import Navbar from '../components/Navbar';
     import Search from '../components/Search';
     import Footer from '../components/Footer';
     
     const Home = () => {
       return (
         <div>
           <Navbar />
           <Search />
           <Footer />
         </div>
       );
     };
     
     export default Home;
     

2. Deploy the Application

   • Once everything is working locally, deploy your application using Vercel:

     npm run build
     

   • Then, follow the instructions on Vercel to deploy your application.

Conclusion

In this tutorial, you built a Google Search clone using React and Next.js, integrated RapidAPI to fetch data, and styled your application using Tailwind CSS. You learned about state management, component-based architecture, and how to deploy your application. As a next step, consider exploring more APIs on RapidAPI or enhancing your application with new features. Happy coding!