Package design in mind

[XuhuiZhou]

Guidelines for Designing a Python Package for a Web Application Using Streamlit

1. Project Structure

• App Directory
  • Include an app.py as the entry point for your Streamlit app
  • Everything about sotopia should be config here instead of the socialstream folder
  • Organize reusable components, such as widgets or layouts, into separate files.

2. Core Components

• Modular Code Design

  • Divide your application logic into separate, reusable modules.
  • Keep UI code (Streamlit components) separate from backend logic (data processing, model inference).
  • Follow the DRY (Don’t Repeat Yourself) principle to avoid code duplication.

• Configuration Management

  • Use a configuration file (e.g., secrets.toml) to manage settings and environment variables.

• Logging

  • Set up logging to monitor the app’s performance and track issues.
  • Use Python’s logging module or a third-party service like Sentry.

3. Streamlit-Specific Design

• Session State Management

  • Use Streamlit's session state feature to manage user inputs and states across different app interactions.
  • Ensure that session states are cleared or reset appropriately to avoid stale data.

• Efficient Loading and Caching

  • Use @st.cache_data and @st.cache_resource decorators to cache expensive operations, such as data loading or model inference.
  • Ensure that cached data is invalidated and refreshed appropriately when underlying data changes.

• Layout and Responsiveness

  • Design layouts using Streamlit’s layout options, such as st.columns, st.container, and st.expander.
  • Consider the responsiveness of your app on different screen sizes and resolutions.

4. Testing and Validation

• Unit Tests

  • Write unit tests for your modules using unittest or pytest.
  • Mock Streamlit components during tests to isolate logic from the UI.

• Continuous Integration

  • Set up CI/CD pipelines using GitHub Actions, GitLab CI, or similar tools.
  • Run tests automatically on code commits and before deployments.

• User Testing

  • Conduct usability testing with real users to gather feedback.
  • Iterate on the design and functionality based on user input.

5. Documentation

• Code Documentation

  • Document functions, classes, and modules using docstrings.
  • Follow PEP 257 conventions for docstrings.

• User Documentation

  • Write clear and concise documentation for end-users, explaining how to install, run, and use the package.

6. Deployment

• Hosting

  • Deploy the app using Streamlit Cloud, Heroku, or similar PaaS platforms.
  • Consider using Docker for containerized deployment.

• CI/CD for Deployment

  • Automate deployment processes using CI/CD tools.
  • Set up auto-deploy on push to specific branches (e.g., main or deploy).

• Monitoring and Maintenance

  • Set up monitoring tools to track app uptime and performance.
  • Schedule regular updates and maintenance tasks for the application.

7. Best Practices

• Code Quality

  • Follow PEP 8 for code style and formatting.
  • Use linters like flake8 and formatters like black to maintain code quality.

• Security

  • Secure sensitive data using environment variables.
  • Validate and sanitize user inputs to prevent security vulnerabilities.

• Scalability

  • Design with scalability in mind, considering the app's potential growth in users and features.
  • Optimize performance by profiling and identifying bottlenecks.

[XuhuiZhou]

Here are some machine-human-created guidelines @bugsz Let's follow to create re-usable code.