view method

@override String view()

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() {
  final buffer = StringBuffer();

  // Prompt
  buffer.write(styles.prompt.render(prompt));

  // Value or placeholder
  if (_value.isEmpty && placeholder.isNotEmpty) {
    buffer.write(styles.dimmed.render(placeholder));
  } else {
    final maskedText = _getMaskedText();
    buffer.write(styles.text.render(maskedText));
  }

  // Cursor
  if (_focused && cursor.visible) {
    // The cursor is handled by the terminal, but we can show indicator
  }

  buffer.writeln();

  // Error message
  if (_error != null) {
    buffer.writeln(styles.error.render('  $_error'));
  }

  // Help
  if (showHelp) {
    final helpItems = keyMap.shortHelp();
    final helpText = helpItems
        .where((b) => b.help.hasContent)
        .map((b) => '${b.help.key} ${b.help.desc}')
        .join('  ');
    buffer.writeln(styles.dimmed.render(helpText));
  }

  return buffer.toString();
}