flutter_helper_utils 1.3.1

The Flutter Helper Package offers various extensions and helper methods that can make development more efficient.

The flutter_helper_utils is a valuable tool for developers who want to speed up their development process. It offers various extensions and helper methods that can make development more efficient.

Why I Created This Package

Hey there! As developers, we all know that writing repeated or boilerplate code can really slow down the development process. That's why I wanted to share all the helper methods and extensions I've created in my previous projects within this package.

For instance, instead of calling MediaQuery.of(context); to get the MediaQuery of a specific context, this package makes it as easy as using context.mq;.

Or if you want to safely cast dynamic list to list of strings you can use ConvertObject.tryToList<String>(dynamicList);

If you want to learn more about extensions, click here.

Installation

To use this package, add flutter_helper_utils as a dependency in your pubspec.yaml file:

dependencies:
  flutter:
    sdk: flutter
  flutter_helper_utils: ^1.3.1

Then, run flutter pub get in your terminal.

flutter pub get

Usage

After installation, import the package in your dart file:

import 'package:flutter_helper_utils/flutter_helper_utils.dart';

You can now use any of the helper methods or extensions provided by the package. Some examples include:

Navigation extension

// Navigate to a new screen and remove all previous screens from the stack.
context.pushReplacementNamed('/home');

// Navigate to a new screen and remove it from the stack after it's closed.
context.pushNamedAndRemoveUntil('/login', ModalRoute.withName('/home'));

// Navigate to a new screen and pass/recieve data from/to it.
final data = await context.pushNamed<String?>('/details', arguments: {'id': 123});

// push, pushReplacement, popPage, popUntil and canPop are also available.

MediaQuery extension

// Get the MediaQuery of a specific context.
final mediaQuery = context.mq;

// Get the screen width, height, and size.
final screenWidth = context.widthPx;
final screenHeight = context.heightPx;
final screenSize = context.sizePx;

// Check if the screen is in landscape mode.
final isLandscape = context.isLandscape;

// Check if the screen is in portrait mode.
final isPortrait = context.isPortrait;

Platform extension

// Check the current platform using `Platform`.
final isMobile = Platform.isMobile;
final isIOS = Platform.isIOS;
final isAndroid = Platform.isAndroid;
final isDesktop = Platform.isDesktop;

// or using `BuildContext`.
final isMobile = context.isMobile;
final isIOS = context.isIOS;
final isAndroid = context.isAndroid;
final isDesktop = context.isDesktop;

Theme extension

// Get the ThemeData of a specific context.
final theme = context.themeData;

// Get the accent color from the current theme.
final accentColor = context.themeData.accentColor;

// Get the text theme from the current theme.
final textTheme = context.textTheme;

// Get the running device system brightness.
final brightness = context.sysBrightness;

// Check if the current brightness is dark.
final brightness = context.isDark; // or `isLight`

Color extension

// check whether the string is a hex color or not;
bool isHex = '#FF0000'.isHexColor; // true;

// Get a color from a hexadecimal string
Color color = '#FF0000'.toColor;

// Get a hexadecimal string from Color
String hexadecimal = color.toHex(leadingHashSign: false); // FF0000

DateTime extension

// Parsing a string to DateTime using null safety
DateTime? dateTime = '2022-04-27'.tryToDateTime;

// Parsing a string to DateTime
DateTime dateTime2 = '2022-04-27'.toDateTime;

final now = DateTime.now();

// Adds 1 day to current date
DateTime tomorrow = now.addDays(1); // addHours also available

// Returns the day after current date
DateTime nextDay = now.nextDay;

// Returns true if the current date is yesterday
bool isYesterday = now.isYesterday; // false

// Returns true if the current date is today
bool isToday = now.isToday; // true

// Returns the previous month from the current date
DateTime previousMonth = now.previousMonth;

// Getting small month name from month number
String smallMonthName = now.month.toSmallMonthName; // e.g Mar

// Getting full month name from month number
String fullMonthName = now.month.toFullMonthName; // e.g March

Duration extension

const duration = Duration(hours: 1, minutes: 30);

// Adds the Duration to the current DateTime and returns a DateTime in the future.
DateTime futureDate = duration.fromNow;

// Subtracts the Duration from the current DateTime and returns a DateTime in the past
DateTime pastDate = duration.ago;

// run async delay
await duration.delay<void>(); 

int, double, and num extension

final int number = 1000;

// convert numbers to greeks.
  // e.g 1000 => 1k
  //     20000 => 20k
  //     1000000 => 1M
String greeks = number.asGreeks; // 1k

// Easy way to make Durations from numbers.
Duration seconds = number.asSeconds; //  Duration(seconds: 1000)
  
int numberOfDigits = number.numberOfDigits; // 4

// Return this number time two (tripled, quadrupled, and squared are also available).
int doubled = number.doubled; // 2000

String extension:

String text = 'hello there!';

// wrap string at the specified index
String wrappedString = text.wrapString(2);

// capitalize the first letter of the string
String capitalized = text.capitalizeFirstLetter; // 'Hello there!'

// convert the string to PascalCase ('camelCase' and 'Title Case' also available)
String pascalCase = text.toPascalCase; // 'HelloThere'.

// check if the string is alphanumeric
bool isAlphanumeric = text.isAlphanumeric; // false

// convert to one line string
String twoLineString = 'ab'
  										 'cd';
String oneLine = text.toOneLine; // abcd

// check if the string is null or empty
bool isEmptyOrNull = text.isEmptyOrNull;

// check if the string is a valid username 
bool isValidUsername = text.isValidUsername; // 'isValidPhoneNumber', isValidEmail, isValidHTML, and more are also available

// convert string to double or return null
double? tryToDouble = text.tryToDouble; // tryToInt also available

// limit the string from the start
String? limitFromStart = text.limitFromStart(3); // limitFromEnd also available

Align extension

// Align an icon to the bottom right of a container. 
Container(
  height: 100,
  width: 100,
  color: Colors.grey,
  child: Icon(Icons.favorite),
).alignAtBottomRight(),
// alignAtBottomCenter, alignAtCenterRight, and alignAtTopRight are also available

List extension

// convert and list of widgets to Column, Row, ListView, or stack.
final list = <Widget>[];

final column = list.toColumnWidget(
  mainAxisAlignment: MainAxisAlignment.center,
);

final listBuilder = list.toListViewBuilder(
  // itemCount: 1, // default to list.length. 
  itemBuilder: (context, index) => Container(
    color: context.themeData.primaryColor,
    width: context.widthPx,
    height: 100,
  ),
);

Padding extension

// Add padding to all sides of a widget
AnyWidget(
  child: Text('Hello, world!'),
).paddingAll(12);

// Add padding to only the top and bottom of a widget
AnyWidget(
  child: Text('Hello, world!'),
).paddingSymmetric(v: 12, h: 15);
// paddingAll, paddingLTRB, paddingSymmetric, and paddingOnly are also available.

ConvertObject Class

The ConvertObject class provides a set of static methods for converting objects to different data types in Dart. It can convert objects to String, int, double, DateTime, bool, List, Set, and Map data types.

Why?

While Dart provides some built-in conversion tools, such as toString, int.parse(), and DateTime.parse(), these methods do not always provide detailed error messages or stack traces when errors occur during conversion.

The ConvertObject class, on the other hand, not only provides an efficient way to convert objects, but it also helps to handle any errors that may occur during the conversion process. Specifically, the class includes a ParsingException class that provides detailed explanations of any errors that occur during conversion, including where the error occurred in the code (line number) and a stack trace for debugging purposes.

This class can be particularly useful when dealing with JSON data from an API that needs to be parsed into a Dart object. With the conversion methods provided in the ConvertObject class, we can efficiently and effectively handle conversions and ensure our code is robust and reliable 😄.

Convert any Object to numbers or Return Null

The tryToDouble and tryToInt methods of the ConvertObject class can be used to convert any object to an int or return null if the object is null or conversions throws any exceptions.

var value = '10.5';
var intValue = ConvertObject.tryToInt(value); // return 10

var doubleValue = ConvertObject.toDouble(value); // returns 10.5

Convert any Object to bool

The toBool method of the ConvertObject class can be used to convert any object to a bool. If the object is null, the method returns false by default.

• return true if
  • object is bool and equal to true.
  • object is string and equal to 'yes' or 'true'.
  • object is num, int, or double and is larger than zero.

var value = 'true';
var boolValue = ConvertObject.toBool(value); // tryToBool also available. It's used to return null (not false) if object is null.

Convert any Object to DateTime

The toDateTime method of the ConvertObject class can be used to convert any object to a DateTime. If the object is null, a ParsingException is thrown

• toInt, toDouble, toNum, toBool, and toString1 are also available.

var value = '2022-05-06';
DateTime date = ConvertObject.toDateTime(value);

Convert any Object to List

The toList method of the ConvertObject class can be used to convert any object to a List. It can be useful when we want to cast a list of type to a list of another type. If the object is null, a ParsingException is thrown.

List<String> strings = ["1", "2", "3"];
List<int> numbers = ConvertObject.toList<int>(value); // returns <int>[1, 2, 3];
// tryToList also available

Convert any Object to Map

The toMap method of the ConvertObject class can be used to convert any object to a Map. If the object is null, a ParsingException is thrown. If the object is not a Map data type, a ParsingException is also thrown.

Map<String, String> value = {'key': 'value'};
Map<String, dynamic> mapValue = ConvertObject.tryToMap<String, dynamic>(value); // tryToMap also availbale.

Here is a table explaining each method in the ConvertObject class:

Method Name	Description
toString1(dynamic object) => String	Converts any object to a String if the object is not null. Throws a ParsingException if the object is null.
tryToString(dynamic object) => String?	Converts any object to a String or returns null if the object is null.
toNum(dynamic object) => num	Converts any object to a num. Throws a ParsingException if the object is null or if the conversion fails.
tryToNum(dynamic object) => num?	Converts any object to a num or returns null if the object is null or if the conversion fails.
toInt(dynamic object) => int	Converts any object to an int. Throws a ParsingException if the object is null or if the conversion fails.
tryToInt(dynamic object) => int?	Converts any object to an int or returns null if the object is null or if the conversion fails.
toDouble(dynamic object) => double	Converts any object to a double. Throws a ParsingException if the object is null or if the conversion fails.
tryToDouble(dynamic object) => double?	Converts any object to a double or returns null if the object is null or if the conversion fails.
toBool(dynamic object) => bool	Converts any object to a bool. Returns false by default.
tryToBool(dynamic object) => bool?	Converts any object to a bool or returns null if the conversion fails. Returns false by default.
toDateTime(dynamic object) => DateTime	Converts any object to a DateTime. Throws a ParsingException if the object is null or if the conversion fails.
tryToDateTime(dynamic object) => DateTime?	Converts any object to a DateTime or returns null if the object is null or if the conversion fails.
toMap<K, V>(dynamic object) => Map<K, V>	Converts any object to a Map<K, V>. Throws a ParsingException if the object is null or if the conversion fails.
tryToMap<K, V>(dynamic object) => Map<K, V>?	Converts any object to a Map<K, V> or returns null if the object is null or if the conversion fails.
toSet<T>(dynamic object) => Set<T>	Converts any object to a Set<T>. Throws a ParsingException if the object is null or if the conversion fails.
tryToSet<T>(dynamic object) => Set<T>?	Converts any object to a Set<T> or returns null if the object is null or if the conversion fails.
toList<T>(dynamic object) => List<T>	Converts any object to a List<T>. Throws a ParsingException if the object is null or if the conversion fails.
tryToList<T>(dynamic object) => List<T>?	Converts any object to a List<T> or returns null if the object is null or if the conversion fails.

Exceptions

The ConvertObject class throws a ParsingException if there is an error while converting an object. This exception provides information about the type of the object and the method used for conversion.

Contributions

Contributions to this package are welcome. If you have any suggestions, issues, or feature requests, please create a pull request on the repository.

License

flutter_helper_utils is available under the BSD 3-Clause License.