DevCrate

A community-built crate of small, single-purpose developer utility tools — one clean React app, one tool per folder, built entirely by open-source contributors.

Think of it as an in-browser Swiss-army knife: a JSON formatter, a JWT decoder, a regex tester, a UUID generator, a color converter, a cron parser — dozens of tiny, useful, self-contained tools, each contributed by a different person.

Built for Open Source Connect India 2026 (OSCI'26).

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Why DevCrate?

Every "developer utility" site (JSON formatter, JWT decoder, etc.) is one Google search away — the point here isn't to reinvent them, it's to give first-time open-source contributors an easy, well-scoped, portfolio-worthy PR:

• Small scope — one tool, one folder, usually one component file.
• Clear pattern — copy an existing tool, follow docs/ADDING_A_TOOL.md, done.
• Fast feedback — automated checks tell you within minutes if your PR is mergeable.
• No merge-conflict roulette — every tool lives in its own folder, so PRs almost never collide.

Tech Stack

React 18 + TypeScript + Vite + Tailwind CSS + React Router + Framer Motion. No backend, no database — everything runs client-side.

Features

• Browse by category — tools are grouped (Text & String, Data & Format, Encoding & Security, Web & Design, Date & Time, Developer Utilities) with dedicated pages for each, plus a searchable all-tools view.
• Light & dark themes — a CSS-variable-based palette that follows your system preference by default, with a manual toggle that persists.
• Collapsible sidebar — a desktop icon-rail collapse and a mobile off-canvas drawer, both animated.
• One consistent tool page template — every tool renders inside the same breadcrumb + header + related-tools shell, so contributors only ever need to build the tool itself.

Getting Started

Just want to run it locally?

git clone https://github.com/Aakif-Kohari/DevCrate.git
cd DevCrate
npm install
npm run dev

Open http://localhost:5173.

Want to contribute a tool? You'll fork instead of cloning this repo directly — see Contributing below.

Contributing

New here? Full guide: CONTRIBUTING.md (fork/branch/PR steps, written for a first-time contributor) and docs/ADDING_A_TOOL.md (the code pattern every tool follows). Short version:

1. Fork this repo (button top-right of this page), then clone your fork:

   git clone https://github.com/<your-username>/DevCrate.git
   cd DevCrate
   npm install

2. Find an open issue tagged good first issue or new-tool, comment /claim.
3. Branch, build, register: git checkout -b my-tool, build the tool inside src/tools/<your-tool-slug>/ (copy src/tools/_template/ to start), register it in src/tools/registry.ts (one line).
4. npm run verify, then push your branch and open a PR from your fork into this repo's main.
5. Automated checks + an AI review bot will comment within minutes.

Project Structure

src/
  tools/
    registry.ts          <- central list every tool registers itself in
    categories.ts         <- fixed set of tool categories
    _template/             <- copy this to start a new tool (working starter, unregistered)
    json-formatter/        <- example real tool
      index.tsx
      meta.ts
  pages/                  <- one file per route (Landing, Categories, ToolPage, ...)
  layout/                 <- Header, Sidebar, Footer, RootLayout
  components/             <- shared UI (ToolCard, CategoryCard, Breadcrumbs, ...)
  lib/                    <- theme + sidebar context/providers/hooks
  App.tsx                 <- route definitions

Tools stay simple on purpose: a tool's index.tsx is just its own self-contained component. All of the surrounding page chrome (breadcrumbs, category badge, related tools) lives in src/pages/ToolPage.tsx, one shared template every tool renders inside — contributors never touch it.

Live Demo & Releases

Deployed automatically to Vercel on every push to main, with an automatic preview URL on every pull request too. Snapshots of what's shipped are kept as Releases.

Enjoying this project?

A ⭐ on the repo genuinely helps — it's how other first-time contributors find beginner-friendly projects like this one.

Contributors

Aakif Kohari

Bots

dependabot[bot]

github-actions[bot]

License

MIT — free to use, fork, and build on.

Code of Conduct

This project follows the Code of Conduct. By participating, you agree to uphold it.