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docs: create how to work with design tokens #26

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1 change: 1 addition & 0 deletions .gitignore
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163 changes: 163 additions & 0 deletions docs/how-to/design-tokens-support.rst
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===================================
Paragon Design Tokens Compatibility
===================================


From version 23 `Paragon <https://github.com/openedx/paragon/>`_ supports CSS variables and
`design tokens <https://tr.designtokens.org/format/#abstract>`_.

How to structure the brand design tokens files
==============================================

The file structure in the brand package should be the same as the version of Paragon used as a reference to allow the merge/override during the build time.

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It might be nice to link to and/or provide a URL format for the paragon tokens directory from here

https://github.com/openedx/paragon/tree/v23.0.0-alpha.3/tokens currently works to show the directory for the v23.0.0-alpha.3 tag, so maybe having something like

To see the tokens directory structure for the version of Paragon you are targeting you can navigate to https://github.com/openedx/paragon/tree/TARGET_PARAGON_VERSION/tokens. For example, if you were targeting Paragon v23.0.0 you would navigate to https://github.com/openedx/paragon/tree/v23.0.0/tokens.

could work

To see the tokens directory structure for the version of Paragon you are targeting, navigate to ``https://github.com/openedx/paragon/tree/TARGET_PARAGON_VERSION/tokens``.
For example, if you were working with Paragon v23.0.0 you would navigate to https://github.com/openedx/paragon/tree/v23.0.0/tokens.

.. code-block::

paragon/
└── tokens/
└── src/
├── core/
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[question]: Is it worth specifying here more precisely which directories may be needed? For example, now in the alpha version of Paragon we have semantic tokens that we divide into core, alias and global tokens? More information on semantic design tokens

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@dcoa dcoa Nov 18, 2024

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I think due to the the how-to is explaining how to work with the paragon design tokens version I think a mention and a link to that explanation about semantic tokens is a valuable addition. I don't want to duplicate the information if it is already in Paragon. As well, I think the user should decide the folders that they want to include I mean if I want to change a token in the component folder worth it add the global and aliases as well?

│ └── <name_of_the_folder>/
│ └── <name_of_the_file>.json
└── themes/
├── light/
│ └── <name_of_the_folder>/
│ └── <name_of_the_file>.json
├── dark/
│ └── <name_of_the_folder>/
│ └── <name_of_the_file>.json
└── my-theme/
└── <name_of_the_folder>/
└── <name_of_the_file>.json


Once you have identified the token to override, you can replace ``<name_of_the_folder>`` and ``<name_of_the_file>`` with the right names.
Currently, Paragon is organized under **semantic tokens**, for a better understanding visit:
`Design tokens implementation in Paragon <https://github.com/openedx/paragon/blob/master/docs/decisions/0019-scaling-styles-with-design-tokens.rst#design-tokens-implementation-in-paragon>`

Tokens format
=============

In terms of tokens, Paragon follows the specifications of the `Design Tokens Community Group <https://tr.designtokens.org/format/#abstract>`_, and
takes `style dictionary token structure <https://styledictionary.com/info/tokens/#category--type--item>`_ as inspiration:


.. image:: ./style_diccionary_tokens.webp


With a subtle variation the structure to define most of the Paragon tokens is ``category > item > subitem > type > state``, for example:

.. code-block:: json

{
"spacing": { // Category
"$type": "dimension",
"annotation": { // Item
"padding": { // Type
"$value": ".5rem",
"$source": "$annotation-padding"
},
"arrow-side": { // Subitem
"margin": { // Type
"$value": "{spacing.annotation.padding}",
"$source": "$annotation-arrow-side-margin"
}
}
}
},
"typography": {
"annotation": {
"font-size": {
"source": "$annotation-font-size",
"$value": "{typography.font.size.sm}",
"$type": "dimension"
},
}
},
}

Each token has specific attributes:

- **Value**: It is the value that will be assigned to the variable, which could be a value or a reference, such as l arrow-side in the above example.
- **Type**: Indicates the property to be processed (color, dimension, etc..). This value could be defined for the token itself or a group of tokens (e.g. spacing)
- **Source**: This value is additional and indicates the equivalent in saas notation.
- **Modify**: Optional value that helps to apply a specific token modification.

Use the ``source`` attribute to map the tokens in Paragon and create the theme files. Also, it will help you to replace the values in scss files if you have custom variables (see below).

You can check `Paragon tokens <https://github.com/openedx/paragon/tree/alpha/tokens>`_ to know the folder and token structure, and how to work with modifiers.


Build the tokens and generate the CSS variables
===============================================

To build the tokens you can use Paragon CLI.

#. Install Paragon as a dev dependency

.. code-block:: bash

npm ci

#. Once the tokens have been created. Go to the ``package.json``, there is a script template:

.. code-block:: json

{
"scripts": {
"build-tokens": "paragon build-tokens --source ./tokens/ --build-dir <destination_path>"
}
}

Replace the destination with the desired path and run the command, it is recommended to use ``./dist/``.

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Is there a specific reason to have this as a template instead of just hardcoding ./dist/?

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@dcoa dcoa Nov 18, 2024

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highlight and in any case be use in the package.json file as the destination for the script template

You can check the CLI options `here <https://openedx.atlassian.net/wiki/spaces/BPL/pages/3770744958/Migrating+MFEs+to+Paragon+design+tokens+and+CSS+variables#Paragon-CLI-Documentation>`_

.. code-block:: bash

npm run build-tokens

#. Publish the package.

#. Once it is installed in the application use the Paragon CLI with the ``replace-variables`` command to use your custom tokens.


The ``theme-urls.json`` file
=============================

It is recommended to create the `theme-urls.json` if you are working with runtime theming and want to use ``ParagonWebpackPlugin`` to preload the token URLs during the application build time.

The file must be in the ``dist`` folder and should have:

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I'm not the biggest fan of having people directly create/edit files in the dist directory. It'd be great to be able to .gitignore dist and have this file copied in as part of the build process.

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I think could live in the paragon/tokens folder, referencing all the desired variants. May be in this way, we will need to be clear about the relative path (understanding that the design tokens destination path is not necessary the dist folder, it is the ideal but is not limited to it)


.. code-block:: json

{
"themeUrls": {
"defaults": {
"light": "light"
},
"variants": {
"light": {
"paths": {
"default": "./light.css",
"minified": "./light.min.css"
}
}
"my-theme": {
"paths": {
"default": "./my-theme.css",
"minified": "./my-theme.min.css"
}
}
},
"core": {
"paths": {
"default": "./core.css",
"minified": "./core.min.css"
}
}
}
}

The paths must be relative to the ``theme-urls.json`` file and contain all the variants that you want to preload.
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