CanvasCollab

A real-time collaborative canvas application with AI-powered design assistance, built with React, Supabase, and Konva.js.

🎯 Project Overview

CanvasCollab is a modern, real-time collaborative design tool that allows multiple users to work together on a shared canvas. Users can create shapes, add text, and use natural language commands to generate complex layouts with the help of AI.

✨ Key Features

Core Collaborative Infrastructure

• Real-time synchronization - Sub-100ms object sync with zero visible lag
• Conflict resolution - Handles simultaneous edits with last-write-wins strategy
• Persistence & reconnection - Auto-reconnects with complete state preservation
• User presence - Live user list with cursor tracking and idle detection

Canvas Features & Performance

• Multi-shape support - Rectangles, circles, and text elements
• Smooth interactions - Pan, zoom, drag, resize, and rotate
• Multi-select - Shift-click and drag selection
• Layer management - Z-index control with bring to front/send to back
• Keyboard shortcuts - Delete, duplicate, arrow keys, and more
• High performance - Handles 500+ objects with 5+ concurrent users

AI Canvas Agent

• Natural language commands - "Create a red circle", "Make a login form"
• 8+ command types - Creation, manipulation, layout, and complex commands
• Complex layouts - Multi-element forms, navigation bars, and arrangements
• Context awareness - References like "move that rectangle" work correctly
• Sub-2 second responses - Fast AI processing with 90%+ accuracy

Advanced Features

• Theme system - Light, Dark, and Darker themes with user preferences
• Idle detection - Automatic cleanup of inactive users (5min idle, 10min removal)
• Ownership system - Prevents conflicts during simultaneous edits
• Real-time cursors - See other users' cursors and selections
• Export capabilities - Save canvas as PNG/SVG

🛠️ Tech Stack

Frontend

• React 18 - Modern React with hooks and context
• Vite - Fast build tool and dev server
• Konva.js - High-performance 2D canvas library
• CSS Variables - Dynamic theming system

Backend & Database

• Supabase - Backend-as-a-Service with PostgreSQL
• Real-time subscriptions - Live data synchronization
• Row Level Security (RLS) - Secure data access
• Edge Functions - Serverless API endpoints

AI Integration

• OpenAI GPT-4 Turbo - Natural language processing
• Function calling - Structured AI responses
• Vercel Serverless - Secure API key handling

Development & Deployment

• Vercel - Frontend and API deployment
• GitHub - Version control and CI/CD
• ESLint - Code quality and consistency

🚀 Quick Start

Prerequisites

• Node.js 18+ and npm
• Git for version control
• Supabase account (free tier available)
• OpenAI API key (for AI features)

1. Clone the Repository

git clone https://github.com/jjjorgenson/gauntlet-colabcanvas.git
cd gauntlet-colabcanvas

2. Install Dependencies

npm install

3. Environment Setup

Create a .env.local file in the root directory:

# Supabase Configuration
VITE_SUPABASE_URL=your_supabase_project_url
VITE_SUPABASE_ANON_KEY=your_supabase_anon_key

# OpenAI API (for AI features)
OPENAI_API_KEY=your_openai_api_key

4. Database Setup

1. Go to your Supabase Dashboard
2. Navigate to SQL Editor
3. Run the migration script from database/complete-migration.sql
4. Run the idle detection setup from database/add-idle-detection.sql

5. Run Locally

npm run dev

The application will be available at http://localhost:5173

6. Deploy to Vercel

# Install Vercel CLI
npm i -g vercel

# Deploy
vercel

# Set environment variables in Vercel dashboard
# - OPENAI_API_KEY
# - VITE_SUPABASE_URL
# - VITE_SUPABASE_ANON_KEY

📁 Project Structure

CanvasCollab/
├── src/
│   ├── components/          # React components
│   │   ├── AI/             # AI command bar
│   │   ├── Auth/           # Authentication
│   │   ├── Canvas/         # Canvas and shapes
│   │   ├── Presence/       # User presence
│   │   └── Settings/       # Theme settings
│   ├── hooks/              # Custom React hooks
│   ├── lib/                # Core utilities
│   └── utils/              # Helper functions
├── api/                    # Vercel serverless functions
├── database/               # SQL migrations
├── docs/                   # Documentation
└── tasks/                  # Development tasks

🏗️ Architecture Overview

Real-time Collaboration

• Optimistic updates - Immediate UI feedback
• Conflict resolution - Last-write-wins with ownership locks
• Interpolation - Smooth animations between states
• Debounced sync - Efficient database updates

State Management

• React Context - Global application state
• Custom hooks - Encapsulated business logic
• ObjectStore - External state management for canvas objects
• Supabase subscriptions - Real-time data synchronization

AI Integration

• Function calling - Structured AI responses
• Context awareness - Command history and references
• Error handling - Graceful fallbacks for AI failures
• Security - Server-side API key management

🎮 Usage Examples

Basic Commands

"Create a red circle"
"Add a blue rectangle at center"
"Make a text box saying 'Hello World'"

Complex Commands

"Create a login form"
"Make a navigation bar with 4 menu items"
"Arrange all shapes in a horizontal row"

References

"Create a purple rectangle"
"Move that rectangle to the right"
"Make it bigger"

🔧 Development

Available Scripts

npm run dev          # Start development server
npm run build        # Build for production
npm run preview      # Preview production build
npm run lint         # Run ESLint

Code Style

• ESLint configuration for consistent code style
• Functional components with hooks
• TypeScript-ready structure
• Modular architecture with clear separation of concerns

📊 Performance

• Sub-100ms real-time synchronization
• 500+ objects supported with smooth performance
• 5+ concurrent users with minimal lag
• Optimized rendering with Konva.js
• Efficient database queries with proper indexing

🔒 Security

• Row Level Security (RLS) on all database tables
• Server-side API keys - Never exposed to client
• Input validation - Sanitized user inputs
• CORS configuration - Proper cross-origin setup
• Environment variables - Secure configuration management

📈 Monitoring & Analytics

• Real-time presence - Track active users
• Idle detection - Automatic cleanup of inactive sessions
• Error logging - Comprehensive error tracking
• Performance metrics - Built-in performance monitoring

🤝 Contributing

1. Fork the repository
2. Create a feature branch (git checkout -b feature/amazing-feature)
3. Commit your changes (git commit -m 'Add amazing feature')
4. Push to the branch (git push origin feature/amazing-feature)
5. Open a Pull Request

📄 License

This project is licensed under the MIT License - see the LICENSE file for details.

🎥 Demo

[Demo Video Coming Soon] - Watch the collaborative features in action!

🆘 Support

• Issues - GitHub Issues
• Documentation - Check the docs/ folder for detailed guides
• Discussions - GitHub Discussions

🙏 Acknowledgments

• Konva.js - Amazing 2D canvas library
• Supabase - Excellent backend-as-a-service platform
• OpenAI - Powerful AI capabilities
• Vercel - Seamless deployment experience

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Built with ❤️ for collaborative design