YC Directory - Pitch, Vote, and Grow

Welcome to the YC Directory, a dynamic web application where entrepreneurs and innovators can pitch their startup ideas, and the community can discover, vote, and engage with them. This platform is built to foster a community of builders, providing a space to share ideas and gain visibility.

Live Demo: https://yc-directory-2-2.vercel.app/

About The Project

This project is a full-stack application designed to replicate the core experience of a startup directory like Y Combinator's. It allows users to authenticate, submit their own startup pitches, view startups submitted by others, and search for ideas by keyword, category, or author.

The application is built with a modern, robust, and scalable tech stack, emphasizing a great developer experience and a seamless user experience.

Key Features

• Full Authentication: Secure user sign-up and login using NextAuth.js, supporting various OAuth providers.
• Startup Submission: Authenticated users can submit their startup ideas through a rich-text Markdown editor.
• User and Startup Management:
  • Profile Editing: Users can edit their public profile, including their name, username, and bio.
  • Pitch Editing: Users can edit the details of their own startup pitches at any time.
• Dynamic Content: All startup data is managed through the Sanity.io headless CMS, allowing for easy content updates.
• Advanced Search: A powerful, case-insensitive, partial-matching search allows users to find startups by title, category, description, or author.
• User Profiles: Each user has a public profile page displaying their bio and all the startups they have submitted.
• Fully Responsive Design: The application is built with a mobile-first approach, featuring a fluid grid layout that adapts beautifully to any screen size.
• Optimistic UI & Loading States: Custom loading screens and skeleton loaders provide a smooth and professional user experience during page transitions and data fetching.
• Graceful Empty States: Custom placeholder components are used for missing images and empty content sections, ensuring the UI remains clean and informative.

Tech Stack

This project is built with a modern, component-based architecture.

• Framework: Next.js (v15 with App Router)
• Styling: Tailwind CSS
• Headless CMS: Sanity.io
• Authentication: NextAuth.js
• UI Components: shadcn/ui & custom reusable components
• Form Management: React useActionState Hook
• Validation: Zod

Getting Started

To get a local copy up and running, follow these simple steps.

Prerequisites

• Node.js (v18 or later)
• pnpm (or your package manager of choice)
• A Sanity.io account and project
• An OAuth provider for NextAuth.js (e.g., Google, GitHub)

Installation

1. Clone the repo:

   git clone https://github.com/Nylite-soda/yc_directory2-2.git
   cd yc_directory2-2

2. Install packages:

   pnpm install

3. Set up environment variables: Create a .env file in the root of your project and add the following variables. You will need to get these from your Sanity project dashboard and your OAuth provider configuration.

   # Sanity
   NEXT_PUBLIC_SANITY_PROJECT_ID="..."
   NEXT_PUBLIC_SANITY_DATASET="..."
   NEXT_PUBLIC_SANITY_API_VERSION="..."
   SANITY_API_READ_TOKEN="..."
   SANITY_API_WRITE_TOKEN="..."
   
   # NextAuth.js
   NEXTAUTH_SECRET="..."
   GOOGLE_CLIENT_ID="..."
   GOOGLE_CLIENT_SECRET="..."

4. Run the development server:

   pnpm dev

   Open http://localhost:3000 with your browser to see the result.

Build for Production

To create a production-ready build, run:

pnpm build

License

Distributed under the MIT License. See LICENSE for more information.