How can I integrate Fancybox for a clickable image gallery in Laravel Nova?

Below is a checklist and some suggestions that may help you debug your Fancybox integration in Laravel Nova:

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1. Verify Asset Loading Order

Ensure that:

• jQuery is loaded before Fancybox.
• Your custom initialization script (fancybox-init.js) runs after both jQuery and Fancybox have loaded.

Since Nova::script loads assets in the order they’re registered, your ordering in the NovaServiceProvider appears correct.

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2. Consider Nova’s Dynamic Content

Laravel Nova often loads content dynamically (e.g., via AJAX or within Vue components). If your gallery HTML is rendered after the document is ready, your current document–ready binding example may not attach to dynamically injected elements.

Solution Options:

• Event Delegation:
  Instead of binding on document ready, bind using event delegation for delegated triggers. For example:

  JAVASCRIPTCopied
  $(document).on('click', '[data-fancybox]', function(e) {
      e.preventDefault();
      $.fancybox.open($('[data-fancybox="gallery"]'), {
          loop: true,
          // additional options
      });
  });

• Reinitialize After DOM Updates:
  If Nova triggers an event after it updates its UI (such as on panel or resource load), listen for that event and then reinitialize or rebind Fancybox on the newly rendered gallery. For example:

  JAVASCRIPTCopied
  function initFancybox() {
      $('[data-fancybox]').fancybox({
          loop: true,
          // additional options
      });
  }
  
  // Initial binding when document is ready
  $(document).ready(function() {
      initFancybox();
  });
  
  // If Nova emits an event on dynamic content updates, listen on that event.
  $(document).on('nova.page.loaded', function() {
      initFancybox();
  });

  (Adjust the custom event name based on the actual event Nova emits.)

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3. Check for Asset Caching

Nova caches assets aggressively in production. If you’re modifying your JavaScript file, try one of the following:

• Clear your Nova asset cache.

• Append a query string (e.g., ?v=1.0) to the asset URL in your Nova::script call:

  PHPCopied
  Nova::script('fancybox-init', asset('js/fancybox-init.js') . '?v=1.0');

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4. Debugging Tips

• Console Errors: Open your browser’s developer console to check for any JavaScript errors that might indicate jQuery or Fancybox isn’t loaded correctly.

• Network Tab: Confirm that the Fancybox and jQuery assets load without CORS or 404 errors.

• Manual Trigger: Try manually opening Fancybox from the console after the page loads:

  JAVASCRIPTCopied
  $.fancybox.open($('[data-fancybox="gallery"]'));

If that works, then the issue likely stems from how/when the binding code is being executed.

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5. Recap of Your Setup

Your current Nova resource field renders HTML like this:

PHPCopied
Text::make('Images', 'image')
    ->displayUsing(function ($value) {
        $images = json_decode($value, true);
        if (empty($images)) {
            return 'No images available';
        }
        $html = '<div class="gallery" style="display: flex; flex-wrap: wrap;">';
        foreach ($images as $image) {
            $url = asset($image);
            $html .= '<a data-fancybox="gallery" href="' . $url . '" style="margin: 2px;">';
            $html .= '<img src="' . $url . '" alt="Image" style="width: 50px; height: auto;" />';
            $html .= '</a>';
        }
        $html .= '</div>';
        return $html;
    })
    ->asHtml();

—with the Fancybox initialization in:

JAVASCRIPTCopied
$(document).ready(function() {
    // Bind Fancybox to any element with the data-fancybox attribute
    $('[data-fancybox]').fancybox({
        loop: true,
        // You can add additional options here
    });
});

If your gallery is rendered after document ready, you might need to reinitialize after Nova loads the content.

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Conclusion

Double-check the timing of your JavaScript execution relative to when Nova renders the content. Use event delegation or reinitialize Fancybox after dynamic updates. Also, keep an eye on the asset loading order and cache settings.

Implement these suggestions and you should see your clickable thumbnails open in a Fancybox modal with slider functionality as expected.