Since the previous dev log, I continued working on the frontend and have now finished the main landing page as well as the initial anonymize/file upload page.
I first started by completing the remaining parts of the landing page by adding the footer, API description section, and some final component layout and CSS improvements. After that, I started building the anonymize page, which is where the actual application workflow begins. I implemented the complete upload interface with both file selection and drag and drop feature. I also added client side file handling so uploaded files can be passed from the landing page to the anonymize page without having to upload them to the server first.
To do this, I implemented a small IndexedDB based file storage system in the browser. Uploaded files are temporarily stored locally with a timestamp allowing the anonymize page to retrieve the file when the user arrives there. The stored file automatically expires after a short period and is also removed once it has been retrieved. This keeps the upload flow client side and also avoids putting the file data into the URL or sending it to the backend before processing when not needed.
The anonymize page now also handles different file types correctly and displays a preview based on their type. I also added different anonymization options making it straightforward to pass the processing preferences to the backend. I too spent time fixing bugs and adding small UX improvements across the new frontend functionality.
Next I am going to connect the interface to the backend API and build the actual processing experience. Rather than anonymizing everything automatically, I will create a processing page where the user will be able to decide what to anonymize and I will probably add more customization.