Animated: `useNativeDriver` was not specified. This is a required option and must be explicitly set to `true` or `false`

How to fix "Animated: `useNativeDriver` was not specified. This is a required option and must be explicitly set to `true` or `false`"

If you are using React Native and you have encountered the error message "Animated: `useNativeDriver` was not specified. This is a required option and must be explicitly set to `true` or `false`", then this post is for you.

What is `useNativeDriver`?

`useNativeDriver` is a property that can be passed to the `Animated` library in React Native. It specifies whether to use the native driver, which is faster and more efficient, or the JavaScript driver, which is slower and less efficient. By default, `useNativeDriver` is set to `false`, which means that the JavaScript driver is used.

Why do you need to specify `useNativeDriver`?

If you don't specify `useNativeDriver`, you will get the error message "Animated: `useNativeDriver` was not specified. This is a required option and must be explicitly set to `true` or `false`". This is because the native driver requires that all animated properties be set up front and can't be dynamically changed, whereas the JavaScript driver allows for more dynamic changes. Therefore, if you try to use an animated property with the native driver that can't be set up front, you will get an error.

How to fix the error

To fix the error, you need to specify `useNativeDriver` as either `true` or `false`. If you can use the native driver, it's recommended that you do so because it's faster and more efficient. However, if you have animations that require dynamic changes, you may need to use the JavaScript driver.

import React, { Component } from 'react';
import { View, Text, Animated } from 'react-native';

class MyComponent extends Component {
  constructor(props) {
    super(props);
    this.state = {
      fadeAnim: new Animated.Value(0)
    };
  }

  componentDidMount() {
    Animated.timing(
      this.state.fadeAnim,
      {
        toValue: 1,
        duration: 1000,
        useNativeDriver: true // or false
      }
    ).start();
  }

  render() {
    const { fadeAnim } = this.state;
    return (
      <View style={{ flex: 1, alignItems: 'center', justifyContent: 'center' }}>
        <Animated.View style={{ opacity: fadeAnim }}>
          <Text style={{ fontSize: 24 }}>Hello, world!</Text>
        </Animated.View>
      </View>
    );
  }
}

The code above shows an example of how to use `useNativeDriver`. In this case, we're animating the opacity of a `Text` element using the `Animated.timing` method. We're specifying `useNativeDriver` as `true`, which means that the native driver will be used if possible.

If you're using a different animation method, such as `Animated.spring` or `Animated.decay`, you'll need to specify `useNativeDriver` there as well.

If you have animations that require dynamic changes, you'll need to use the JavaScript driver instead. To do this, you can specify `useNativeDriver` as `false`. However, keep in mind that this will be slower and less efficient than using the native driver.

import React, { Component } from 'react';
import { View, Text, Animated } from 'react-native';

class MyComponent extends Component {
  constructor(props) {
    super(props);
    this.state = {
      sizeAnim: new Animated.Value(100)
    };
  }

  onPress = () => {
    Animated.timing(
      this.state.sizeAnim,
      {
        toValue: 200,
        duration: 1000,
        useNativeDriver: false
      }
    ).start();
  }

  render() {
    const { sizeAnim } = this.state;
    return (
      <View style={{ flex: 1, alignItems: 'center', justifyContent: 'center' }}>
        <Animated.View style={{ width: sizeAnim, height: sizeAnim, backgroundColor: 'red' }}></Animated.View>
        <TouchableOpacity onPress={this.onPress}>
          <Text style={{ fontSize: 24, marginTop: 20 }}>Press me!</Text>
        </TouchableOpacity>
      </View>
    );
  }
}

The code above shows an example of how to use the JavaScript driver. In this case, we're animating the width and height of a `View` element using the `Animated.timing` method. We're specifying `useNativeDriver` as `false`, which means that the JavaScript driver will be used.

In summary, if you encounter the error message "Animated: `useNativeDriver` was not specified. This is a required option and must be explicitly set to `true` or `false`", you need to specify `useNativeDriver` as either `true` or `false`. If you can use the native driver, it's recommended that you do so because it's faster and more efficient. However, if you have animations that require dynamic changes, you may need to use the JavaScript driver instead.