Merge Feed browser: Experts & trending into develop

3-column desktop with right rails (Featured experts + Trending minnects) from a new public /api/discover route, plus expert search (v3 public list) and category browse. Public fields only. Tasks 2pz7hheja, gm4ebnr3j, bdf9cupe3.

.env.example

@@ -6,3 +6,7 @@ PROFILES_BASE_URL=https://profiles.minnect.com
 
 # Feed host: home feed, posts, likes, comments (used by later tasks).
 FEED_BASE_URL=https://feed.sharedservices.vt.com
+
+# Discovery host: public, read-only, unauthenticated. Featured experts,
+# trending minnects and categories. No token is ever sent to it.
+DISCOVER_BASE_URL=https://api.minnect.com

src/app/api/discover/route.ts

@@ -0,0 +1,18 @@
+import { NextResponse } from "next/server";
+import { getDiscover } from "@/lib/discover";
+
+// GET /api/discover
+// Same-origin proxy for Minnect's PUBLIC discovery data. No session needed.
+// Returns { featuredExperts, trendingMinnects, categories }, public fields only.
+// Upstream failure -> 502 { error: "discover_unavailable" } (never empty arrays,
+// so the UI can tell "nothing to show" from "could not load").
+
+export const runtime = "nodejs";
+
+export async function GET() {
+  const result = await getDiscover();
+  if (!result.ok) {
+    return NextResponse.json({ error: result.error }, { status: result.status });
+  }
+  return NextResponse.json(result.data);
+}

src/app/api/experts/search/route.ts

@@ -0,0 +1,21 @@
+import { NextResponse } from "next/server";
+import { browseCategory, searchExperts } from "@/lib/experts-search";
+
+// GET /api/experts/search?q=<text>  or  ?category=<name>
+// Same-origin proxy for Minnect's PUBLIC expert list. EXPERTS ONLY: it never
+// calls a user-search endpoint. Public fields only. No session needed.
+// Upstream failure -> 502 { error: "experts_unavailable" }.
+
+export const runtime = "nodejs";
+
+export async function GET(req: Request) {
+  const url = new URL(req.url);
+  const q = (url.searchParams.get("q") ?? "").trim().slice(0, 80);
+  const category = (url.searchParams.get("category") ?? "").trim().slice(0, 80);
+  if (!q && !category) return NextResponse.json({ experts: [] });
+  const result = q ? await searchExperts(q) : await browseCategory(category);
+  if (!result.ok) {
+    return NextResponse.json({ error: result.error }, { status: result.status });
+  }
+  return NextResponse.json({ experts: result.experts });
+}

src/app/globals.css

@@ -79,3 +79,49 @@ button:disabled { opacity: .5; cursor: not-allowed; }
 .menu button:hover { background: #f4f4f4; }
 .menu .menu-danger { color: #a8141b; }
 .menu-ask { font-size: 13px; color: var(--grey); padding: 4px 8px; }
+
+/* 3-column signed-in layout: nav | feed | rails. Wraps on narrow widths. */
+.columns { display: flex; flex-wrap: wrap; gap: 16px; align-items: flex-start; max-width: 1240px; margin: 0 auto; padding: 0 16px; }
+.col-left { flex: 0 0 180px; position: sticky; top: 72px; padding-top: 16px; }
+.col-left > ul { list-style: none; margin: 0; padding: 0; display: flex; flex-direction: column; gap: 4px; }
+.col-left a { display: block; padding: 10px 12px; border-radius: 8px; color: var(--ink); text-decoration: none; font-weight: 500; }
+.col-left a[aria-current="page"] { background: var(--ink); color: #fff; }
+.col-center { flex: 1 1 400px; min-width: 0; }
+.col-center .feed { padding-left: 0; padding-right: 0; }
+.col-right { flex: 0 0 300px; position: sticky; top: 72px; max-height: calc(100vh - 88px); overflow-y: auto; padding-top: 16px; display: flex; flex-direction: column; gap: 20px; }
+.rail h2 { margin: 0 0 8px; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 700; }
+.rail-list { list-style: none; margin: 0; padding: 0; display: flex; flex-direction: column; gap: 8px; }
+.rail-card { background: #fff; border: 1px solid var(--line); border-radius: 8px; padding: 12px; display: flex; gap: 10px; }
+.expert-card { align-items: center; }
+.minnect-card { flex-direction: column; }
+.rail-text { display: flex; flex-direction: column; min-width: 0; font-size: 14px; }
+.rail-name { font-size: 14px; }
+.rail-byline { color: var(--grey); font-size: 13px; overflow: hidden; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap; }
+.rail-meta { color: var(--grey); font-size: 13px; }
+.minnect-who { display: flex; align-items: center; gap: 8px; }
+.avatar-sm { width: 28px; height: 28px; font-size: 11px; }
+.minnect-thumb { width: 100%; aspect-ratio: 16 / 9; object-fit: cover; border-radius: 8px; background: var(--line); }
+.minnect-question { margin: 0; font-size: 14px; display: -webkit-box; -webkit-line-clamp: 3; -webkit-box-orient: vertical; overflow: hidden; }
+.minnect-audio { width: 100%; height: 36px; }
+@media (max-width: 959px) {
+  .col-left { flex: 1 1 100%; position: static; padding-top: 8px; }
+  .col-left > ul { flex-direction: row; }
+  .col-center { flex: 1 1 100%; order: 3; }
+  .col-right { flex: 1 1 100%; order: 2; position: static; max-height: none; overflow: visible; padding-top: 0; }
+  .col-right .rail-list { flex-direction: row; overflow-x: auto; padding-bottom: 8px; }
+  .col-right .rail-card { flex: 0 0 260px; }
+}
+
+/* Expert search + category chips (left column). Squared corners, monochrome + red. */
+.expert-search { margin-top: 16px; }
+.expert-search summary { font-weight: 700; font-size: 16px; cursor: pointer; padding: 4px 0; }
+.expert-search form { display: flex; flex-direction: column; }
+.expert-search input { border-radius: 0; width: 100%; }
+.chips { display: flex; flex-wrap: wrap; gap: 6px; margin-top: 12px; }
+.chip { margin: 0; padding: 6px 10px; border-radius: 0; background: #fff; color: var(--ink); border: 1px solid var(--ink); font-size: 13px; }
+.chip[aria-pressed="true"] { background: var(--red); border-color: var(--red); color: #fff; }
+.search-results { margin-top: 12px; }
+.search-note { margin: 0; font-size: 14px; color: var(--grey); }
+@media (max-width: 959px) {
+  .col-left .expert-search { flex-basis: 100%; }
+}

src/components/App.tsx

@@ -1,10 +1,13 @@
 "use client";
 
+import Link from "next/link";
 import { useEffect, useState } from "react";
 import { loadSession, type Person } from "@/lib/auth-client";
 import { SignInForm } from "./SignInForm";
 import { Logo } from "./Logo";
 import { Feed } from "./Feed";
+import { DiscoverRails } from "./DiscoverRails";
+import { ExpertSearch } from "./ExpertSearch";
 
 type State = { kind: "loading" } | { kind: "out" } | { kind: "in"; person: Person };
 
@@ -46,7 +49,20 @@ export function App() {
           <span>{state.person.email}</span>
         </div>
       </header>
+      <div className="columns">
+        <nav className="col-left" aria-label="Main">
+          <ul>
+            <li><Link href="/" aria-current="page">Feed</Link></li>
+          </ul>
+          <ExpertSearch />
+        </nav>
+        <div className="col-center">
           <Feed feedUserId={state.person.feedUserId} onSignedOut={() => setState({ kind: "out" })} />
+        </div>
+        <aside className="col-right" aria-label="Discover">
+          <DiscoverRails />
+        </aside>
+      </div>
     </main>
   );
 }

src/components/DiscoverRails.tsx

@@ -0,0 +1,28 @@
+"use client";
+
+import { useEffect, useState } from "react";
+import type { DiscoverData } from "@/lib/discover";
+import { fetchDiscover } from "@/lib/discover-client";
+import { FeaturedExpertsRail } from "./FeaturedExpertsRail";
+import { TrendingMinnectsRail } from "./TrendingMinnectsRail";
+
+export function DiscoverRailsView({ data }: { data: DiscoverData | null }) {
+  if (!data) return null;
+  return (
+    <>
+      <FeaturedExpertsRail experts={data.featuredExperts} />
+      <TrendingMinnectsRail minnects={data.trendingMinnects} />
+    </>
+  );
+}
+
+/** Loads /api/discover once. Failure hides the rails; the feed is unaffected. */
+export function DiscoverRails() {
+  const [data, setData] = useState<DiscoverData | null>(null);
+  useEffect(() => {
+    let live = true;
+    fetchDiscover().then((d) => { if (live) setData(d); }, () => {});
+    return () => { live = false; };
+  }, []);
+  return <DiscoverRailsView data={data} />;
+}

src/components/ExpertSearch.tsx

@@ -0,0 +1,136 @@
+"use client";
+
+import { useEffect, useRef, useState } from "react";
+import type { DiscoverCategory } from "@/lib/discover";
+import { fetchDiscover } from "@/lib/discover-client";
+import type { ExpertResult } from "@/lib/experts-search";
+import { fetchExperts } from "@/lib/experts-search-client";
+import { initials } from "@/lib/feed-model";
+
+export type SearchStatus = "idle" | "loading" | "ready" | "error";
+
+export interface ExpertSearchViewProps {
+  query: string;
+  onQuery: (q: string) => void;
+  categories: DiscoverCategory[];
+  activeCategory: string | null;
+  onCategory: (name: string | null) => void;
+  status: SearchStatus;
+  results: ExpertResult[];
+  defaultOpen?: boolean;
+}
+
+export function ExpertSearchView(p: ExpertSearchViewProps) {
+  return (
+    <details className="expert-search" open={p.defaultOpen}>
+      <summary>Find experts</summary>
+      <form role="search" onSubmit={(e) => e.preventDefault()}>
+        <label htmlFor="expert-q">Search experts</label>
+        <input
+          id="expert-q"
+          type="search"
+          value={p.query}
+          placeholder="Name or topic"
+          autoComplete="off"
+          maxLength={80}
+          onChange={(e) => p.onQuery(e.target.value)}
+        />
+      </form>
+      {p.categories.length > 0 ? (
+        <div role="group" aria-label="Browse experts by category" className="chips">
+          {p.categories.map((c) => (
+            <button
+              key={String(c.id)}
+              type="button"
+              className="chip"
+              aria-pressed={p.activeCategory === c.name}
+              onClick={() => p.onCategory(p.activeCategory === c.name ? null : c.name)}
+            >
+              {c.name}
+            </button>
+          ))}
+        </div>
+      ) : null}
+      <div aria-live="polite" className="search-results">
+        {p.status === "loading" ? <p className="search-note">Searching...</p> : null}
+        {p.status === "error" ? <p className="search-note" role="alert">Search is unavailable. Try again.</p> : null}
+        {p.status === "ready" && p.results.length === 0 ? (
+          <p className="search-note">No experts found.</p>
+        ) : null}
+        {p.status === "ready" && p.results.length > 0 ? (
+          <ul className="rail-list">
+            {p.results.map((e) => (
+              <li key={String(e.id)} className="rail-card expert-card" data-testid="search-result">
+                {e.pictureUrl ? (
+                  // eslint-disable-next-line @next/next/no-img-element
+                  <img className="avatar" src={e.pictureUrl} alt="" width={40} height={40} />
+                ) : (
+                  <span className="avatar avatar-initials" aria-hidden="true">{initials(e.displayName)}</span>
+                )}
+                <div className="rail-text">
+                  <strong className="rail-name">{e.displayName || "Expert"}</strong>
+                  {e.byline ? <span className="rail-byline">{e.byline}</span> : null}
+                  {e.rating !== null ? <span className="rail-meta">★ {e.rating.toFixed(1)}</span> : null}
+                </div>
+              </li>
+            ))}
+          </ul>
+        ) : null}
+      </div>
+    </details>
+  );
+}
+
+const DEBOUNCE_MS = 300;
+
+export function ExpertSearch() {
+  const [query, setQuery] = useState("");
+  const [category, setCategory] = useState<string | null>(null);
+  const [categories, setCategories] = useState<DiscoverCategory[]>([]);
+  const [status, setStatus] = useState<SearchStatus>("idle");
+  const [results, setResults] = useState<ExpertResult[]>([]);
+  const [open, setOpen] = useState(true);
+  const seq = useRef(0);
+
+  useEffect(() => {
+    setOpen(window.matchMedia("(min-width: 960px)").matches);
+    let live = true;
+    fetchDiscover().then(
+      (d) => { if (live) setCategories(d.categories); },
+      () => {},
+    );
+    return () => { live = false; };
+  }, []);
+
+  useEffect(() => {
+    const q = query.trim();
+    const mine = ++seq.current;
+    if (!q && !category) {
+      setStatus("idle");
+      setResults([]);
+      return;
+    }
+    setStatus("loading");
+    const t = setTimeout(() => {
+      fetchExperts(q ? { q } : { category: category ?? undefined }).then(
+        (r) => { if (seq.current === mine) { setResults(r); setStatus("ready"); } },
+        () => { if (seq.current === mine) { setResults([]); setStatus("error"); } },
+      );
+    }, q ? DEBOUNCE_MS : 0);
+    return () => clearTimeout(t);
+  }, [query, category]);
+
+  return (
+    <ExpertSearchView
+      key={open ? "open" : "closed"}
+      defaultOpen={open}
+      query={query}
+      onQuery={setQuery}
+      categories={categories}
+      activeCategory={category}
+      onCategory={setCategory}
+      status={status}
+      results={results}
+    />
+  );
+}

src/components/FeaturedExpertsRail.tsx

@@ -0,0 +1,38 @@
+import type { DiscoverExpert } from "@/lib/discover";
+import { initials } from "@/lib/feed-model";
+
+function Rating({ rating, reviews }: { rating: number | null; reviews: number | null }) {
+  if (rating === null && reviews === null) return null;
+  return (
+    <span className="rail-meta">
+      {rating !== null ? <span aria-label={`Rated ${rating.toFixed(1)} out of 5`}>★ {rating.toFixed(1)}</span> : null}
+      {reviews !== null ? <span> ({reviews} {reviews === 1 ? "review" : "reviews"})</span> : null}
+    </span>
+  );
+}
+
+export function FeaturedExpertsRail({ experts }: { experts: DiscoverExpert[] }) {
+  if (experts.length === 0) return null;
+  return (
+    <section className="rail" aria-labelledby="rail-experts">
+      <h2 id="rail-experts">Featured experts</h2>
+      <ul className="rail-list">
+        {experts.map((e) => (
+          <li key={String(e.id)} className="rail-card expert-card" data-testid="expert-card">
+            {e.pictureUrl ? (
+              // eslint-disable-next-line @next/next/no-img-element
+              <img className="avatar" src={e.pictureUrl} alt="" width={40} height={40} />
+            ) : (
+              <span className="avatar avatar-initials" aria-hidden="true">{initials(e.displayName)}</span>
+            )}
+            <div className="rail-text">
+              <strong className="rail-name">{e.displayName || "Expert"}</strong>
+              {e.byline ? <span className="rail-byline">{e.byline}</span> : null}
+              <Rating rating={e.rating} reviews={e.reviewsCount} />
+            </div>
+          </li>
+        ))}
+      </ul>
+    </section>
+  );
+}

src/components/TrendingMinnectsRail.tsx

@@ -0,0 +1,40 @@
+import type { DiscoverMinnect } from "@/lib/discover";
+import { initials } from "@/lib/feed-model";
+
+export function TrendingMinnectsRail({ minnects }: { minnects: DiscoverMinnect[] }) {
+  if (minnects.length === 0) return null;
+  return (
+    <section className="rail" aria-labelledby="rail-trending">
+      <h2 id="rail-trending">Trending minnects</h2>
+      <ul className="rail-list">
+        {minnects.map((m) => {
+          const who = m.expert.displayName || "Expert";
+          return (
+            <li key={String(m.id)} className="rail-card minnect-card" data-testid="minnect-card">
+              <div className="minnect-who">
+                {m.expert.pictureUrl ? (
+                  // eslint-disable-next-line @next/next/no-img-element
+                  <img className="avatar avatar-sm" src={m.expert.pictureUrl} alt="" width={28} height={28} />
+                ) : (
+                  <span className="avatar avatar-sm avatar-initials" aria-hidden="true">{initials(who)}</span>
+                )}
+                <strong className="rail-name">{who}</strong>
+              </div>
+              {m.thumbnailUrl ? (
+                // eslint-disable-next-line @next/next/no-img-element
+                <img className="minnect-thumb" src={m.thumbnailUrl} alt={m.question ? `Thumbnail for: ${m.question}` : "Minnect thumbnail"} />
+              ) : null}
+              {m.question ? <p className="minnect-question">{m.question}</p> : null}
+              {m.views !== null ? (
+                <span className="rail-meta">{m.views.toLocaleString("en-US")} {m.views === 1 ? "view" : "views"}</span>
+              ) : null}
+              {m.audio.url ? (
+                <audio className="minnect-audio" controls preload="none" src={m.audio.url} aria-label={`Play answer from ${who}`} />
+              ) : null}
+            </li>
+          );
+        })}
+      </ul>
+    </section>
+  );
+}

src/lib/discover-client.ts

@@ -0,0 +1,32 @@
+// Browser-side reader for the same-origin GET /api/discover route.
+import type { DiscoverData } from "./discover";
+
+export class DiscoverLoadError extends Error {
+  constructor() {
+    super("discover_unavailable");
+  }
+}
+
+const arr = <T>(v: unknown): T[] => (Array.isArray(v) ? (v as T[]) : []);
+
+export async function fetchDiscover(
+  fetchImpl: typeof fetch = fetch,
+): Promise<DiscoverData> {
+  let res: Response;
+  try {
+    res = await fetchImpl("/api/discover", { credentials: "same-origin" });
+  } catch {
+    throw new DiscoverLoadError();
+  }
+  if (!res.ok) throw new DiscoverLoadError();
+  try {
+    const body = (await res.json()) as Record<string, unknown>;
+    return {
+      featuredExperts: arr(body.featuredExperts),
+      trendingMinnects: arr(body.trendingMinnects),
+      categories: arr(body.categories),
+    };
+  } catch {
+    throw new DiscoverLoadError();
+  }
+}

src/lib/discover.ts

@@ -0,0 +1,163 @@
+import { DISCOVER_BASE_URL } from "./env";
+
+// Maps Minnect's public discovery payload (GET /api/v1/individual/home) to
+// PUBLIC FIELDS ONLY. The mappers build each object from an explicit
+// allow-list, so phone, DOB, zip, email, gender, KYC/Stripe fields,
+// is_blocking, scores and rates can never leak through. No token is sent or logged.
+
+export interface DiscoverExpert {
+  id: string | number;
+  slug: string | null;
+  displayName: string;
+  byline: string | null;
+  pictureUrl: string | null;
+  rating: number | null;
+  reviewsCount: number | null;
+  available: boolean | null;
+  location: { city: string | null; country: string | null };
+}
+
+export interface DiscoverMinnect {
+  id: string | number;
+  question: string | null;
+  views: number | null;
+  thumbnailUrl: string | null;
+  audio: {
+    url: string | null;
+    duration: number | null;
+    waveform: number[] | string | null;
+  };
+  expert: {
+    slug: string | null;
+    displayName: string;
+    pictureUrl: string | null;
+    byline: string | null;
+    rating: number | null;
+  };
+}
+
+export interface DiscoverCategory {
+  id: string | number;
+  name: string;
+  icon: string | null;
+  sortOrder: number;
+}
+
+export interface DiscoverData {
+  featuredExperts: DiscoverExpert[];
+  trendingMinnects: DiscoverMinnect[];
+  categories: DiscoverCategory[];
+}
+
+export type DiscoverResult =
+  | { ok: true; data: DiscoverData }
+  | { ok: false; status: 502; error: "discover_unavailable" };
+
+type Rec = Record<string, unknown>;
+
+const rec = (v: unknown): Rec =>
+  v && typeof v === "object" && !Array.isArray(v) ? (v as Rec) : {};
+const arr = (v: unknown): unknown[] => (Array.isArray(v) ? v : []);
+const str = (v: unknown): string | null =>
+  typeof v === "string" && v.trim() ? v : null;
+const num = (v: unknown): number | null =>
+  typeof v === "number" && Number.isFinite(v) ? v : null;
+const bool = (v: unknown): boolean | null => (typeof v === "boolean" ? v : null);
+const id = (v: unknown): string | number | null =>
+  typeof v === "string" && v ? v : typeof v === "number" ? v : null;
+
+function displayName(r: Rec): string {
+  return [str(r.first_name), str(r.last_name)].filter(Boolean).join(" ");
+}
+
+export function mapExpert(raw: unknown): DiscoverExpert | null {
+  const r = rec(raw);
+  const eid = id(r.id);
+  if (eid === null) return null;
+  return {
+    id: eid,
+    slug: str(r.slug),
+    displayName: displayName(r),
+    byline: str(r.byline),
+    pictureUrl: str(r.url_picture),
+    rating: num(r.rating),
+    reviewsCount: num(r.reviews_count),
+    available: bool(r.available),
+    location: { city: str(r.city), country: str(r.country) },
+  };
+}
+
+function waveform(v: unknown): number[] | string | null {
+  if (Array.isArray(v)) return v.filter((n): n is number => typeof n === "number");
+  return str(v);
+}
+
+export function mapMinnect(raw: unknown): DiscoverMinnect | null {
+  const r = rec(raw);
+  const mid = id(r.id);
+  if (mid === null) return null;
+  const answer = rec(r.answer);
+  const expert = rec(r.expert);
+  return {
+    id: mid,
+    question: str(r.question_text),
+    views: num(r.views),
+    thumbnailUrl: str(rec(r.thumbnail).url),
+    audio: {
+      url: str(answer.url),
+      duration: num(answer.duration),
+      waveform: waveform(answer.waveform_data),
+    },
+    expert: {
+      slug: str(expert.slug),
+      displayName: displayName(expert),
+      pictureUrl: str(expert.url_picture),
+      byline: str(expert.byline),
+      rating: num(expert.rating),
+    },
+  };
+}
+
+export function mapCategory(raw: unknown): DiscoverCategory | null {
+  const r = rec(raw);
+  const cid = id(r.id);
+  const name = str(r.name);
+  if (cid === null || !name || r.active === false) return null;
+  return { id: cid, name, icon: str(r.icon), sortOrder: num(r.sort_order) ?? 0 };
+}
+
+export function mapDiscover(body: unknown): DiscoverData {
+  const data = rec(rec(body).data);
+  const keep = <T>(x: T | null): x is T => x !== null;
+  return {
+    featuredExperts: arr(data.featured_experts).map(mapExpert).filter(keep),
+    trendingMinnects: arr(data.trending_conversations).map(mapMinnect).filter(keep),
+    categories: arr(data.trending_categories)
+      .map(mapCategory)
+      .filter(keep)
+      .sort((a, b) => a.sortOrder - b.sortOrder),
+  };
+}
+
+const UNAVAILABLE: DiscoverResult = {
+  ok: false,
+  status: 502,
+  error: "discover_unavailable",
+};
+
+/** Fetch and map the public discovery data. Never throws; upstream failure -> 502. */
+export async function getDiscover(
+  fetchImpl: typeof fetch = fetch,
+): Promise<DiscoverResult> {
+  try {
+    const res = await fetchImpl(`${DISCOVER_BASE_URL}/api/v1/individual/home`, {
+      headers: { Accept: "application/json" },
+      cache: "no-store",
+    });
+    if (!res.ok) return UNAVAILABLE;
+    const body: unknown = await res.json();
+    return { ok: true, data: mapDiscover(body) };
+  } catch {
+    return UNAVAILABLE;
+  }
+}

src/lib/env.ts

@@ -15,3 +15,10 @@ export const FEED_BASE_URL = baseUrl(
   process.env.FEED_BASE_URL,
   "https://feed.sharedservices.vt.com",
 );
+
+// Public, read-only, UNAUTHENTICATED discovery host (featured experts,
+// trending minnects, categories). Public fields only; no user token is sent.
+export const DISCOVER_BASE_URL = baseUrl(
+  process.env.DISCOVER_BASE_URL,
+  "https://api.minnect.com",
+);

src/lib/experts-search-client.ts

@@ -0,0 +1,30 @@
+// Browser-side reader for the same-origin GET /api/experts/search route.
+import type { ExpertResult } from "./experts-search";
+
+export class ExpertSearchError extends Error {
+  constructor() {
+    super("experts_unavailable");
+  }
+}
+
+export async function fetchExperts(
+  query: { q?: string; category?: string },
+  fetchImpl: typeof fetch = fetch,
+): Promise<ExpertResult[]> {
+  const params = new URLSearchParams();
+  if (query.q) params.set("q", query.q);
+  else if (query.category) params.set("category", query.category);
+  let res: Response;
+  try {
+    res = await fetchImpl(`/api/experts/search?${params}`, { credentials: "same-origin" });
+  } catch {
+    throw new ExpertSearchError();
+  }
+  if (!res.ok) throw new ExpertSearchError();
+  try {
+    const body = (await res.json()) as Record<string, unknown>;
+    return Array.isArray(body.experts) ? (body.experts as ExpertResult[]) : [];
+  } catch {
+    throw new ExpertSearchError();
+  }
+}

src/lib/experts-search.ts

@@ -0,0 +1,144 @@
+import { DISCOVER_BASE_URL } from "./env";
+
+// Expert-only search and category browse over Minnect's PUBLIC expert list
+// (GET /api/v3/experts). Never touches /api/v4/users or any user search.
+//
+// Upstream findings (probed 2026-10-19, unauthenticated):
+// - /api/v1/individual/experts/search?query= ignores `query` (returns all
+//   experts) and its payload carries KYC/payment/rate fields. NOT used.
+// - /api/v3/experts?search=<text>&limit=N filters by name/byline and returns a
+//   lean public payload (id, names, slug, byline, picture, categories). Used.
+// - /api/v3/experts has no category filter and ignores `page`. Category browse
+//   therefore filters the first CATEGORY_POOL experts of the public list by
+//   category name (documented limitation, cached in memory for a few minutes).
+
+export interface ExpertCategory {
+  id: string | number;
+  name: string;
+}
+
+export interface ExpertResult {
+  id: string | number;
+  slug: string | null;
+  displayName: string;
+  pictureUrl: string | null;
+  byline: string | null;
+  rating: number | null;
+  categories: ExpertCategory[];
+}
+
+export type ExpertSearchResult =
+  | { ok: true; experts: ExpertResult[] }
+  | { ok: false; status: 502; error: "experts_unavailable" };
+
+export const SEARCH_LIMIT = 20;
+export const CATEGORY_POOL = 300;
+const CACHE_MS = 5 * 60 * 1000;
+
+type Rec = Record<string, unknown>;
+const rec = (v: unknown): Rec =>
+  v && typeof v === "object" && !Array.isArray(v) ? (v as Rec) : {};
+const str = (v: unknown): string | null =>
+  typeof v === "string" && v.trim() ? v : null;
+const num = (v: unknown): number | null =>
+  typeof v === "number" && Number.isFinite(v) ? v : null;
+const id = (v: unknown): string | number | null =>
+  typeof v === "string" && v ? v : typeof v === "number" ? v : null;
+
+/** Explicit allow-list: nothing outside these fields can reach the browser. */
+export function mapExpertResult(raw: unknown): ExpertResult | null {
+  const r = rec(raw);
+  const eid = id(r.id);
+  if (eid === null) return null;
+  const categories: ExpertCategory[] = [];
+  if (Array.isArray(r.categories)) {
+    for (const c of r.categories) {
+      const cr = rec(c);
+      const cid = id(cr.id);
+      const name = str(cr.name)?.trim();
+      if (cid !== null && name) categories.push({ id: cid, name });
+    }
+  }
+  return {
+    id: eid,
+    slug: str(r.slug),
+    displayName: [str(r.first_name), str(r.last_name)].filter(Boolean).join(" "),
+    pictureUrl: str(r.url_picture),
+    byline: str(r.byline),
+    rating: num(r.rating),
+    categories,
+  };
+}
+
+export function mapExpertList(body: unknown): ExpertResult[] {
+  const data = rec(body).data;
+  if (!Array.isArray(data)) return [];
+  const out: ExpertResult[] = [];
+  for (const e of data) {
+    const m = mapExpertResult(e);
+    if (m) out.push(m);
+  }
+  return out;
+}
+
+const UNAVAILABLE: ExpertSearchResult = {
+  ok: false,
+  status: 502,
+  error: "experts_unavailable",
+};
+
+async function fetchList(
+  params: Record<string, string>,
+  fetchImpl: typeof fetch,
+): Promise<ExpertResult[] | null> {
+  try {
+    const qs = new URLSearchParams(params).toString();
+    const res = await fetchImpl(`${DISCOVER_BASE_URL}/api/v3/experts?${qs}`, {
+      headers: { Accept: "application/json" },
+      cache: "no-store",
+    });
+    if (!res.ok) return null;
+    return mapExpertList(await res.json());
+  } catch {
+    return null;
+  }
+}
+
+/** Free-text expert search by name/byline. Never throws. */
+export async function searchExperts(
+  q: string,
+  fetchImpl: typeof fetch = fetch,
+): Promise<ExpertSearchResult> {
+  const list = await fetchList(
+    { search: q, limit: String(SEARCH_LIMIT), page: "1" },
+    fetchImpl,
+  );
+  return list ? { ok: true, experts: list.slice(0, SEARCH_LIMIT) } : UNAVAILABLE;
+}
+
+let pool: { at: number; experts: ExpertResult[] } | null = null;
+
+/** Test hook: forget the cached pool. */
+export function resetCategoryPool(): void {
+  pool = null;
+}
+
+const norm = (s: string) => s.trim().toLowerCase();
+
+/** Experts (from the first CATEGORY_POOL of the public list) in a category, by name. */
+export async function browseCategory(
+  category: string,
+  fetchImpl: typeof fetch = fetch,
+  now: number = Date.now(),
+): Promise<ExpertSearchResult> {
+  if (!pool || now - pool.at > CACHE_MS) {
+    const list = await fetchList({ limit: String(CATEGORY_POOL), page: "1" }, fetchImpl);
+    if (!list) return UNAVAILABLE;
+    pool = { at: now, experts: list };
+  }
+  const want = norm(category);
+  const experts = pool.experts
+    .filter((e) => e.categories.some((c) => norm(c.name) === want))
+    .slice(0, SEARCH_LIMIT);
+  return { ok: true, experts };
+}

tests/discover-rails.test.ts

@@ -0,0 +1,82 @@
+import { describe, expect, it } from "vitest";
+import { createElement } from "react";
+import { renderToStaticMarkup } from "react-dom/server";
+import { FeaturedExpertsRail } from "@/components/FeaturedExpertsRail";
+import { TrendingMinnectsRail } from "@/components/TrendingMinnectsRail";
+import { DiscoverRailsView } from "@/components/DiscoverRails";
+import { fetchDiscover } from "@/lib/discover-client";
+import type { DiscoverExpert, DiscoverMinnect } from "@/lib/discover";
+
+const expert = (o: Partial<DiscoverExpert> = {}): DiscoverExpert => ({
+  id: 1, slug: "ann", displayName: "Ann Lee", byline: "Growth coach", pictureUrl: "https://x/a.jpg",
+  rating: 4.8, reviewsCount: 12, available: true, location: { city: null, country: null }, ...o,
+});
+const minnect = (o: Partial<DiscoverMinnect> = {}): DiscoverMinnect => ({
+  id: 9, question: "How do I price?", views: 1234, thumbnailUrl: "https://x/t.jpg",
+  audio: { url: "https://x/a.mp3", duration: 30, waveform: null },
+  expert: { slug: "ann", displayName: "Ann Lee", pictureUrl: null, byline: null, rating: null }, ...o,
+});
+const html = (el: ReturnType<typeof createElement>) => renderToStaticMarkup(el);
+
+describe("FeaturedExpertsRail", () => {
+  it("renders a card with name, byline, rating and reviews", () => {
+    const out = html(createElement(FeaturedExpertsRail, { experts: [expert()] }));
+    expect(out).toContain("<h2");
+    expect(out).toContain("Ann Lee");
+    expect(out).toContain("Growth coach");
+    expect(out).toContain("4.8");
+    expect(out).toContain("12 reviews");
+    expect(out).toContain("<img");
+  });
+  it("falls back to initials and omits missing fields", () => {
+    const out = html(createElement(FeaturedExpertsRail, {
+      experts: [expert({ pictureUrl: null, byline: null, rating: null, reviewsCount: null })],
+    }));
+    expect(out).not.toContain("<img");
+    expect(out).toContain("AL");
+    expect(out).not.toContain("review");
+  });
+  it("renders nothing when empty", () => {
+    expect(html(createElement(FeaturedExpertsRail, { experts: [] }))).toBe("");
+  });
+});
+
+describe("TrendingMinnectsRail", () => {
+  it("renders question, views, thumbnail and an audio control", () => {
+    const out = html(createElement(TrendingMinnectsRail, { minnects: [minnect()] }));
+    expect(out).toContain("How do I price?");
+    expect(out).toContain("1,234 views");
+    expect(out).toContain("<audio");
+    expect(out).toContain("controls");
+    expect(out).toContain('src="https://x/a.mp3"');
+    expect(out).toContain("t.jpg");
+  });
+  it("has no audio element or thumbnail when those are missing", () => {
+    const out = html(createElement(TrendingMinnectsRail, {
+      minnects: [minnect({ audio: { url: null, duration: null, waveform: null }, thumbnailUrl: null, question: null, views: null })],
+    }));
+    expect(out).not.toContain("<audio");
+    expect(out).not.toContain("minnect-thumb");
+    expect(out).toContain("Ann Lee");
+  });
+});
+
+describe("DiscoverRailsView / fetchDiscover", () => {
+  it("renders both rails from data and nothing when null", () => {
+    const data = { featuredExperts: [expert()], trendingMinnects: [minnect()], categories: [] };
+    const out = html(createElement(DiscoverRailsView, { data }));
+    expect(out).toContain("Featured experts");
+    expect(out).toContain("Trending minnects");
+    expect(html(createElement(DiscoverRailsView, { data: null }))).toBe("");
+  });
+  it("fetches /api/discover and tolerates missing arrays", async () => {
+    const f = (async () => new Response(JSON.stringify({ featuredExperts: [expert()] }), { status: 200 })) as typeof fetch;
+    const d = await fetchDiscover(f);
+    expect(d.featuredExperts).toHaveLength(1);
+    expect(d.trendingMinnects).toEqual([]);
+  });
+  it("throws on a 502", async () => {
+    const f = (async () => new Response("{}", { status: 502 })) as typeof fetch;
+    await expect(fetchDiscover(f)).rejects.toThrow("discover_unavailable");
+  });
+});

tests/discover.test.ts

@@ -0,0 +1,110 @@
+import { describe, expect, it, vi } from "vitest";
+import { GET } from "@/app/api/discover/route";
+import { mapDiscover } from "@/lib/discover";
+
+const expert = {
+  id: 7, slug: "jane-doe", first_name: "Jane", last_name: "Doe", byline: "Coach",
+  url_picture: "https://img/jane.jpg", rating: 4.9, reviews_count: 12, available: true,
+  city: "Austin", country: "US",
+  quick_question_rate: 25, video_call_rate: 100, is_blocking: false, score: 99,
+  leaderboard: 3, profile_views: 500, status: "active",
+  phone: "555-1234", dob: "1990-01-01", zip: "78701", email: "jane@x.com",
+  gender: "f", stripe_account_id: "acct_1", kyc_status: "verified",
+};
+const body = {
+  data: {
+    featured_experts: [expert],
+    trending_conversations: [{
+      id: "c1", question_text: "How?", answer_text: "secret text", views: 10,
+      made_public_on: "2026-01-01", thumbnail: { url: "https://img/t.jpg" },
+      answer: { url: "https://a/1.mp3", duration: 42, waveform_data: [1, 2, 3], file_type: "audio" },
+      expert,
+    }],
+    trending_categories: [
+      { id: 2, name: "Money", icon: "m", sort_order: 2, active: true, search: "x" },
+      { id: 1, name: "Health", icon: "h", sort_order: 1, active: true },
+      { id: 3, name: "Hidden", icon: "x", sort_order: 0, active: false },
+    ],
+    popular_topics: [], wallet: { balance: 5 },
+  },
+};
+
+async function withUpstream(impl: () => Promise<Response>) {
+  const orig = globalThis.fetch;
+  const spy = vi.fn(impl);
+  globalThis.fetch = spy as unknown as typeof fetch;
+  try {
+    return { res: await GET(), spy };
+  } finally {
+    globalThis.fetch = orig;
+  }
+}
+
+describe("GET /api/discover", () => {
+  it("maps public fields, sorts and filters categories, sends no auth", async () => {
+    const { res, spy } = await withUpstream(async () => new Response(JSON.stringify(body)));
+    expect(res.status).toBe(200);
+    const json = await res.json();
+    expect(json.featuredExperts[0]).toEqual({
+      id: 7, slug: "jane-doe", displayName: "Jane Doe", byline: "Coach",
+      pictureUrl: "https://img/jane.jpg", rating: 4.9, reviewsCount: 12, available: true,
+      location: { city: "Austin", country: "US" },
+    });
+    expect(json.trendingMinnects[0]).toEqual({
+      id: "c1", question: "How?", views: 10, thumbnailUrl: "https://img/t.jpg",
+      audio: { url: "https://a/1.mp3", duration: 42, waveform: [1, 2, 3] },
+      expert: { slug: "jane-doe", displayName: "Jane Doe", pictureUrl: "https://img/jane.jpg", byline: "Coach", rating: 4.9 },
+    });
+    expect(json.categories).toEqual([
+      { id: 1, name: "Health", icon: "h", sortOrder: 1 },
+      { id: 2, name: "Money", icon: "m", sortOrder: 2 },
+    ]);
+    const [url, init] = spy.mock.calls[0] as unknown as [string, RequestInit];
+    expect(url).toBe("https://api.minnect.com/api/v1/individual/home");
+    expect(JSON.stringify(init.headers)).not.toMatch(/authorization/i);
+  });
+
+  it("never leaks PII, KYC, payment or internal fields", async () => {
+    const { res } = await withUpstream(async () => new Response(JSON.stringify(body)));
+    const text = JSON.stringify(await res.json());
+    for (const bad of [
+      "555-1234", "1990-01-01", "78701", "jane@x.com", "acct_1", "kyc", "stripe",
+      "is_blocking", "isBlocking", "score", "leaderboard", "profile_views",
+      "quick_question_rate", "video_call_rate", "secret text", "wallet", "balance",
+      "gender", "phone", "dob", "zip", "email",
+    ]) {
+      expect(text.toLowerCase()).not.toContain(bad.toLowerCase());
+    }
+  });
+
+  it("tolerates missing fields", () => {
+    const out = mapDiscover({
+      data: {
+        featured_experts: [{ id: 1 }, {}, null, "x"],
+        trending_conversations: [{ id: 2 }, { question_text: "no id" }],
+        trending_categories: [{ id: 3, name: "A" }, { id: 4 }],
+      },
+    });
+    expect(out.featuredExperts).toEqual([{
+      id: 1, slug: null, displayName: "", byline: null, pictureUrl: null, rating: null,
+      reviewsCount: null, available: null, location: { city: null, country: null },
+    }]);
+    expect(out.trendingMinnects).toHaveLength(1);
+    expect(out.trendingMinnects[0].audio).toEqual({ url: null, duration: null, waveform: null });
+    expect(out.categories).toEqual([{ id: 3, name: "A", icon: null, sortOrder: 0 }]);
+    expect(mapDiscover(null)).toEqual({ featuredExperts: [], trendingMinnects: [], categories: [] });
+  });
+
+  it("upstream non-2xx -> 502", async () => {
+    const { res } = await withUpstream(async () => new Response("boom", { status: 500 }));
+    expect(res.status).toBe(502);
+    expect(await res.json()).toEqual({ error: "discover_unavailable" });
+  });
+
+  it("network error or bad JSON -> 502", async () => {
+    const a = await withUpstream(async () => { throw new Error("down"); });
+    expect(a.res.status).toBe(502);
+    const b = await withUpstream(async () => new Response("<html>"));
+    expect(b.res.status).toBe(502);
+  });
+});

tests/expert-search.test.ts

@@ -0,0 +1,114 @@
+import { beforeEach, describe, expect, it, vi } from "vitest";
+import { createElement } from "react";
+import { renderToStaticMarkup } from "react-dom/server";
+import { GET } from "@/app/api/experts/search/route";
+import { mapExpertResult, resetCategoryPool } from "@/lib/experts-search";
+import { fetchExperts } from "@/lib/experts-search-client";
+import { ExpertSearchView, type ExpertSearchViewProps } from "@/components/ExpertSearch";
+
+const raw = (o: Record<string, unknown> = {}) => ({
+  id: "e1", first_name: "Jane", last_name: "Doe", slug: "JaneDoe", byline: "Coach",
+  url_picture: "https://img/j.jpg", rating: 4.5, transfer_method_setup: true,
+  categories: [{ id: 42, name: "Business " }, { id: 44, name: "Coaching" }],
+  email: "j@x.com", phone: "555", dob: "1990", kyc_status: "ok", stripe_account_set: true,
+  quick_question_rate: 5, is_blocking: false, user_id: "u1", ...o,
+});
+
+async function call(url: string, impl: (u: string) => Response) {
+  const orig = globalThis.fetch;
+  const spy = vi.fn(async (u: unknown, _init?: unknown) => impl(String(u)));
+  globalThis.fetch = spy as unknown as typeof fetch;
+  try {
+    return { res: await GET(new Request(url)), spy };
+  } finally {
+    globalThis.fetch = orig;
+  }
+}
+const ok = (data: unknown[]) => new Response(JSON.stringify({ status: "success", data }));
+
+beforeEach(() => resetCategoryPool());
+
+describe("mapExpertResult", () => {
+  it("keeps only public fields", () => {
+    const m = mapExpertResult(raw())!;
+    expect(Object.keys(m).sort()).toEqual(
+      ["byline", "categories", "displayName", "id", "pictureUrl", "rating", "slug"],
+    );
+    expect(m.displayName).toBe("Jane Doe");
+    expect(m.categories[0].name).toBe("Business");
+    const s = JSON.stringify(m);
+    for (const bad of ["j@x.com", "555", "1990", "kyc", "stripe", "is_blocking", "u1"]) {
+      expect(s).not.toContain(bad);
+    }
+  });
+  it("drops items without an id", () => expect(mapExpertResult({ first_name: "x" })).toBeNull());
+});
+
+describe("GET /api/experts/search", () => {
+  it("returns empty for no query without calling upstream", async () => {
+    const { res, spy } = await call("http://x/api/experts/search", () => ok([]));
+    expect(await res.json()).toEqual({ experts: [] });
+    expect(spy).not.toHaveBeenCalled();
+  });
+  it("text search hits the v3 experts search, never a user endpoint, with no auth", async () => {
+    const { res, spy } = await call("http://x/api/experts/search?q=pat", () => ok([raw()]));
+    const json = await res.json();
+    expect(json.experts).toHaveLength(1);
+    expect(JSON.stringify(json)).not.toContain("j@x.com");
+    const url = String(spy.mock.calls[0][0]);
+    expect(url).toContain("/api/v3/experts?");
+    expect(url).toContain("search=pat");
+    expect(url).not.toMatch(/\/api\/v4\/users|\/admin\//);
+    expect(JSON.stringify(spy.mock.calls[0][1])).not.toMatch(/authorization/i);
+  });
+  it("category browse filters the pool by category name and caches it", async () => {
+    const list = [raw(), raw({ id: "e2", categories: [{ id: 9, name: "Media" }] })];
+    const { res, spy } = await call("http://x/api/experts/search?category=business", () => ok(list));
+    expect((await res.json()).experts.map((e: { id: string }) => e.id)).toEqual(["e1"]);
+    const again = await call("http://x/api/experts/search?category=Media", () => ok(list));
+    expect((await again.res.json()).experts.map((e: { id: string }) => e.id)).toEqual(["e2"]);
+    expect(spy).toHaveBeenCalledTimes(1);
+    expect(again.spy).not.toHaveBeenCalled();
+  });
+  it("upstream failure -> 502", async () => {
+    const { res } = await call("http://x/api/experts/search?q=a", () => new Response("no", { status: 500 }));
+    expect(res.status).toBe(502);
+    expect(await res.json()).toEqual({ error: "experts_unavailable" });
+  });
+});
+
+describe("fetchExperts", () => {
+  it("calls the same-origin route and rejects on failure", async () => {
+    const f = vi.fn(async (_u: string) => new Response(JSON.stringify({ experts: [mapExpertResult(raw())] })));
+    expect(await fetchExperts({ q: "a b" }, f as unknown as typeof fetch)).toHaveLength(1);
+    expect(f.mock.calls[0][0]).toBe("/api/experts/search?q=a+b");
+    const bad = vi.fn(async (_u: string) => new Response("", { status: 502 }));
+    await expect(fetchExperts({ category: "Media" }, bad as unknown as typeof fetch)).rejects.toThrow();
+    expect(bad.mock.calls[0][0]).toBe("/api/experts/search?category=Media");
+  });
+});
+
+const view = (o: Partial<ExpertSearchViewProps> = {}) =>
+  renderToStaticMarkup(createElement(ExpertSearchView, {
+    query: "", onQuery: () => {}, categories: [{ id: 1, name: "Business", icon: null, sortOrder: 1 }],
+    activeCategory: null, onCategory: () => {}, status: "idle", results: [], defaultOpen: true, ...o,
+  }));
+
+describe("ExpertSearchView", () => {
+  it("labels the input and renders category buttons", () => {
+    const h = view();
+    expect(h).toContain('<label for="expert-q">Search experts</label>');
+    expect(h).toContain('id="expert-q"');
+    expect(h).toMatch(/<button[^>]*type="button"[^>]*aria-pressed="false"[^>]*>Business<\/button>/);
+  });
+  it("marks the active category pressed", () => {
+    expect(view({ activeCategory: "Business" })).toContain('aria-pressed="true"');
+  });
+  it("renders results, empty and error states", () => {
+    const r = mapExpertResult(raw())!;
+    expect(view({ status: "ready", results: [r] })).toContain("Jane Doe");
+    expect(view({ status: "ready", results: [] })).toContain("No experts found.");
+    expect(view({ status: "error" })).toContain('role="alert"');
+    expect(view({ status: "idle" })).not.toContain("data-testid=\"search-result\"");
+  });
+});