Get reference to method function by name? - javascript

I want to store a function, internal to the function-object its within, in an object member, but I need to get access to it via name. The code below makes it easier to understand...
// MyClassThing.js:
var MyClassThing = (function() {
var _ref = {obj: undefined, fnc: undefined};
function setup(domObject, refName) {
_ref.obj = domObject;
_ref.fnc = this['func_' + refName]; // <<-- This does not work!!
}
function doThing() {
if(_ref.func)
_ref.fnc();
}
function func_foo() {
console.log('Foo!');
}
return {
setup: setup,
doThing: doThing
};
})();
// index.html
<script>
MyClassThing.setup($('#fooObj'), 'foo');
MyClassThing.doThing();
</script>
What do I do to get _ref.fnc = ???? to work properly?

You will have to use helper object to put methods as its properties. Then you will be able to refer to them by variable name:
var MyClassThing = (function () {
var _ref = { obj: undefined, fnc: undefined },
methods = {};
function setup(domObject, refName) {
_ref.obj = domObject;
_ref.fnc = methods['func_' + refName];
}
function doThing () {
if (_ref.fnc) _ref.fnc();
}
methods.func_foo = function () {
console.log('Foo!');
};
return {
setup: setup,
doThing: doThing
};
})();
You can't use this because it points to the object returned from IIFE, however your methods of interest are not properties of this object.

There's a typo in your code:
var MyClassThing = (function() {
var _ref = {obj: undefined, fnc: undefined};
function setup(domObject, refName) {
_ref.obj = domObject;
_ref.fnc = this['func_' + refName]; // <<-- This does not work!!
}
function doThing() {
if(_ref.fnc)
_ref.fnc();
}
function func_foo() {
console.log('Foo!');
}
return {
setup: setup,
doThing: doThing
};
})();
In your doThing function, you are checking for the existency of a _ref.func instead of _ref.fnc
To achieve what you want to do, you need to understand that the functions you are declaring using the "function" are not linked to the class. There's no notion of "private member function" in javascript. If you want to bind a function to a class, you need to declare it like this (there are other ways, i'm just showing you one of them) :
MyClassThing.prototype.func_foo = function () {
}
The best thing to do, in your case, would be to set _ref.fnc to func_foo directly. If you want to keep the this context, take a look at https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/JavaScript/Reference/Global_Objects/Function/call

Related

Create object of namespace Javascript singleton class

I am new to IIFE and trying to implement namespace in JavaScript on a Siungleton JavaScript class:
I have a JavaScript class (say main class):
var myIIFE = (function () {
var x = null;
//constructor function
var myIIFE = function() {
var a = new IIFE.InsideIIFE(); //says not a constructor
}
myIIFE.prototype = {
//some methods
}
function createIstance() {
return new myIIFE();
}
return {
getInstance: function() {
if (!this.instance) {
this.instance = createInstance();
}
return this.instance;
}
};
})();
Then I have another JavaScript namespaced class:
myIIFE.InsideIIFE = (function() {
var inside = function() {}
inside.prototype = { //some methods }
return inside;
});
I want to create an object of myIIFE.InsideIIFE in myIIFE, and this is throwing me an error:
myIIFE.InsideIIFE is not a constructor
Am I doing something wrong? Or if this is a correct approach then what changes I should make.
I tried using new this.InsideIIFE() and just InsideIIFE, but non of them worked.
edit:
From my analysis, I understand that myIIFE (the parent) is an object as it return an object at:
return {
getInstance: function() {
//method body
}
}
There are many issues with this code, let's try to run it in our heads, from the start:
var myIIFE = (function () {
....
})();
This results in myIIFE being an object, to be precise, this object:
{
getInstance: function() {
if (!this.instance) {
this.instance = createInstance();
}
return this.instance;
}
}
So, then I assume, you do
myIIFE.getInstance()
Which tries to return new myIIFE();
It runs into myIIFE() and tries to do this:
new IIFE.InsideIIFE();
I assume you meant to write
new myIIFE.InsideIIFE();
because IIFE is not defined it anywhere in the code you provided.
Let's see what is myIIFE.insideIIFE
var myIIFE.InsideIIFE = (function() {
var inside = function() {}
inside.prototype = { //some methods }
return inside;
});
First of all you start with var, which is wrong, because myIIFE is already defined and you are just adding a new property to it. so it should be simply
myIIFE.InsideIIFE = (function() {
var inside = function() {}
inside.prototype = { //some methods }
return inside;
});
and it should work.
In general, it seems by your code, like you have not grasped the whole "constructor function" concept very well. I would suggest you take look at the following links, they should help.
https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/JavaScript/Reference/Operators/new
https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/JavaScript/Introduction_to_Object-Oriented_JavaScript

Is this kind of chaining possible in JavaScript?

I'm working on a file manager framework similar to elFinder. My current code works fine but now I want to make it look better and add chaining (I'm not sure if it's chaining or decorator pattern).
Here is a sample of what I want to do:
function UI() {}
UI.prototype.folders = function(){
return [];
}
UI.prototype.folders.prototype.getSelectedFolder = function(){
return {};
}
Calling UI.folders() should return an array of folder objects. So if you call UI.folders() you would get something similar to this:
[
Object { name="folder1", selected=false },
Object { name="folder2", selected=false },
Object { name="folder3", selected=true }
]
And calling UI.folders().getSelectedFolder() would filter the results from UI.folders() and will return:
Object { name="folder3", selected=true }
Is this possible? Is it right to say "chaining" in this case or it's "decorative pattern"?
If it's not - is there another more appropriate way to do it?
Any help wold be really appreciated!
The code in your question isn't reflective of a proper implementation, but to answer your direct questions, yes, this...
UI.folders().getSelectedFolder()
...would be an example of method chaining.
A decorator pattern is different. If you have a set of methods, and each one should always first invoke some common function, you can create a decorator that will return a function that first calls the common one, then the actual one...
function foo() {
console.log('I\'m foo, and I\'m first, and I was given these args:', arguments);
}
function decorateWithFoo(decorated) {
return function () {
foo.apply(this, arguments);
decorated.apply(this, arguments);
};
}
So you can use decorateWithFoo to create a function that always invokes foo first...
// create and decorate bar()
var bar = function(a,b) {
console.log('I\'m bar, and I was called after "foo", and was given args:', a, b);
};
bar = decorateWithFoo(bar);
bar(123, 456); // this will first call `foo()`, then (the original) `bar()`.
// create and decorate baz()
var baz = function(a,b) {
console.log('I\'m baz, and I was called after "foo", and was given args:', a, b);
};
baz = decorateWithFoo(baz);
baz(123, 456); // this will first call `foo()`, then (the original) `baz()`.
Some languages have built in syntax for creating decorators. JavaScript currently does not.
If you find yourself using decorators in different ways, you could create another function that sets up the initial decorator function...
function generateDecorator(decorator) {
return function (decorated) {
return function () {
decorator.apply(this, arguments);
decorated.apply(this, arguments);
};
};
}
So our original decoreateWithFoo could have been set up like this...
function foo() {
console.log('I\'m foo, and I\'m first, and I was given these args:', arguments);
}
var decorateWithFoo = generateDecorator(foo);
To make this work properly, you need to make your folders method be a function that returns an object that inherits from an array.:
UI.prototype.folders = function(){
// must return an object that inherits from an array
// that has the additional methods on it you want like getSelectedFolder()
}
The are a few different ways to solve this. The primary goal is that when you call a function you get an object/function back that is the same type of object with different properties. I'm not a fan of the prototype usage so I would do it like this (this is one way to solve it):
var FolderList = function ()
{
var _folders = [];
folders.pop({ name: "folder1", selected: false });
folders.pop({ name: "folder2", selected: true });
folders.pop({ name: "folder3", selected: false });
// prevent other programers from changing _folders
// which would break this, so just use a function
this.folders = function ()
{
return _folders;
}
this.selectedFolders = function ()
{
var tmpFolders = [];
for (var folderIndex = 0;
folderIndex < this._folders.length;
folderIndex++)
{
if (this._folders[folderIndex].selected)
{
tmpFolders.pop(_folders[folderIndex]);
}
}
_folders = tmpFolders;
return this;
}
this.addFolder = function (folder)
{
_folders.pop(folder);
return this;
}
};
var folderList = new FolderList();
folderList.selectedFolders()
.addFolder({ name: "folder1", selected: false })
.addFolder({ name: "folder3", selected: true })
.selectedFolders();
// array of 2 objects, folder2 and folder3
var arrayOfSelectedFolder = folderList.folders();

Private-like properties in models or views of Backbone.js

Is it possible to have private properties in a model? Like the locally declared variables in a (constructor) function, not attached to this, but declared locally and visible only by whatever is defined in the (constructor)function.
Example without BB View:
function MyView(aModel){
var $internalInput = $('<input>');
this.render: function($where){
$internalInput.val(aModel.get('SomeProperty'));
$where.append($('<div class="inputWraper">').append($internalInput));
};
this.toggleReadonly: function() {
toggle $internalInputs readonly attribute
}
...
+ Code to bind input.val to some aModel property(ies) and setup events
...
}
Note that internalInput is not accessible to outside world and aModel is also not accessible (through MyView at least).
So if I want to use Backbone.View to implement the above MyView, how would i do it and keep $internalInput 'private'?
You should be able to achieve private data by passing an IIFE to extend when defining your Backbone objects, rather than just a plain object. For example:
var Thing = Backbone.Model.extend((function () {
var foo = "Private data!";
return {
bar: function () {
console.log(foo);
}
};
})());
You'd better off with
var Thing = Backbone.Model.extend(
{
constructor : function ()
{
var _value = "Private data!";
this.getValue = function ()
{
return _value;
};
this.setValue = function (value)
{
_value = value;
};
}
});
Javascript is fun!
var Thing = (function () {
var number_of_things = 0;
return function (options) {
var value = "Private data!";
return new ( Backbone.Model.extend({
constructor: function constructor () {
number_of_things += 1;
},
getValue: function getValue () {
return value;
}
}) )();
};
}());
I'm a little concerned by the fact that every instance of this "Thing" is also a subclass, in the OOP lingo.
In the context of using Broserify.js with Backbone (and really any above medium project) I found the following way to have private vars and functions:
myView.js
'use strict';
var config = require('../config.js'),
private_var = 'private variable',
my_private_fn = function() {
...
};
module.exports = Backbone.Model.extend({
initialize: function() {
this.my_public = 'public variable');
console.log('This is my' + this.my_public);
console.log('This is my' + my_private);
},
});
The idea to take here is go with Browserify :P
The simplest way is the following:
...
initialize:function(properites){
// Init the logic with private and public methods/variable
this.logic.initFirst(this);
// Use public methods
this.logic.doSomething();
},
logic:{
initFirst:function(modelOrView){
// Do not continue if already initiated
if( this.instance !== undefined ) return;
// Write all logic here
this.instance = (function(logic, modelOrView){
// Private variables
var private = "private";
// Public methods
logic.doSomething = function(){
console.log(private, modelOrView);
};
// Private methods
function hidden(){
}
}(this, modelOrView));
}
},

jS OOP nested functions

Ok this may be a noobolicious question as im new to OOP.
Im attempting to build something of a JS Object Library and was wondering if I could do it using nested functions??
var object = new function() {
this.action1 = function () {
this.dostuff1 = function () {
return "dostuff1";
};
this.dostuff2 = function () {
return "dostuff2";
};
};
I am having trouble accessing the third level functions. Can I nest like this?
this.action2 = function () {
return "action2";
};
alert(object.action1.dostuff2());
While Eberlin's answer is perfectly correct I'd suggest you to create a nested object which in turn again exposes functions rather than nesting functions itself. Otherwise this might become a maintainability nightmare.
Basically you could create
var Child = function(){
//constructor
};
Child.prototype.doStuff2 = function(){
return "dostuff2";
};
var Root = function(obj){
//constructor
this.child = obj;
};
Root.prototype.action1 = function(){
return "doStuff1";
};
//usage
var myRoot = new Root(new Child());
myRoot.action1();
myRoot.child.action2();
Here's a live example: http://jsbin.com/ijotup/edit#javascript,live
See below for some code cleanup:
var o = (new function () { // changed 'object' to 'o'
this.action1 = (function () { // added parentheses, not required.
this.dostuff1 = (function () { // does not return anything.
return "dostuff1"; // and is also not the proper way to organize
}); // ** look at the javascript prototype
return this; // now it does
}); // missing closing bracket
this.dostuff2 = (function () {
return "dostuff2";
});
});
alert(o.action1().dostuff2()); // action1 is a function, not a variable.
Hope this helps. Also, here's a brief tutorial on the javascript prototype.

Javascript Reflection

Is there a way to get all methods (private, privileged, or public) of a javascript object from within? Here's the sample object:
var Test = function() {
// private methods
function testOne() {}
function testTwo() {}
function testThree() {}
// public methods
function getMethods() {
for (i in this) {
alert(i); // shows getMethods, but not private methods
}
}
return { getMethods : getMethods }
}();
// should return ['testOne', 'testTwo', 'testThree', 'getMethods']
Test.getMethods();
The current issue is the code in getMethods(), the simplified example will return just the public methods, but not to private ones.
edit: my test code may (or may not) be overcomplicating what i'm hoping to get at. given the following:
function myFunction() {
var test1 = 1;
var test2 = 2;
var test3 = 3;
}
is there a way to find out what variables exist in myFunction() from within myFunction(). the pseudo-code would look like this:
function myFunction() {
var test1 = 1;
var test2 = 2;
var test3 = 3;
alert(current.properties); // would be nice to get ['test1', 'test2', 'test3']
}
The technical reason why those methods are hidden is twofold.
First, when you execute a method on the Test object, "this" will be the untyped object returned at the end of the anonymous function that contains the public methods per the Module Pattern.
Second, the methods testOne, testTwo, and testThree aren't attached to a specific object, and exist only in the context of the anonymous function. You could attach the methods to an internal object and then expose them through a public method, but it wouldn't be quite as clean as the original pattern and it won't help if you're getting this code from a third party.
The result would look something like this:
var Test = function() {
var private = {
testOne : function () {},
testTwo : function () {},
testThree : function () {}
};
function getMethods() {
for (i in this) {
alert(i); // shows getMethods, but not private methods
}
for (i in private) {
alert(i); // private methods
}
}
return { getMethods : getMethods }
}();
// will return ['getMethods', 'testOne', 'testTwo', 'testThree']
Test.getMethods();
edit:
Unfortunately, no. The set of local variables aren't accessible via a single, automatic keyword.
If you remove the "var" keyword they would be attached to the global context (usually the window object), but that's the only behavior that I know of that is similar to what you're describing. There would be a lot of other properties and methods on that object if you did that, though.
From http://netjs.codeplex.com/SourceControl/changeset/view/91169#1773642
//Reflection
~function (extern) {
var Reflection = this.Reflection = (function () { return Reflection; });
Reflection.prototype = Reflection;
Reflection.constructor = Reflection;
Reflection.getArguments = function (func) {
var symbols = func.toString(),
start, end, register;
start = symbols.indexOf('function');
if (start !== 0 && start !== 1) return undefined;
start = symbols.indexOf('(', start);
end = symbols.indexOf(')', start);
var args = [];
symbols.substr(start + 1, end - start - 1).split(',').forEach(function (argument) {
args.push(argument);
});
return args;
};
extern.Reflection = extern.reflection = Reflection;
Function.prototype.getArguments = function () { return Reflection.getArguments(this); }
Function.prototype.getExpectedReturnType = function () { /*ToDo*/ }
} (this);
Javascript doesn't really have the notion of private anything. Because of that, javascript doesn't have a reflection API as such. The technique you're using doesn't so much make them private as render them inaccessible; they're hidden, not private. I think you could manage something by putting those methods somewhere manually.
Part of the issue with your test code is that Test is the object created by your return statement: "{ getMethods : getMethods }" It has no testOne, testTwo, or testThree methods; instead, those are only available within the same namespace as the original getMethods function.
With a little change to the way the function is defined you can achieve what you want. Wrap the actual implementation of the function in an object literal it would then look like this:
(function() {
var obj = {
// private methods
testOne: function () {},
testTwo : function () {},
testThree: function () {},
// public methods
getMethods : function () {
for (i in this) {
alert(i); // shows getMethods, but not private methods
}
}
};
return { getMethods : function(){return obj.getMethods();} }
})();
you can use var that = this; trick:
var Test = function() {
var that = this;
function testOne() {}
function testTwo() {}
function testThree() {}
function getMethods() {
for (i in that) {
alert(i);
}
}
return { getMethods : getMethods }
}();
If you call getMethods() like that, isn't it static? Surely you'd need to properly init the class for this to work as expected?
var t = new Test();
t.getMethods();
If that doesn't work, please take a look at the JS Serializer. I used it a while back for some debug and I think it worked for private vars.

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