extending jQuery functionality specifics on variations - javascript

I understand I can extend jQuery in two forms:
1)
jQuery.fn.extend({
variation1: function(){
...
}
});
I use this like $(selector).variation1();
2)
and custom function
jQuery.variation2 = {
something: function(){
var execute = function(){
...
}
}
}
I use this like $.variation2.something()
My questions are:
In the first case, I was unable to call functions without a selector; this code caused errors $.variation1(); Is this correct? meaning, is there a way to call these functions without an element selector?
In the second case, how could I initialize variation2 with options? The reason I ask this is because in MooTools, when creating a class, we can initialize the class like:
var jsClass = new Class({
Implements: [Options],
options: {
},
initialize: function(options){
this.setOptions(options);
}
});
we call it, and initialize with custom options like
new jsClass({option1: this, option2: that})
So in the MooTools example the class instance executes options by default. Going back to the question, is there a way to do similar in jQuery?
Thanks in advance

The two variations are distinct as you have noticed. jQuery.fn provides the set of functions that are applied to a jQuery QuerySet object (the result of applying a jQuery selector). jQuery.* could simply be thought of as global static objects, including (sometimes) functions that are accessible to anyone who has access to the jQuery object.
To initialize variation 2, I would do something like:
jQuery.variation2 = (function() {
var a = ...;
var b = ...; // other initialization
return {
something: function() {
...
}, ...
};
})();
You could use closures in similar ways to provide initialized code.

Related

Passing correct jQuery selector to an object

I am writing a jQuery plugin which, ideally I would like in it's own namespace.
So far, this seems to work (in terms of namespace nesting)
(function($) {
$.fn.nspace = {
foo: function() {
// Does not work becuase $(this) is not the correct selector.
$(this).show();
}
}
})(jQuery);
So given then example above, I might call my function like so:
$("html, body").nspace.foo();
but $(this) is not [html, body]...How can I solve this?
EDIT: To clarify (based on user comments)...
$("html, body").nspace.foo(); should call foo for [html, body] but, $(this) inside nspace resolves to nspace...so it's trying to call nspace.foo();
You shouldn't do this, but just because I dislike when someone says "You can't" in programming (often untrue, especially in Javascript) - here's how you could do this:
The jQuery object is constructed each time using its prototype.init function, which is aliased to fn.init, so you could overwrite it with a wrapped function that adds your namespace object in a way that doesn't harm any existing usage or libraries, like so:
(function($) {
var baseInit = $.fn.init;
$.fn.init = function(selector, context, rootjQuery) {
// Instantiate jQuery the way it expects
var j = new baseInit(selector, context, rootjQuery);
// Add our extra object/namespace
// Use j inside to refer to the current jQuery object
j.nspace = {
foo: function() {
j.show();
}
};
// Return it all and other libraries are none the wiser
return j;
}
})(jQuery);
http://jsfiddle.net/b9chris/7TPZY/
You should consider using the classic pattern for a jQuery plugin: define only one method: in your case, nspace. Inside this method, you'll take every case into account. Sounds hard, but it's pretty easy once you've looked into that.
(By the way you definitely have to look at that when writing a jQuery plugin)
You can't add an object as a plugin and still get the jQuery object that was used to get the object. You simply have no reference to that jQuery object when you call a method in your object.
Put the function directly as the plugin:
(function($) {
$.fn.nspace = function() {
this.show();
};
})(jQuery);
Usage:
$("html, body").nspace();
(Note that the object is the jQuery instance, not a selector or an element, so you don't need to use $(this)).

access an extended object in javascript

I am having a bit of trouble creating an instance of useful things
from another JS file, I would like to change the properties of the
instance and use the methods. Or whatever you suggest if this is not
possible. This extends and this construct are confusing me.
(function($) {
$.extend({
usefulThings: new function() {
this.defaults = {
prop_path:'/la/lala',
//OTHER STUFF
};
this.construct = function(options) {
return this.each(function() {
var setting;
this.settings = {};
settings = $.extend(this.settings, $.usefulThings.defaults, options);
$this = $(this);
//OTHER STUFF
$.data(this, "usefulThings",settings);
// FIRST METHOD CALL
//OTHER STUFF
});
};
//SOME METHODS
}
});
$.fn.extend({
usefulThings: $.usefulThings.construct
});
})(jQuery);
I have seen usefulThings called from script blocks like so:
$("#myDivName").usefulThings({
prop_path: '/la/lala' //these seems to get overwritten in the above
});
First, have a look at MDN's introduction to the this keyword. And in the jQuery docs for .each.
Next, check out how does jquery chaining work? to understand the construct method.
Then, you should notice that the use of the new keyword is absolutely inappropriate in this case. The expression should be replaced by a simple object literal:
{
defaults: {
prop_path:'/la/lala',
// …
},
construct: function(options) {
…
},
//SOME METHODS
}
Now, the jQuery.extend. The relevant sentence from the docs is
If only one argument is supplied to $.extend(), this means the target argument was omitted. In this case, the jQuery object itself is assumed to be the target. By doing this, you can add new functions to the jQuery namespace. This can be useful for plugin authors wishing to add new methods to JQuery.
And it's the same for $.fn.extend (which actually is === $.extend), it extends the jQuery.fn object which is a shortcut for jQuery's prototype object.

Why can't my jQuery.Widgets namespace be accessed?

I've been reading alot about the advantages of using the jQuery.Widget Factory for my plugins. One of the capabilities touted is how the jQuery.widget creates a namespeace for your widget. This is attractive, as I can maintain my current namespacing (naturally) within the jQuery context.
THE PROBLEM:
I keep getting "$(".myWidget").namespace.newWay is not a function" error.
For the following element...
<div class="myWidget"></div>
THIS EXAMPLES CODE WORKS:
While nice...this is NOT what I am trying to achieve...as I still want my namespace to be honored.
var workingVersion = {
_init: function () { /* Do Something*/ }
};
$.widget("ui.workingVersion", workingVersion);
$(document).ready(function () {
$('.myWidget').workingVersion();
});
HOWEVER, MY CODE FAILS:
var namespace = namespace || { };
;namespace.newWay = (function ($, window, document, undefined) {
return function (options) {
var self = this;
this._create = function () {
// Do something
},
this._init = function() {
// Do something
},
this.publicFunction = function () {
// Do something
};
};
})(jQuery, window, document);
$(document).ready(function () {
$.widget("ui.namespace.newWay", namespace.newWay); //<-- Namespace does get appended
$('.myWidget').namespace.newWay({ type: 'testing' }); //<-- But still fails here
});
MY QUESTION IS:
Why does it fail?
RELATED READING:
Understanding jQuery UI widgets: A tutorial
Tips for Developing jQuery UI 1.8 Widgets
This answer comes a bit late, maybe, but I was struggling with the same thing and had to do some reading.
$() in General
The $() instance is a no-namespace shortcut list to different functions spread out over different namespaces. You can add more functions to this shortcut list by writing:
$.fn.myFunction = function() {
...
};
Which then will be accessed by calling
$("...").myFunction();
If you add two functions by the same name the latter one will overwrite the first one.
Widgets
When you create a widget with a namespace it's created with it's namespace, as you would expect, but to $() it's added without it's namespace, as a simplified shortcut to your real widget-with-shortcut. This is done using $.widget.bridge(). You can therefore create your own namespaced link to $() by writing like this:
$.widget.bridge("namespace_myFunction", $.namespace.myFunction );
And then access your widget like this:
$("#myDiv").namespace_myFunction();
To use a widget directly with it's original namespace you can instead invoke it like this:
$.namespace.myWidget(
{
option1: "",
option2: ""
},
$("#div")
);
Hope this will clarify a little...

jQuery plugin design pattern (common practice?) for dealing with private functions [closed]

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I've been developing jQuery plugins for quite some time now, and I like to think I know how to design one well by now. One issue keeps nagging me though, and that is how to deal with private functions in a powerful yet elegant manner.
My plugins generally look something like this:
(function($) {
$.fn.myplugin = function(...) {
...
// some shared functionality, for example:
this.css('background-color', 'green');
...
};
$.fn.mypluginAnotherPublicMethod = function(...) {
...
// some shared functionality, for example:
this.css('background-color', 'red');
...
};
}(jQuery));
Now my question is: how to neatly DRY up that shared functionality? An obvious solution would be to put it in a function within the plugin's namespace:
var fill = function($obj, color) {
$obj.css('background-color', color);
};
Although this solution is effective and nicely namespaced, I really dislike it. For one simple reason: I have to pass it the jQuery object. I.e. I have to call it like this: fill(this, 'red');, while I would like to call it like this: this.fill('red');
Of course we could achieve this result by simply putting fill into jQuery.fn. But that feels very uncomfortable. Imagine having ten plugins developed based on this approach and each plugin putting five of those 'private' functions into the jQuery function namespace. It ends up in a big mess. We could mitigate by prefixing each of these functions with the name of the plugin they belong to, but that doesn't really make it more attractive. These functions are supposed to be private to the plugin, so we do not want to expose them to the outside world at all (at least not directly).
So there's my question: does anyone of you have suggestions for how to get the best of both worlds. That is; plugin code being able to call 'private' plugin functions in a way similar to this.fill('red') (or this.myplugin.fill('red') or even this.myplugin().fill('red') etc.), while preventing jQuery function namespace pollution. And of course it should be light-weight, as these private functions might be called very frequently.
UPDATE: Thanks for your suggestions.
I especially like David's idea of defining an object type that holds the 'private' functions and wraps a jQuery object. The only problem with it is that it still disallows me from chaining 'private' and 'public' functions. Which was big reason to want a syntax like this.fill('red') to begin with.
I ended up with a solution which I consider not tremendously elegant, but appealing to the 'best of both worlds' cause:
$.fn.chain = function(func) {
return func.apply(this, Array.prototype.slice.call(arguments, 1));
};
Which allows for constructs like:
this.
find('.acertainclass').
chain(fill, 'red').
click(function() {
alert("I'm red");
});
I cross-posted my question in other places, which also collected some interesting responses:
http://forum.jquery.com/topic/jquery-plugin-design-pattern-common-practice-for-dealing-with-private-functions
http://groups.google.com/group/jquery-en/browse_thread/thread/fa8ccef21ccc589a
One thing first: if you would like to call something like this.fill('red'); where this is an instance of jQuery, you have to extend the jQuery prototype and make fill() "public". jQuery provides guidelines for extending it's prototype using so called "plugins" that can be added using $.fn.fill, which is the same as jQuery.prototype.fill.
In jQuery callbacks, this is often a reference to the HTML Element, and you can't add prototypes to those (yet). That is one of the reason why jQuery wraps elements and return jQuery instances that can be easily extended.
Using the (function(){})(); syntax, you can create and execute "private" javascript on the fly, and it all disappears when it's done. Using this technique, you can create your own jQuery-like syntax that wraps jQuery into your own private chainable object.
(function(){
var P = function(elem) {
return new Private(elem);
};
var Private = function(elem) {
this.elem = jQuery(elem);
}
Private.prototype = {
elem: null,
fill: function(col) {
this.elem.css('background',col);
return this;
},
color: function(col) {
this.elem.css('color', col);
return this;
}
}
$.fn.myplugin = function() {
P(this).fill('red');
};
$.fn.myotherplugin = function() {
P(this).fill('yellow').color('green');
};
})();
$('.foo').myplugin();
$('.bar').myotherplugin();
console.log(typeof P === 'undefined') // should print 'true'
This way, the P stands for your own toolbox of "private" functions. They won't be available anywhere else in the code or in the jQuery namespace unless you attach them somewhere. You can add as many methods as you like in the Private object, and as long as you return this, you can also chain them jQuery-style as I did in the example.
How about (within the plugin's scope):
var fill = function ()
{
(function (color)
{
this.css ('backgrorund-color', color);
//.. your stuff here ...
}).apply (this, arguments);
}
$.fn.myplugin = function ()
{
fill ('green');
}
That way, fill will retain the jQuery context you're in, and is still private to your plugin
Amended: the above is incorrect w.r.t. scoping, Try the following instead:
var fill = function (color)
{
if (!$this) return; // break if not within correct context
$this.css ('backgrorund-color', color);
//.. your stuff here ...
}
$.fn.myplugin = function ()
{
var $this = $(this); // local ref to current context
fill ('green');
}
You might want to take a look at how the jQuery UI Widget Factory is implemented.
The basic approach is like this:
(function($){
$.fn.myplugin = function(method)
{
if (mp[method]) // map $('foo').myplugin('bar', 'baz') to mp.bar('baz')
{
return mp[method].apply(this, Array.prototype.slice.call(arguments, 1));
}
else if (typeof method === 'object' || ! method)
{
return mp.init.apply(this, arguments); // if called without arguments, init
}
else
{
$.error('Method ' + method + ' does not exist on $.myplugin');
}
};
// private methods, internally accessible via this.foo, this.bar
var foo = function() { … };
var bar = function() { … };
var private = { // alternative approach to private methods, accessible via this.private.foo
foo : function() { … },
bar : function() { … }
}
var mp = { // public methods, externally accessible via $.myplugin('foo', 'bar')
init : function( options )
{
return this.each(function()
{
// do init stuff
}
},
foo : function() { … },
bar : function() { … }
};
})(jQuery);
Unfortunately, "private" methods (or any property for that matter) can never be called with a "this" prefix in javascript. Anything which is called like this.myFunc(myArgs) must be publicly available.
And "private" methods can only be called from within the scope in which they were defined.
Your original solution is the only one that will work. Yes, it's a pain having to pass in this, but there's no more verbosity than there would be if your impossible request was possible:
this.fill('green');
//or
fill(this,'green');
As you can see, they both take up exactly the same number of characters in your code.
Sorry to say, but you're stuck with this as a solution, unless you want to create a new namespace and make them not private - which is simply going to add to the amount of code you need to write, i.e. what you indirectly called "not directly exposed":
this.myplugin.fill('green');
...is more verbose, thus kind of defeats the purpose.
Javascript is not like other languages, there are no "private" members per-se, only members accessible within closures, which can sometimes be used in a similar way to private members, but is more of a "workaround", and not the "real-deal" private members you are looking for.
It can be difficult to come to terms with this (I often struggle), but don't try to mould javascript into what you understand from other languages, take it for what it is...

Is it possible to write a second non-static, selecting, priviledged function in a JQuery Plugin?

Almost all of the examples in the jQuery tutorials that I've read, usually use one major public function for their selecting plugin. When I say 'selecting' plugin, I mean one that is not simply a static function extended onto jQuery.
For example:
(function($) {
jQuery.fn.actionList = function(options) {
var opts = $.extend({}, $.fn.actionList.defaults, options);
return this.each(function(){
alert(this);
});
};
$.fn.actionList.defaults = {
listHtml: '<div>Set the list html</div>'
};
})(jQuery);
but not:
jQuery.log = function(message) {
if(window.console) {
console.debug(message);
} else {
alert(message);
}
};
This works fine for most things, but what I would like to do is be able to call a second function on the object returned from the first call.
var actionBox = $('actionBox').actionList(options);
//Many light-cycles later
actionBox.refreshData(data);
or maybe even:
$('actionBox').actionList(options);
// laaateerr
$('actionBox').actionList.refreshData(data);
I'm guessing one or both of these is not possible or, at least not advisable, but I'm only now getting into the deepest aspects of jQuery and javascript.
Could someone explain how to do this, or if it's not possible or advisable, why? and what they would do instead?
Thanks for reading!
I'm not quite sure what you're getting at, but you can call a second function on the object returned from the first function - in fact, it is very much encouraged to return a jQuery object from your plugins, and the reason why you can chain commands in jQuery.
Using your examples
var actionBox = $('actionBox').actionList(options);
//Many light-cycles later
actionBox.refreshData(data);
would work fine, so long as both .actionList() and .refreshData(data) commands both return a jQuery object.
And
$('actionBox').actionList.refreshData(data);
would need to be
$('actionBox').actionList().refreshData(data);
EDIT:
Looking at the jQuery source code,
jQuery.fn = jQuery.prototype = {
/*
Load of 'property' functions of jQuery object...
*/
}
so, adding properties (a.k.a plugins) to jQuery.fn extends the prototype of the jQuery object. When you call
$(selector, context);
a new jQuery object is returned, using the init property function of the jQuery object
jQuery = window.jQuery = window.$ = function( selector, context ) {
// The jQuery object is actually just the init constructor 'enhanced'
return new jQuery.fn.init( selector, context );
},
I think I've got a plugin that might be very useful for you. It allows you to apply any constructor/object to jQuery as it's own namespace AND you can use 'this' as you would normally with jQuery to refer to the object set. Using this[methodName] will call a method on your object, etc.
http://code.google.com/p/jquery-plugin-dev/source/browse/trunk/jquery.plugin.js
Some code samples are here:
http://groups.google.com/group/jquery-dev/browse_thread/thread/664cb89b43ccb92c/34f74665423f73c9?lnk=gst&q=structure+plugin+authoring#34f74665423f73c9
It's about halfway down the page.
I hope you find it useful!

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