I am trying to access the properties of the MainObj inside the onclick of an elem.
Is there a better way to design it so the reference wont be to "MainObj.config.url"
but to something like this.config.url
Sample code:
var MainObj = {
config: { url: 'http://www.mysite.com/'},
func: function()
{
elem.onclick = function() {
var url_pre = MainObj.config.url+this.getAttribute('href');
window.open(url_pre, '_new');
};
}
}
'this' inside the object always refers to itself (the object). just save the context into a variable and use it. the variable is often called '_this', 'self' or '_self' (here i use _self):
var MainObj = {
config: { url: 'http://www.mysite.com/'},
func: function()
{
var _self = this;
elem.onclick = function() {
var url_pre = _self.config.url+this.getAttribute('href');
window.open(url_pre, '_new');
};
}
}
You can use the Module pattern:
var MainObj = (function () {
var config = { url: 'http://www.mysite.com/'};
return {
func: function() {
elem.onclick = function() {
var url_pre = config.url+this.getAttribute('href');
window.open(url_pre, '_new');
};
}
};
}());
First we define the config object in the local function scope. After that we return an object literal in the return statement. This object contains the func function which later can be invoked like: MainObj.func.
There is, most certainly, a better way... but I must say: binding an event handler in a method is -and I'm sorry for this- a terrible idea.
You might want to check MDN, about what it has to say about the this keyword, because this has confused and tripped up many a man. In your snippet, for example, this is used correctly: it'll reference elem. Having said that, this is what you could do:
var MainObj = (function()
{
var that = {config: { url: 'http://www.google.com/'}};//create closure var, which can be referenced whenever you need it
that.func = function()
{
elem.onclick = function(e)
{
e = e || window.event;
window.open(that.config.url + this.getAttribute('href'));
};
};
return that;//expose
}());
But as I said, binding an event handler inside a method is just not the way to go:
MainObj.func();
MainObj.func();//shouldn't be possible, but it is
Why not, simply do this:
var MainObj = (function()
{
var that = {config: { url: 'http://www.google.com/'}};
that.handler = function(e)
{
e = e || window.event;
window.open(that.config.url + this.getAttribute('href'));
};
that.init = function(elem)
{//pass elem as argument
elem.onclick = that.handler;
delete that.init;//don't init twice
delete that.handler;//doesn't delete the function, but the reference too it
};
return that;//expose
}());
MainObj.init(document.body);
Even so, this is not the way I'd write this code at all, but then I do tend to over-complicate things every now and then. But do look into how the call context is determined in JS, and how closures, object references and GC works, too... it's worth the effort.
Update:
As requested by the OP - an alternative approach
(function()
{
'use strict';
var config = {url: 'http://www.google.com/'},
handlers = {load: function(e)
{
document.getElementById('container').addEventListener('click',handlers.click,false);
},
click: function(e)
{
e = e || window.event;
var target = e.target || e.srcElement;
//which element has been clicked?
if (target.tagName.toLowerCase() === 'a')
{
window.open(config.url + target.getAttribute('href'));
if (e.preventDefault)
{
e.preventDefault();
e.stopPropagation();
}
e.returnValue = false;
e.cancelBubble = true;
return false;//overkill
}
switch(target.id)
{
case 'foo':
//handle click for #foo element
return;
case 'bar': //handle bar
return;
default:
if (target.className.indexOf('clickClass') === -1)
{
return;
}
}
//treat elements with class clickClass here
}
};
document.addEventListener('load',handlers.load,false);//<-- ~= init
}());
This is just as an example, and it's far from finished. Things like the preventDefault calls, I tend to avoid (for X-browser compatibility and ease of use, I augment the Event.prototype).
I'm not going to post a ton of links to my own questions, but have a look at my profile, and check the JavaScript questions. There are a couple of examples that might be of interest to you (including one on how to augment the Event.prototype in a X-browser context)
Related
For example code like this^
function test_mem(elm, data){
var data_storage = data;
function handle_input(event){
console.log(data_storage);
};
function update_data(data) {
data_storage = data;
}
function clear_events() {
elm.removeEventListener('input', handle_input);
elm.fnc_ptr = undefined;
}
if (elm.fnc_ptr !== undefined){
elm.fnc_ptr.update_data(data);
} else {
elm.addEventListener('input', handle_input);
elm.fnc_ptr = {
'clear_events' : clear_events,
'update_data' : update_data
}
}
}
var elm = document.getElementsByClassName('test-input')[0];
test_mem(elm, [1,2,3,54,5]);
will this closure lead to memory leak, if I delete elm from dom tree? I think this code not lead to memory leak, but may be I lost sight of something.
While modern browsers will most certainly handle this, an arguably better way to associate data with an element is to an object that conforms to the Event Listener Interface.
This lets you bind an object as the event handler instead of a function. The requirement is that the object has a handleEvent() method. When the event occurs, the handleEvent() gets invoked with this pointing to the object you bound, which will hold the stored data.
You can still access the element via event.currentTarget.
function TestMem(elm, data){
this.data_storage = data;
if (elm.has_handler !== undefined) {
this.update_data(data);
} else {
elm.addEventListener('input', this);
elm.has_handler = true;
}
}
// Implement the Event Listener interface
TestMem.prototype.handleEvent = function(event) {
if (event.type === "input") {
this.handle_input(event);
}
};
TestMem.prototype.handle_input = function(event) {
console.log(this.data_storage);
};
TestMem.prototype.update_data = function(data) {
this.data_storage = data;
};
TestMem.prototype.clear_events = function(event) {
event.currentTarget.removeEventListener('input', this);
this.has_handler = undefined;
}
var elm = document.getElementsByClassName('test-input')[0];
new TestMem(elm, [1,2,3,54,5]);
Now there's an association between the element and the object when the event happens, and there's no closure problems at all.
In JavaScript, what is the best way to remove a function added as an event listener using bind()?
Example
(function(){
// constructor
MyClass = function() {
this.myButton = document.getElementById("myButtonID");
this.myButton.addEventListener("click", this.clickListener.bind(this));
};
MyClass.prototype.clickListener = function(event) {
console.log(this); // must be MyClass
};
// public method
MyClass.prototype.disableButton = function() {
this.myButton.removeEventListener("click", ___________);
};
})();
The only way I can think of is to keep track of every listener added with bind.
Above example with this method:
(function(){
// constructor
MyClass = function() {
this.myButton = document.getElementById("myButtonID");
this.clickListenerBind = this.clickListener.bind(this);
this.myButton.addEventListener("click", this.clickListenerBind);
};
MyClass.prototype.clickListener = function(event) {
console.log(this); // must be MyClass
};
// public method
MyClass.prototype.disableButton = function() {
this.myButton.removeEventListener("click", this.clickListenerBind);
};
})();
Are there any better ways to do this?
Although what #machineghost said was true, that events are added and removed the same way, the missing part of the equation was this:
A new function reference is created after .bind() is called.
See Does bind() change the function reference? | How to set permanently?
So, to add or remove it, assign the reference to a variable:
var x = this.myListener.bind(this);
Toolbox.addListener(window, 'scroll', x);
Toolbox.removeListener(window, 'scroll', x);
This works as expected for me.
For those who have this problem while registering/removing listener of React component to/from Flux store, add the lines below to the constructor of your component:
class App extends React.Component {
constructor(props){
super(props);
// it's a trick! needed in order to overcome the remove event listener
this.onChange = this.onChange.bind(this);
}
// then as regular...
componentDidMount (){
AppStore.addChangeListener(this.onChange);
}
componentWillUnmount (){
AppStore.removeChangeListener(this.onChange);
}
onChange () {
let state = AppStore.getState();
this.setState(state);
}
render() {
// ...
}
}
It doesn't matter whether you use a bound function or not; you remove it the same way as any other event handler. If your issue is that the bound version is its own unique function, you can either keep track of the bound versions, or use the removeEventListener signature that doesn't take a specific handler (although of course that will remove other event handlers of the same type).
(As a side note, addEventListener doesn't work in all browsers; you really should use a library like jQuery to do your event hook-ups in a cross-browser way for you. Also, jQuery has the concept of namespaced events, which allow you to bind to "click.foo"; when you want to remove the event you can tell jQuery "remove all foo events" without having to know the specific handler or removing other handlers.)
jQuery solution:
let object = new ClassName();
let $elem = $('selector');
$elem.on('click', $.proxy(object.method, object));
$elem.off('click', $.proxy(object.method, object));
We had this problem with a library we could not change. Office Fabric UI, which meant we could not change the way event handlers were added. The way we solved it was to overwrite the addEventListener on the EventTarget prototype.
This will add a new function on objects element.removeAllEventListers("click")
(original post: Remove Click handler from fabric dialog overlay)
<script>
(function () {
"use strict";
var f = EventTarget.prototype.addEventListener;
EventTarget.prototype.addEventListener = function (type, fn, capture) {
this.f = f;
this._eventHandlers = this._eventHandlers || {};
this._eventHandlers[type] = this._eventHandlers[type] || [];
this._eventHandlers[type].push([fn, capture]);
this.f(type, fn, capture);
}
EventTarget.prototype.removeAllEventListeners = function (type) {
this._eventHandlers = this._eventHandlers || {};
if (type in this._eventHandlers) {
var eventHandlers = this._eventHandlers[type];
for (var i = eventHandlers.length; i--;) {
var handler = eventHandlers[i];
this.removeEventListener(type, handler[0], handler[1]);
}
}
}
EventTarget.prototype.getAllEventListeners = function (type) {
this._eventHandlers = this._eventHandlers || {};
this._eventHandlers[type] = this._eventHandlers[type] || [];
return this._eventHandlers[type];
}
})();
</script>
Here is the solution:
var o = {
list: [1, 2, 3, 4],
add: function () {
var b = document.getElementsByTagName('body')[0];
b.addEventListener('click', this._onClick());
},
remove: function () {
var b = document.getElementsByTagName('body')[0];
b.removeEventListener('click', this._onClick());
},
_onClick: function () {
this.clickFn = this.clickFn || this._showLog.bind(this);
return this.clickFn;
},
_showLog: function (e) {
console.log('click', this.list, e);
}
};
// Example to test the solution
o.add();
setTimeout(function () {
console.log('setTimeout');
o.remove();
}, 5000);
As others have said, bind creates a new function instance and thus the event listener cannot be removed unless it is recorded in some way.
For a more beautiful code style, you can make the method function a lazy getter so that it's automatically replaced with the bound version when accessed for the first time:
class MyClass {
activate() {
window.addEventListener('click', this.onClick);
}
deactivate() {
window.removeEventListener('click', this.onClick);
}
get onClick() {
const func = (event) => {
console.log('click', event, this);
};
Object.defineProperty(this, 'onClick', {value: func});
return func;
}
}
If ES6 arrow function is not supported, use const func = (function(event){...}).bind(this) instead of const func = (event) => {...}.
Raichman Sergey's approach is also good, especially for classes. The advantage of this approach is that it's more self-complete and has no separated code other where. It also works for an object which doesn't have a constructor or initiator.
If you want to use 'onclick', as suggested above, you could try this:
(function(){
var singleton = {};
singleton = new function() {
this.myButton = document.getElementById("myButtonID");
this.myButton.onclick = function() {
singleton.clickListener();
};
}
singleton.clickListener = function() {
console.log(this); // I also know who I am
};
// public function
singleton.disableButton = function() {
this.myButton.onclick = "";
};
})();
I hope it helps.
can use about ES7:
class App extends React.Component {
constructor(props){
super(props);
}
componentDidMount (){
AppStore.addChangeListener(this.onChange);
}
componentWillUnmount (){
AppStore.removeChangeListener(this.onChange);
}
onChange = () => {
let state = AppStore.getState();
this.setState(state);
}
render() {
// ...
}
}
It's been awhile but MDN has a super explanation on this. That helped me more than the stuff here.
MDN :: EventTarget.addEventListener - The value of "this" within the handler
It gives a great alternative to the handleEvent function.
This is an example with and without bind:
var Something = function(element) {
this.name = 'Something Good';
this.onclick1 = function(event) {
console.log(this.name); // undefined, as this is the element
};
this.onclick2 = function(event) {
console.log(this.name); // 'Something Good', as this is the binded Something object
};
element.addEventListener('click', this.onclick1, false);
element.addEventListener('click', this.onclick2.bind(this), false); // Trick
}
A problem in the example above is that you cannot remove the listener with bind. Another solution is using a special function called handleEvent to catch any events:
I have this function check(e) that I'd like to be able to pass parameters from test() when I add it to the eventListener. Is this possible? Like say to get the mainlink variable to pass through the parameters. Is this even good to do?
I put the javascript below, I also have it on jsbin: http://jsbin.com/ujahe3/9/edit
function test() {
if (!document.getElementById('myid')) {
var mainlink = document.getElementById('mainlink');
var newElem = document.createElement('span');
mainlink.appendChild(newElem);
var linkElemAttrib = document.createAttribute('id');
linkElemAttrib.value = "myid";
newElem.setAttributeNode(linkElemAttrib);
var linkElem = document.createElement('a');
newElem.appendChild(linkElem);
var linkElemAttrib = document.createAttribute('href');
linkElemAttrib.value = "jsbin.com";
linkElem.setAttributeNode(linkElemAttrib);
var linkElemText = document.createTextNode('new click me');
linkElem.appendChild(linkElemText);
if (document.addEventListener) {
document.addEventListener('click', check/*(WOULD LIKE TO PASS PARAMETERS HERE)*/, false);
};
};
};
function check(e) {
if (document.getElementById('myid')) {
if (document.getElementById('myid').parentNode === document.getElementById('mainlink')) {
var target = (e && e.target) || (event && event.srcElement);
var obj = document.getElementById('mainlink');
if (target!= obj) {
obj.removeChild(obj.lastChild);
};
};
};
};
Wrap your event listener into a function:
document.addEventListener(
'click',
function(e,[params]){
check(e,[params]);
}
);
One solution would be to move the "check" function up inside your test() function. As an inner function, it would automatically be able to refer to variables in its outer scope. Like this:
function test() {
if (!document.getElementById('myid')) {
var mainlink = document.getElementById('mainlink');
var newElem = document.createElement('span');
mainlink.appendChild(newElem);
var linkElemAttrib = document.createAttribute('id');
linkElemAttrib.value = "myid";
newElem.setAttributeNode(linkElemAttrib);
var linkElem = document.createElement('a');
newElem.appendChild(linkElem);
var linkElemAttrib = document.createAttribute('href');
linkElemAttrib.value = "jsbin.com";
linkElem.setAttributeNode(linkElemAttrib);
var linkElemText = document.createTextNode('new click me');
linkElem.appendChild(linkElemText);
if (document.addEventListener) {
document.addEventListener('click', function(e) {
if (document.getElementById('myid')) {
if (document.getElementById('myid').parentNode === mainlink) {
var target = (e && e.target) || (event && event.srcElement);
if (target!= mainlink) {
mainlink.removeChild(mainlink.lastChild);
};
};
};
});
};
What I typically do in this situation is save arguments to the object (whenever it's convenient), and then retrieve them in the function, like this:
// Listener function receives e (the event object) by default.
function eventReceiver(e) {
var obj;
// Find object which triggered the event
e.srcElement ? obj = e.srcElement : obj = e.target;
// obj.someProperty has been set elsewhere, replacing a function parameter
alert(obj.someProperty);
}
This is cross browser, and allows you to pass objects and values through the properties of the event target.
I initially started with the this keyword, but that behaves differently cross-browser. In FF, it's the object that the event was triggered on. In IE, it's the event itself. Thus, the srcElement / target solution was born. I'm interested to see the other solutions though - have a +1.
In trying to make my Javascript unobtrusive, I'm using onLoads to add functionality to <input>s and such. With Dojo, this looks something like:
var coolInput = dojo.byId('cool_input');
if(coolInput) {
dojo.addOnLoad(function() {
coolInput.onkeyup = function() { ... };
});
}
Or, approximately equivalently:
dojo.addOnLoad(function() {
dojo.forEach(dojo.query('#cool_input'), function(elt) {
elt.onkeyup = function() { ... };
});
});
Has anyone written an implementation of Ruby's andand so that I could do the following?
dojo.addOnLoad(function() {
// the input's onkeyup is set iff the input exists
dojo.byId('cool_input').andand().onkeyup = function() { ... };
});
or
dojo.byId('cool_input').andand(function(elt) {
// this function gets called with elt = the input iff it exists
dojo.addOnLoad(function() {
elt.onkeyup = function() { ... };
});
});
I don't know Dojo, but shouldn't your first example read
dojo.addOnLoad(function() {
var coolInput = dojo.byId('cool_input');
if(coolInput)
coolInput.onkeyup = function() { ... };
});
Otherwise, you might end up trying to access the element before the DOM has been built.
Back to your question: In JavaScript, I'd implement andand() as
function andand(obj, func, args) {
return obj && func.apply(obj, args || []);
}
Your example could then be written as
dojo.addOnLoad(function() {
andand(dojo.byId('cool_input'), function() {
this.onkeyup = function() { ... };
});
});
which isn't really that much shorter than using the explicit if statement - so why bother?
The exact syntax you want is not possible in JavaScript. The way JavaScript executes would need to change in a pretty fundamental fashion. For example:
var name = getUserById(id).andand().name;
// ^
// |-------------------------------
// if getUserById returns null, execution MUST stop here |
// otherwise, you'll get a "null is not an object" exception
However, JavaScript doesn't work that way. It simply doesn't.
The following line performs almost exactly what you want.
var name = (var user = getUserById(id)) ? user.name : null;
But readability won't scale to larger examples. For example:
// this is what you want to see
var initial = getUserById(id).andand().name.andand()[0];
// this is the best that JavaScript can do
var initial = (var name = (var user = getUserById(id)) ? user.name : null) ? name[0] : null;
And there is the side-effect of those unnecessary variables. I use those variables to avoid the double lookup. The variables are mucking up the context, and if that's a huge deal, you can use anonymous functions:
var name = (function() {return (var user = getUserById(id)) ? user.name : null;})();
Now, the user variable is cleaned-up properly, and everybody's happy. But wow! what a lot of typing! :)
You want dojo.behavior.
dojo.behavior.add({
'#cool_input': {
onKeyUp: function(evt) { ... }
}
});
How about something like this:
function andand(elt, f) {
if (elt)
return f(elt);
return null;
}
Call like this:
andand(dojo.byId('cool_input'), function(elt) {
// this function gets called with elt = the input iff it exists
dojo.addOnLoad(function() {
elt.onkeyup = function() { ... };
});
});
As far as I know there isn't a built-in JavaScript function that has that same functionality. I think the best solution though is to query by class instead of id and use dojo.forEach(...) as you will be guaranteed a non-null element in the forEach closure.
You could always use the JavaScript equivalent:
dojo.byId('cool_input') && dojo.byId('cool_input').whateverYouWantToDo(...);
I've never used dojo, but most javascript frameworks (when dealing with the DOM) return the calling element when a method is called from the element object (poor wording, sorry). So andand() would be implicit.
dojo.addOnLoad(function() {
dojo.byId('cool_input').onkeyup(function(evt) { /*event handler code*/
});
});
For a list:
Array.prototype.andand = function(property, fn) {
if (this.filter(property).length > 0) this.map(fn);
}
I know I could do this with closures (var self = this) if object was a function:
click here
<script type="text/javascript">
var object = {
y : 1,
handle_click : function (e) {
alert('handling click');
//want to access y here
return false;
},
load : function () {
document.getElementById('x').onclick = this.handle_click;
}
};
object.load();
</script>
The simplest way to bind the call to handle_click to the object it is defined in would be something like this:
var self=this;
document.getElementById('x').onclick =
function(e) { return self.handle_click(e) };
If you need to pass in parameters or want to make the code look cleaner (for instance, if you're setting up a lot of similar event handlers), you could use a currying technique to achieve the same:
bind : function(fn)
{
var self = this;
// copy arguments into local array
var args = Array.prototype.slice.call(arguments, 0);
// returned function replaces first argument with event arg,
// calls fn with composite arguments
return function(e) { args[0] = e; return fn.apply(self, args); };
},
...
document.getElementById('x').onclick = this.bind(this.handle_click,
"this parameter is passed to handle_click()",
"as is this one");
So, the event handler part wires up just fine (I tested it myself) but, as your comment indicates, you have no access to the "y" property of the object you just defined.
This works:
var object = {
y : 1,
handle_click : function (e) {
alert('handling click');
//want to access y here
alert(this.y);
return false;
},
load : function () {
var that = this;
document.getElementById('x').onclick = function(e) {
that.handle_click(e); // pass-through the event object
};
}
};
object.load();
There are other ways of doing this too, but this works.
I see how to do it with Jason's latest one. Any way to do it without the anonymous function?
We can directly pass an object with a handler method thanks to AddEventListener, and you will have access to its attributes:
http://www.thecssninja.com/javascript/handleevent
Hope this will help those who, like me, will look for this topic some years after!