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Checking div properties once page has loaded correctly

A couple times now I have wanted to check element sizes as the page loads. I've been doing that using $(document).ready();, but find that often the properties are null. The same is true if I use $(window).load();.
To get around this I have been using a bit of a hack, where I recursively recall the function if the element is not set.
Question: Is there a better approach in terms of professionalism?
var makeMusic = {
init: function() {
if ($('#bloc-1').height() == null) {
setTimeout(function() {
makeMusic.init() ########## THIS IS THE HACK ##########
}, 10)
} else {
makeMusic.height = $('#bloc-1').height();
makeMusic.width = $('#bloc-1').width();
}
makeMusic.watchExperience();
},
watchExperience: function() {
//Some stuff
}
}
var Main = {
run: function() {
makeMusic.init();
}
}
$(document).ready(Main.run());

You do not need a hack at all. The issue here is that Main.run function is invoked before document.ready() is fired. You should:
$(document).ready(Main.run);
Instead of
$(document).ready(Main.run());
When you add () to the function name interpeter invokes it as soon as the line is reached.
When passing a callback, you should only pass a reference to the function.

In terms of proffessionalism i think its better to put your code in a namespace like this:
var app = window.app || {};
app.set = {};
app.set.makeMusic = (function(){
// private members
this.height = "";
this.width = "";
var init = function() {
height = $('#bloc-1').height();
width = $('#bloc-1').width();
alert(height + " " + width);
};
//public interface
return {
init: init
};
})(); // self invoked
$(function(){
app.set.makeMusic.init();
});
fiddle

Javascript: always execute function in execution context

I wrote this fast-templating function:
var templatize = function(string) {
return function (string) {
return string.replace(/{{(.*?)}}/g, function(pattern, match) {
value = this[match];
if (value) {
return value;
} else {
return pattern;
}
});
}.call(this, string);
}
Which does this:
var foo = "bar", bar = "foo";
templatize("We are {{foo}} and {{bar}}, but not {{crazy}}"); // "We are bar and foo but not {{crazy}}"
I'm quite happy with this except that I have scoping problem. For sure, the templatize method will be accessible through namedscope, but then, the current context of execution of templatize is not accessible in my function automatically.
Something like calling $.proxy(templatize, this)("We are {{foo}} and {{bar}}, but not {{crazy}}") should work, right?
But I'd like to achieve this without needing to call $.proxy() (and without any jQuery preferably) so that context is automatically transfered to the execution one.
I'm struggling with .call(), .apply(), and other closures, but I think I read somewhere over the internet that it was possible. Thanks

You can avoid using jQuery doing this :
var templatize = function(string) {
var me = this; // the data source
return string.replace(/{{(.*?)}}/g, function (full, key) {
// "this" refers to the string itself
return me[key] || full;
});
}
In case you want to use jQuery.proxy(), wrap the replacement function :
var templatize = function(string) {
return string.replace(/{{(.*?)}}/g, jQuery.proxy(function (full, key) {
// "this" now refers permanently to the data source
return this[key] || full;
}, this));
}
In both cases you can bind the data source to this using call :
templatize.call({ hello: 'Hi!' }, '{{hello}}');
Going further
You could optimize by compiling the template for reuse :
function compile(tpl) {
var i = -1, tmp = [];
tpl = tpl.split(/{{([^{}]+)}}/);
while (++i < tpl.length) {
if (i % 2) tmp.push('this["' + tpl[i] + '"]');
else if (tpl[i]) tmp.push('"' + tpl[i].replace(/"/g, '\\"') + '"');
}
return new Function(
'return [' + tmp.join() + '].join("");'
);
}
Usage example :
var tpl = compile('{{hello}} {{hello}}');
tpl.call({ hello: 'Hi!' }); // "Hi! Hi!"
tpl.call({ hello: 'Yo!' }); // "Yo! Yo!"
Regarding the example above, here is the function returned by compile :
function () {
return [this["hello"]," ",this["hello"]].join("");
}
Note that you can use an array as well :
var tpl = compile('{{1}} {{0}}');
tpl.call(['a', 'b']); // "b a"
Performance test : http://jsperf.com/template-compiling.

why don't you pass an object containing the view variables? would be cleaner then potentially displaying any existing variable in your view.
var templatize = function(string, variables) {
return function (string) {
return string.replace(/{{(.*?)}}/g, function(pattern, match) {
value = variables[match];
if (value) {
return value;
} else {
return pattern;
}
});
}.call(this, string);
}

How to create a javascript library using a closure

I have written some javascript that I would to encapsulate in a closure so I can use it elsewhere. I would like do do this similar to the way jQuery has done it. I would like to be able to pass in an id to my closure and invoke some functions on it, while setting some options. Similar to this:
<script type="text/javascript">
_snr("#canvas").draw({
imageSrc : someImage.png
});
</script>
I have read a lot of different posts on how to use a closure to do this but am still struggling with the concept. Here is where I left off:
_snr = {};
(function (_snr) {
function merge(root){
for ( var i = 1; i < arguments.length; i++ )
for ( var key in arguments[i] )
root[key] = arguments[i][key];
return root;
}
_snr.draw = function (options) {
var defaults = {
canvasId : 'canvas',
imageSrc : 'images/someimage.png'
}
var options = merge(defaults, options)
return this.each(function() {
//More functions here
});
};
_snr.erase = function () {};
})(_snr);
When ever I try to call the draw function like the first code section above, I get the following error, '_snr is not a function'. Where am I going wrong here?
EDIT
Here is what I ended up doing:
function _snr(id) {
// About object is returned if there is no 'id' parameter
var about = {
Version: 0.2,
Author: "ferics2",
Created: "Summer 2011",
Updated: "3 September 2012"
};
if (id) {
if (window === this) {
return new _snr(id);
}
this.e = document.getElementById(id);
return this;
} else {
// No 'id' parameter was given, return the 'about' object
return about;
}
};
_snr.prototype = (function(){
var merge = function(root) {
for ( var i = 1; i < arguments.length; i++) {
for ( var key in arguments[i] ) {
root[key] = arguments[i][key];
}
}
return root;
};
return {
draw: function(options) {
var defaults = {
canvasId : 'canvas',
imageSrc : 'images/someimage.png'
};
options = merge(defaults, options);
return this;
},
erase: function() {
return this;
}
};
})();
I can now call:
<script type="text/javascript">
_snr("#canvas").draw({
imageSrc : someImage.png
});
</script>

Because you declared _snr as an object and not a function. Functions can have properties and methods, so there's various ways to achieve what you want, for example one of them would be say...
_snr = function(tag) {
this.tag = tag;
}
_snr.foo = function() {
//Code goes here
}
You can also pass the outer context into a closure to hide your variables from accidentally polluting the global namespace, so like...
(function(global) {
var _snr = function(tag) {
this.tag = tag;
}
_snr.foo = function() {
//Code goes here
}
//export the function to the window context:
global._snr = _snr;
})(window);
window._snr('#tag').foo('wat');
Happy coding.

Because your _snr is an object, not a function. You have to call it like this:
_snr.draw({
canvasId: '#canvas',
imageSrc: 'someImage.png'
});

When you do _snr('#canvas') that is a function call which is why you're getting that error. _snr is an object with some methods attached to it such as draw() and erase(). The reason jQuery is able to pass arguments into the $ is because they return the $ as a function object which is why we're able to pass it various selectors as arguments.

You are going wrong at the first line _snr = {}
It needs to be
_snr = function(){
selector = arguments[0]||false;
//snr init on dom object code
return _snrChild;
}
Im on a mobile phone but when im on a pc I will maybe fix the whole code c:

Here you have a snr object and that has erase and draw methods. What you intend to do is to write a _snr function which will get an id and return a wrapper object. That returned object should have erase and draw methods. so you can do
var returnedObject = _snr("my_id");
returnedObject.draw("image.png");

Choose which set of methods an object has, based on argument during object creation - JavaScript

I have searched and read for a few hours yet I still cant understand the basic design pattern for creating a new object that has a choice of different methods (of the same name) that is set dependant on one of the arguments. here's some code to explain what I am trying to do.
All advice and alternative approaches welcome. I hope someone can emancipate me form this cloud of ignorance.
Thanks
function BaseConstructor(whichMethods) {
if (whichMethods==='a') {
// do something to incorporate methodSetA
}
else if (whichMethods==='b') {
// do something to incorporate methodSetB
}
this.init();
};
var methodSetA = {
init: function() {
// do initialisation A way
},
speak: function() {
alert('i speak AAA way')
}
};
var methodSetB = {
init: function() {
// do initialisation B way
},
speak: function(){
alert('i got BBB all the way')
}
};
thing = new BaseConstructor('b');
// b is an instance of BaseConstructor and has done the bWay init() function
thing.speak() // return alert 'i got BBB all the way'

You can do it like this using a factory function (a regular function that creates the appropriate object for you):
function BaseConstructor(whichMethods) {
var elem;
if (whichMethods==='a') {
elem = new MethodSetA();
} else if (whichMethods==='b') {
elem = new MethodSetB();
} else {
// figure out what to do here if whichMethods is neither of the previous options
}
elem.init();
return(elem);
};
And invoke it as a regular function call:
var thing = BaseConstructor('b');
thing.speak();
Note: there is no use of new with BaseConstructor() as it's a regular function call.

Well, to do it your way using "method sets," you can iterate and copy into this (here's a demo):
function copy(source, destination) {
for(var x in source) {
if(source.hasOwnProperty(x)) {
destination[x] = source[x];
}
}
}
function BaseConstructor(whichMethods) {
if(whichMethods === 'a') {
copy(methodSetA, this);
} else if(whichMethods === 'b') {
copy(methodSetB, this);
}
this.init();
}
Personally, though, I'd prefer to assign directly to this.

You are looking for factory pattern.
Example:
function objectFactory(whichMethods) {
if (whichMethods==='a') {
return new objectSetA();
}
else if (whichMethods==='b') {
return new objectSetB()
}
};
function objectSetA() {
this.init = function() {
// do initialisation A way
},
this.speak = function() {
alert('i speak AAA way')
}
};
function objectSetB() {
this.init = function() {
// do initialisation B way
},
this.speak = function(){
alert('i got BBB all the way')
}
};
var thing = objectFactory('b');
thing.speak();

How can I make this javascript easier to read, maintain, and understand from an OO background?

I come from the land of Java, C#, etc. I am working on a javascript report engine for a web application I have. I am using jQuery, AJAX, etc. I am having difficulty making things work the way I feel they should - for instance, I have gone to what seems like too much trouble to make sure that when I make an AJAX call, my callback has access to the object's members. Those callback functions don't need to be that complicated, do they? I know I must be doing something wrong. Please point out what I could be doing better - let me know if the provided snippet is too much/too little/too terrible to look at.
What I'm trying to do:
On page load, I have a select full of users.
I create the reports (1 for now) and add them to a select box.
When both a user and report are selected, I run the report.
The report involves making a series of calls - getting practice serieses, leagues, and tournaments - for each league and tournament, it gets all of those serieses, and then for each series it grabs all games.
It maintains a counter of the calls that are active, and when they have all completed the report is run and displayed to the user.
Code:
//Initializes the handlers and reports
function loadUI() {
loadReports();
$("#userSelect").change(updateRunButton);
$("#runReport").click(runReport);
updateRunButton();
return;
$("#userSelect").change(loadUserGames);
var user = $("#userSelect").val();
if(user) {
getUserGames(user);
}
}
//Creates reports and adds them to the select
function loadReports() {
var reportSelect = $("#reportSelect");
var report = new SpareReport();
engine.reports[report.name] = report;
reportSelect.append($("<option/>").text(report.name));
reportSelect.change(updateRunButton);
}
//The class that represents the 1 report we can run right now.
function SpareReport() {
this.name = "Spare Percentages";
this.activate = function() {
};
this.canRun = function() {
return true;
};
//Collects the data for the report. Initializes/resets the class variables,
//and initiates calls to retrieve all user practices, leagues, and tournaments.
this.run = function() {
var rC = $("#rC");
var user = engine.currentUser();
rC.html("<img src='/img/loading.gif' alt='Loading...'/> <span id='reportProgress'>Loading games...</span>");
this.pendingOperations = 3;
this.games = [];
$("#runReport").enabled = false;
$.ajaxSetup({"error":(function(report) {
return function(event, XMLHttpRequest, ajaxOptions, thrownError) {
report.ajaxError(event, XMLHttpRequest, ajaxOptions, thrownError);
};
})(this)});
$.getJSON("/api/leagues", {"user":user}, (function(report) {
return function(leagues) {
report.addSeriesGroup(leagues);
};
})(this));
$.getJSON("/api/tournaments", {"user":user}, (function(report) {
return function(tournaments) {
report.addSeriesGroup(tournaments);
};
})(this));
$.getJSON("/api/practices", {"user":user}, (function(report) {
return function(practices) {
report.addSerieses(practices);
};
})(this));
};
// Retrieves the serieses (group of IDs) for a series group, such as a league or
// tournament.
this.addSeriesGroup = function(seriesGroups) {
var report = this;
if(seriesGroups) {
$.each(seriesGroups, function(index, seriesGroup) {
report.pendingOperations += 1;
$.getJSON("/api/seriesgroup", {"group":seriesGroup.key}, (function(report) {
return function(serieses) {
report.addSerieses(serieses);
};
})(report));
});
}
this.pendingOperations -= 1;
this.tryFinishReport();
};
// Retrieves the actual serieses for a series group. Takes a set of
// series IDs and retrieves each series.
this.addSerieses = function(serieses) {
var report = this;
if(serieses) {
$.each(serieses, function(index, series) {
report.pendingOperations += 1;
$.getJSON("/api/series", {"series":series.key}, (function(report) {
return function(series) {
report.addSeries(series);
};
})(report));
});
}
this.pendingOperations -= 1;
this.tryFinishReport();
};
// Adds the games for the series to the list of games
this.addSeries = function(series) {
var report = this;
if(series && series.games) {
$.each(series.games, function(index, game) {
report.games.push(game);
});
}
this.pendingOperations -= 1;
this.tryFinishReport();
};
// Checks to see if all pending requests have completed - if so, runs the
// report.
this.tryFinishReport = function() {
if(this.pendingOperations > 0) {
return;
}
var progress = $("#reportProgress");
progress.text("Performing calculations...");
setTimeout((function(report) {
return function() {
report.finishReport();
};
})(this), 1);
}
// Performs report calculations and displays them to the user.
this.finishReport = function() {
var rC = $("#rC");
//snip a page of calculations/table generation
rC.html(html);
$("#rC table").addClass("tablesorter").attr("cellspacing", "1").tablesorter({"sortList":[[3,1]]});
};
// Handles errors (by ignoring them)
this.ajaxError = function(event, XMLHttpRequest, ajaxOptions, thrownError) {
this.pendingOperations -= 1;
};
return true;
}
// A class to track the state of the various controls. The "series set" stuff
// is for future functionality.
function ReportingEngine() {
this.seriesSet = [];
this.reports = {};
this.getSeriesSet = function() {
return this.seriesSet;
};
this.clearSeriesSet = function() {
this.seriesSet = [];
};
this.addGame = function(series) {
this.seriesSet.push(series);
};
this.currentUser = function() {
return $("#userSelect").val();
};
this.currentReport = function() {
reportName = $("#reportSelect").val();
if(reportName) {
return this.reports[reportName];
}
return null;
};
}
// Sets the enablement of the run button based on the selections to the inputs
function updateRunButton() {
var report = engine.currentReport();
var user = engine.currentUser();
setRunButtonEnablement(report != null && user != null);
}
function setRunButtonEnablement(enabled) {
if(enabled) {
$("#runReport").removeAttr("disabled");
} else {
$("#runReport").attr("disabled", "disabled");
}
}
var engine = new ReportingEngine();
$(document).ready( function() {
loadUI();
});
function runReport() {
var report = engine.currentReport();
if(report == null) {
updateRunButton();
return;
}
report.run();
}
I am about to start adding new reports, some of which will operate on only a subset of user's games. I am going to be trying to use subclasses (prototype?), but if I can't figure out how to simplify some of this... I don't know how to finish that sentence. Help!

$.getJSON("/api/leagues", {"user":user}, (function(report) {
return function(leagues) {
report.addSeriesGroup(leagues);
};
})(this));
Can be written as:
var self = this;
$.getJSON("/api/leagues", {"user":user}, (function(leagues) {
self.addSeriesGroup(leagues);
});
The function-returning-function is more useful when you're inside a loop and want to bind to a variable that changes each time around the loop.

Provide "some" comments where necessary.

I'm going to be honest with you and say that I didn't read the whole thing. However, I think there is something about JavaScript you should know and that is that it has closures.
var x = 1;
$.ajax({
success: function () {
alert(x);
}
});
No matter how long time it takes for the AJAX request to complete, it will have access to x and will alert "1" once it succeeds.

Understand Closures. This takes some getting used to. (which, many will use, and is certainly the typical way of going about things, so it's good if you understand how that's happening)
This is a good thread to read to get a simple explanation of how to use them effectively.

You should use prototypes to define methods and do inheritance:
function Parent(x) {
this.x = x; /* Set an instance variable. Methods come later. */
}
/* Make Parent inherit from Object by assigning an
* instance of Object to Parent.prototype. This is
* very different from how you do inheritance in
* Java or C# !
*/
Parent.prototype = { /* Define a method in the parent class. */
foo: function () {
return 'parent ' + this.x; /* Use an instance variable. */
}
}
function Child(x) {
Parent.call(this, x) /* Call the parent implementation. */
}
/* Similar to how Parent inherits from Object; you
* assign an instance of the parent class (Parent) to
* the prototype attribute of the child constructor
* (Child).
*/
Child.prototype = new Parent();
/* Specialize the parent implementation. */
Child.prototype.foo = function() {
return Parent.prototype.foo.call(this) + ' child ' + this.x;
}
/* Define a method in Child that does not override
* something in Parent.
*/
Child.prototype.bar = function() {
return 'bar';
}
var p = new Parent(1);
alert(p.foo());
var ch = new Child(2);
alert(ch.foo());
alert(ch.bar());
I'm not familiar with jQuery, but I know the Prototype library (worst name choice ever) has some functionality that make it easier to work with inheritance.
Also, while coming up with the answer to this question, I found a nice page that goes into more detail on how to do OO right in JS, which you may want to look at.