Loading other javascript modules? about jxa-cookbook HOT 14 CLOSED

Apple really should consider making this compete with Node, and still have all the OS X stuff, just as with their packaged Python.

They should just ship Node & npm with macOS instead of this crap… and just replace all the OS specific stuff with npm modules to cover it.

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First, thanks for that link! Added to examples.

Regarding require()ing stuff, I haven't found any official solution as well.

My solution is to use Browserify to package modules up into a single-file script, which makes the script portable. I've put it in the exotic recipes.

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Good call, browserify is a nice interim solution for that. Hopefully we can figure out a more "official" way as well!

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This is what I currently use. A lot of scripts I write have boiler-plate in them, due to the lack of include/require/etc. requireHack is a hacky version of node's require().

Top of script

ObjC.import('Foundation');
var fm = $.NSFileManager.defaultManager;
var requireHack = function (path) {
    var contents = fm.contentsAtPath(path.toString()); // NSData
    contents = $.NSString.alloc.initWithDataEncoding(contents, $.NSUTF8StringEncoding);

    var module = {exports: {}};
    var exports = module.exports;
    eval(ObjC.unwrap(contents));

    return module.exports;
};

Rest of script:

h = requireHack('./test1.js');
console.log(h.helperFunc())

ObjC.import('stdlib');
$.exit(0);

test1.js contents:

exports.helperFunc = function () {
    return 'this is imported code';
};

So invocation of osascript -l JavaScript main.js output:

this is imported code

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@Tatsh nice! Looking forward to trying your approach out. A "hacked" module system is much better than no module system 👍

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Added the require() hack here: https://github.com/dtinth/JXA-Cookbook/wiki/Exotic-Recipes#including-other-files

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👍

Thank you very much for contributing! :)

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So, not so much for modules but here is what Apple's guide says for singles files:

You can use scripts as libraries by storing them in ~/Library/Script Libraries/.
If you have a script library "toolbox.scpt":

function log(message) {
   TextEdit = Application('TextEdit')
   doc = TextEdit.documents['Log.rtf']
   doc.text = message
}

a script can use the library like this:

toolbox = Library('toolbox')
toolbox.log('Hello world')

Note: Any code outside of functions in a library will be executed when the library is instantiated.

If you plan to distribute your script but it uses libraries, you could create an installer without any dependencies, error if the user already has ones installed with the same name (or auto-fix your script during install).

I still kind of prefer either making it one giant script with Browserify or using the require() emulation function. Arguably though require() could become:

require = (nameOrPath) ->
    try
        return Library(nameOrPath)
    catch
        # read and eval as before

https://developer.apple.com/library/mac/releasenotes/InterapplicationCommunication/RN-JavaScriptForAutomation/#//apple_ref/doc/uid/TP40014508-CH109-SW14

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Thanks for this tip!

Maybe it is obvious to everyone here, but it took me quite long to realise that 'require' itself can't be imported (e.g. via a 'Library' call), or else anything that one 'require's would be useless.

Just saying it in case someone hits this wall like I did. Incidentally, if anyone knows why this is the case, I'd be happy to know.

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why can't require be imported? I'm finding things fail, but I don't get why?

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Apple really should consider making this compete with Node, and still have all the OS X stuff, just as with their packaged Python.

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@sprig definitely hit that wall... for 2 hours.

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@joedaniels29 frankly I'm not sure what I meant anymore. I think I meant that If you could import require, you could just as well import anything else without require

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I optimize the method of Emulating npm's require() to return the object by text, so it can place to the Library（I found the function in Library script can't return a function which will be clear)

Library script: ~/Library/Script Libraries/jsUtil.scpt

function require_(path) {
  var handle = app.openForAccess(path)
  var contents = app.read(handle)
  app.closeAccess(path)
	
  const objText = `
	let module = { exports: {} }
	let exports = module.exports
	${contents}
	module.exports
	`
  return objText
}

Top of script

const { require_ } = Library('jsUtil')
const { test } = eval(require_('absolute path of util.js')) //use eval to get the object

test('jxa')

util.js

module.exports = {
  test: function (val)  {
    console.log('test', val)
    return val
  }
}

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