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View Code? Open in Web Editor NEWMozilla Foundation's Engineering Handbook
Home Page: https://mozillafoundation.github.io/engineering-handbook/
Mozilla Foundation's Engineering Handbook
Home Page: https://mozillafoundation.github.io/engineering-handbook/
This will eventually be a project we can clone and use to start a new mofo-opinionated app, so let's have it implement the assertions from #16
A mostly reasonable approach to JavaScript
Primitives: When you access a primitive type you work directly on its value
string
number
boolean
null
undefined
var foo = 1;
var bar = foo;
bar = 9;
console.log(foo, bar); // => 1, 9
Complex: When you access a complex type you work on a reference to its value
object
array
function
var foo = [1, 2];
var bar = foo;
bar[0] = 9;
console.log(foo[0], bar[0]); // => 9, 9
undefined
is an object. You should use it as an object. You can test for it. For instance:
// good
function pow(a, b) {
if (b === undefined) {
b = 1;
}
return Math.pow(a, b);
}
// bad
function pow(a, b) {
if (typeof b == "undefined") {
b = 1;
}
return Math.pow(a, b);
}
Only use typeof x == "undefined"
when the variable (x
) may not be declared, and it would be an error to test x === undefined
:
if (typeof Module == "undefined") {
Module = {};
}
// But also okay, for browser-only code:
if (window.Module === undefined) {
Module = {};
}
Note that you can't use window
in Node.js; if you think your code could be used in a server context you should use the first form.
Use the literal syntax for object creation.
// bad
var item = new Object();
// good
var item = {};
if (typeof Module == "undefined") {
Module = {};
}
// But also okay, for browser-only code:
if (window.Module === undefined) {
Module = {};
}
Note that you can't use window
in Node.js; if you think your code could be used in a server context you should use the first form.
Use the literal syntax for object creation.
// bad
var item = new Object();
// good
var item = {};
As an example that reserved words are both okay right now and will be indefinitely, the IndexedDB API uses cursor.continue()
Use the literal syntax for array creation
// bad
var items = new Array();
// good
var items = [];
If you don't know array length use Array#push.
var someStack = [];
// bad
someStack[someStack.length] = 'abracadabra';
// good
someStack.push('abracadabra');
When you need to copy an array use Array#slice. jsPerf
var len = items.length;
var itemsCopy = [];
var i;
// bad
for (i = 0; i < len; i++) {
itemsCopy[i] = items[i];
}
// good
itemsCopy = items.slice();
To convert an array-like object to an array, use Array#slice.
function trigger() {
var args = Array.prototype.slice.call(arguments);
...
}
Use single or double quotes ('
or "
) for strings. There is a slight preference for double-quotes, aligning with Mozilla style.
Strings longer than 80 characters should be written across multiple lines using string concatenation.
Note: If overused, long strings with concatenation could impact performance. jsPerf & Discussion
// bad
var errorMessage = 'This is a super long error that was thrown because of Batman. When you stop to think about how Batman had anything to do with this, you would get nowhere fast.';
// bad
var errorMessage = 'This is a super long error that was thrown because \
of Batman. When you stop to think about how Batman had anything to do \
with this, you would get nowhere \
fast.';
// good
var errorMessage = 'This is a super long error that was thrown because ' +
'of Batman. When you stop to think about how Batman had anything to do ' +
'with this, you would get nowhere fast.';
When programmatically building up a string, use Array#join instead of string concatenation. Mostly for IE: jsPerf.
var items;
var messages;
var length;
var i;
messages = [{
state: 'success',
message: 'This one worked.'
}, {
state: 'success',
message: 'This one worked as well.'
}, {
state: 'error',
message: 'This one did not work.'
}];
length = messages.length;
// bad
function inbox(messages) {
items = '<ul>';
for (i = 0; i < length; i++) {
items += '<li>' + messages[i].message + '</li>';
}
return items + '</ul>';
}
// good
function inbox(messages) {
items = [];
for (i = 0; i < length; i++) {
items[i] = messages[i].message;
}
return '<ul><li>' + items.join('</li><li>') + '</li></ul>';
}
Function expressions:
// anonymous function expression
var anonymous = function() {
return true;
};
// named function expression
var named = function named() {
return true;
};
// immediately-invoked function expression (IIFE)
(function() {
console.log('Welcome to the Internet. Please follow me.');
})();
Never declare a function in a non-function block (if, while, etc). Assign the function to a variable instead. Browsers will allow you to do it, but they all interpret it differently, which is bad news bears.
Note: ECMA-262 defines a block
as a list of statements. A function declaration is not a statement. Read ECMA-262's note on this issue.
// bad
if (currentUser) {
function test() {
console.log('Nope.');
}
}
// good
var test;
if (currentUser) {
test = function test() {
console.log('Yup.');
};
}
Never name a parameter arguments
, this will take precedence over the arguments
object that is given to every function scope.
// bad
function nope(name, options, arguments) {
// ...stuff...
}
// good
function yup(name, options, args) {
// ...stuff...
}
Use dot notation when accessing properties.
var luke = {
jedi: true,
age: 28
};
// bad
var isJedi = luke['jedi'];
// good
var isJedi = luke.jedi;
Use subscript notation []
when accessing properties with a variable.
var luke = {
jedi: true,
age: 28
};
function getProp(prop) {
return luke[prop];
}
var isJedi = getProp('jedi');
Always use var
to declare variables. Not doing so will result in global variables. We want to avoid polluting the global namespace. Captain Planet warned us of that.
// bad
superPower = new SuperPower();
// good
var superPower = new SuperPower();
Use one var
declaration per variable and declare each variable on a newline.
// bad
var items = getItems(),
goSportsTeam = true,
dragonball = 'z';
// good
var items = getItems();
var goSportsTeam = true;
var dragonball = 'z';
Assign variables at the top of their scope. This helps avoid issues with variable declaration and assignment hoisting related issues.
// bad
function() {
test();
console.log('doing stuff..');
//..other stuff..
var name = getName();
if (name === 'test') {
return false;
}
return name;
}
// good
function() {
var name = getName();
test();
console.log('doing stuff..');
//..other stuff..
if (name === 'test') {
return false;
}
return name;
}
// bad
function() {
var name = getName();
if (!arguments.length) {
return false;
}
return true;
}
// good
function() {
if (!arguments.length) {
return false;
}
var name = getName();
return true;
}
As an exception, declaring a variable in a for
loop is common and okay.
// ok
for (var i=0; i<array.length; i++) {
...
}
Variable declarations get hoisted to the top of their scope, their assignment does not.
// we know this wouldn't work (assuming there
// is no notDefined global variable)
function example() {
console.log(notDefined); // => throws a ReferenceError
}
// creating a variable declaration after you
// reference the variable will work due to
// variable hoisting. Note: the assignment
// value of `true` is not hoisted.
function example() {
console.log(declaredButNotAssigned); // => undefined
var declaredButNotAssigned = true;
}
// The interpreter is hoisting the variable
// declaration to the top of the scope.
// Which means our example could be rewritten as:
function example() {
var declaredButNotAssigned;
console.log(declaredButNotAssigned); // => undefined
declaredButNotAssigned = true;
}
Anonymous function expressions hoist their variable name, but not the function assignment.
function example() {
console.log(anonymous); // => undefined
anonymous(); // => TypeError anonymous is not a function
var anonymous = function() {
console.log('anonymous function expression');
};
}
Named function expressions hoist the variable name, not the function name or the function body.
function example() {
console.log(named); // => undefined
named(); // => TypeError named is not a function
superPower(); // => ReferenceError superPower is not defined
var named = function superPower() {
console.log('Flying');
};
}
// the same is true when the function name
// is the same as the variable name.
function example() {
console.log(named); // => undefined
named(); // => TypeError named is not a function
var named = function named() {
console.log('named');
}
}
Function declarations hoist their name and the function body.
function example() {
superPower(); // => Flying
function superPower() {
console.log('Flying');
}
}
For more information refer to JavaScript Scoping & Hoisting by Ben Cherry
Use ===
and !==
over ==
and !=
.
Conditional expressions are evaluated using coercion with the ToBoolean
method and always follow these simple rules:
''
, otherwise trueif ([0]) {
// true
// An array is an object, objects evaluate to true
}
Use shortcuts.
// bad
if (name !== '') {
// ...stuff...
}
// good
if (name) {
// ...stuff...
}
// bad
if (collection.length > 0) {
// ...stuff...
}
// good
if (collection.length) {
// ...stuff...
}
For more information see Truth Equality and JavaScript by Angus Croll
Use braces with all multi-line blocks.
// bad
if (test)
return false;
// good
if (test) return false;
// good
if (test) {
return false;
}
// bad
function() { return false; }
// good
function() {
return false;
}
Use /** ... */
for multiline comments. Include a description, specify types and values for all parameters and return values.
// bad
// make() returns a new element
// based on the passed in tag name
//
// @param <String> tag
// @return <Element> element
function make(tag) {
// ...stuff...
return element;
}
// good
/**
* make() returns a new element
* based on the passed in tag name
*
* @param <String> tag
* @return <Element> element
*/
function make(tag) {
// ...stuff...
return element;
}
Use //
for single line comments. Place single line comments on a newline above the subject of the comment. Put an empty line before the comment.
// bad
var active = true; // is current tab
// good
// is current tab
var active = true;
// bad
function getType() {
console.log('fetching type...');
// set the default type to 'no type'
var type = this._type || 'no type';
return type;
}
// good
function getType() {
console.log('fetching type...');
// set the default type to 'no type'
var type = this._type || 'no type';
return type;
}
Prefixing your comments with FIXME
or TODO
helps other developers quickly understand if you're pointing out a problem that needs to be revisited, or if you're suggesting a solution to the problem that needs to be implemented. These are different than regular comments because they are actionable. The actions are FIXME -- need to figure this out
or TODO -- need to implement
.
Use // FIXME:
to annotate problems
function Calculator() {
// FIXME: shouldn't use a global here
total = 0;
return this;
}
Use // TODO:
to annotate solutions to problems
function Calculator() {
// TODO: total should be configurable by an options param
this.total = 0;
return this;
}
Use soft tabs set to 2 spaces
// bad
function() {
∙∙∙∙var name;
}
// bad
function() {
∙var name;
}
// good
function() {
∙∙var name;
}
Place 1 space before the leading brace.
// bad
function test(){
console.log('test');
}
// good
function test() {
console.log('test');
}
// bad
dog.set('attr',{
age: '1 year',
breed: 'Bernese Mountain Dog'
});
// good
dog.set('attr', {
age: '1 year',
breed: 'Bernese Mountain Dog'
});
Set off operators with spaces.
// bad
var x=y+5;
// good
var x = y + 5;
End files with a single newline character.
// bad
(function(global) {
// ...stuff...
})(this);
// bad
(function(global) {
// ...stuff...
})(this);↵
↵
// good
(function(global) {
// ...stuff...
})(this);↵
Use indentation when making long method chains.
// bad
$('#items').find('.selected').highlight().end().find('.open').updateCount();
// good
$('#items')
.find('.selected')
.highlight()
.end()
.find('.open')
.updateCount();
// bad
var leds = stage.selectAll('.led').data(data).enter().append('svg:svg').class('led', true)
.attr('width', (radius + margin) * 2).append('svg:g')
.attr('transform', 'translate(' + (radius + margin) + ',' + (radius + margin) + ')')
.call(tron.led);
// good
var leds = stage.selectAll('.led')
.data(data)
.enter().append('svg:svg')
.class('led', true)
.attr('width', (radius + margin) * 2)
.append('svg:g')
.attr('transform', 'translate(' + (radius + margin) + ',' + (radius + margin) + ')')
.call(tron.led);
Leading commas: Nope.
// bad
var hero = {
firstName: 'Bob'
, lastName: 'Parr'
, heroName: 'Mr. Incredible'
, superPower: 'strength'
};
// good
var hero = {
firstName: 'Bob',
lastName: 'Parr',
heroName: 'Mr. Incredible',
superPower: 'strength'
};
Additional trailing comma: Nope. This can cause problems with IE6/7 and IE9 if it's in quirksmode. Also, in some implementations of ES3 would add length to an array if it had an additional trailing comma. This was clarified in ES5 (source):
Edition 5 clarifies the fact that a trailing comma at the end of an ArrayInitialiser does not add to the length of the array. This is not a semantic change from Edition 3 but some implementations may have previously misinterpreted this.
// bad
var hero = {
firstName: 'Kevin',
lastName: 'Flynn',
};
var heroes = [
'Batman',
'Superman',
];
// good
var hero = {
firstName: 'Kevin',
lastName: 'Flynn'
};
var heroes = [
'Batman',
'Superman'
];
Yup.
// bad
(function() {
var name = 'Skywalker'
return name
})()
// good
(function() {
var name = 'Skywalker';
return name;
})();
// good (guards against the function becoming an argument when two files with IIFEs are concatenated)
;(function() {
var name = 'Skywalker';
return name;
})();
Perform type coercion at the beginning of the statement.
Strings:
// => this.reviewScore = 9;
// bad
var totalScore = this.reviewScore + '';
// good
var totalScore = '' + this.reviewScore;
// bad
var totalScore = '' + this.reviewScore + ' total score';
// good
var totalScore = this.reviewScore + ' total score';
Use parseInt
for Numbers and always with a radix for type casting.
var inputValue = '4';
// bad
var val = new Number(inputValue);
// bad
var val = +inputValue;
// bad
var val = inputValue >> 0;
// bad
var val = parseInt(inputValue);
// good
var val = Number(inputValue);
// good
var val = parseInt(inputValue, 10);
If for whatever reason you are doing something wild and parseInt
is your bottleneck and need to use Bitshift for performance reasons, leave a comment explaining why and what you're doing.
// good
/**
* parseInt was the reason my code was slow.
* Bitshifting the String to coerce it to a
* Number made it a lot faster.
*/
var val = inputValue >> 0;
Note: Be careful when using bitshift operations. Numbers are represented as 64-bit values, but Bitshift operations always return a 32-bit integer (source). Bitshift can lead to unexpected behavior for integer values larger than 32 bits. Discussion. Largest signed 32-bit Int is 2,147,483,647:
2147483647 >> 0 //=> 2147483647
2147483648 >> 0 //=> -2147483648
2147483649 >> 0 //=> -2147483647
Booleans:
var age = 0;
// bad
var hasAge = new Boolean(age);
// good
var hasAge = Boolean(age);
// good
var hasAge = !!age;
Avoid single letter names. Be descriptive with your naming.
// bad
function q() {
// ...stuff...
}
// good
function query() {
// ..stuff..
}
Use camelCase when naming objects, functions, and instances
// bad
var OBJEcttsssss = {};
var this_is_my_object = {};
function c() {}
var u = new user({
name: 'Bob Parr'
});
// good
var thisIsMyObject = {};
function thisIsMyFunction() {}
var user = new User({
name: 'Bob Parr'
});
Use PascalCase when naming constructors or classes
// bad
function user(options) {
this.name = options.name;
}
var bad = new user({
name: 'nope'
});
// good
function User(options) {
this.name = options.name;
}
var good = new User({
name: 'yup'
});
When saving a reference to this
use self
.
// bad
function() {
var _this = this;
return function() {
console.log(_this);
};
}
// good
function() {
var self = this;
return function() {
console.log(self);
};
}
Name your functions. This is helpful for stack traces.
// bad
var log = function(msg) {
console.log(msg);
};
// good
var log = function log(msg) {
console.log(msg);
};
Note: IE8 and below exhibit some quirks with named function expressions. See http://kangax.github.io/nfe/ for more info.
Accessor functions for properties are not required
If the property is a boolean, use isVal() or hasVal()
// bad
if (!dragon.age()) {
return false;
}
// good
if (!dragon.hasAge()) {
return false;
}
It's okay to create get() and set() functions, but be consistent.
function Jedi(options) {
options || (options = {});
var lightsaber = options.lightsaber || 'blue';
this.set('lightsaber', lightsaber);
}
Jedi.prototype.set = function(key, val) {
this[key] = val;
};
Jedi.prototype.get = function(key) {
return this[key];
};
Assign methods to the prototype object, instead of overwriting the prototype with a new object. Overwriting the prototype makes inheritance impossible: by resetting the prototype you'll overwrite the base!
function Jedi() {
console.log('new jedi');
}
// bad
Jedi.prototype = {
fight: function fight() {
console.log('fighting');
},
block: function block() {
console.log('blocking');
}
};
// good
Jedi.prototype.fight = function fight() {
console.log('fighting');
};
Jedi.prototype.block = function block() {
console.log('blocking');
};
Methods can return this
to help with method chaining.
// bad
Jedi.prototype.jump = function() {
this.jumping = true;
return true;
};
Jedi.prototype.setHeight = function(height) {
this.height = height;
};
var luke = new Jedi();
luke.jump(); // => true
luke.setHeight(20) // => undefined
// good
Jedi.prototype.jump = function() {
this.jumping = true;
return this;
};
Jedi.prototype.setHeight = function(height) {
this.height = height;
return this;
};
var luke = new Jedi();
luke.jump()
.setHeight(20);
It's okay to write a custom toString() method, just make sure it works successfully and causes no side effects.
function Jedi(options) {
options || (options = {});
this.name = options.name || 'no name';
}
Jedi.prototype.getName = function getName() {
return this.name;
};
Jedi.prototype.toString = function toString() {
return 'Jedi - ' + this.getName();
};
When attaching data payloads to events (whether DOM events or something more proprietary like Backbone events), pass a hash instead of a raw value. This allows a subsequent contributor to add more data to the event payload without finding and updating every handler for the event. For example, instead of:
// bad
$(this).trigger('listingUpdated', listing.id);
...
$(this).on('listingUpdated', function(e, listingId) {
// do something with listingId
});
prefer:
// good
$(this).trigger('listingUpdated', { listingId : listing.id });
...
$(this).on('listingUpdated', function(e, data) {
// do something with data.listingId
});
The module should start with a !
. This ensures that if a malformed module forgets to include a final semicolon there aren't errors in production when the scripts get concatenated. Explanation
The file should be named with camelCase, live in a folder with the same name, and match the name of the single export.
Add a method called noConflict()
that sets the exported module to the previous version and returns this one.
Always declare 'use strict';
at the top of the module.
// fancyInput/fancyInput.js
!function(global) {
'use strict';
var previousFancyInput = global.FancyInput;
function FancyInput(options) {
this.options = options || {};
}
FancyInput.noConflict = function noConflict() {
global.FancyInput = previousFancyInput;
return FancyInput;
};
global.FancyInput = FancyInput;
}(this);
Cache jQuery lookups.
// bad
function setSidebar() {
$('.sidebar').hide();
// ...stuff...
$('.sidebar').css({
'background-color': 'pink'
});
}
// good
function setSidebar() {
var $sidebar = $('.sidebar');
$sidebar.hide();
// ...stuff...
$sidebar.css({
'background-color': 'pink'
});
}
For DOM queries use Cascading $('.sidebar ul')
or parent > child $('.sidebar > ul')
. jsPerf
Use find
with scoped jQuery object queries.
// bad
$('ul', '.sidebar').hide();
// bad
$('.sidebar').find('ul').hide();
// good
$('.sidebar ul').hide();
// good
$('.sidebar > ul').hide();
// good
$sidebar.find('ul').hide();
Yup.
function() {
return true;
}
Read This
Other Styleguides
Other Styles
Further Reading
Books
Blogs
This is a list of organizations that are using this style guide. Send us a pull request or open an issue and we'll add you to the list.
This style guide is also available in other languages:
(The MIT License)
Copyright (c) 2014 Airbnb
Permission is hereby granted, free of charge, to any person obtaining
a copy of this software and associated documentation files (the
'Software'), to deal in the Software without restriction, including
without limitation the rights to use, copy, modify, merge, publish,
distribute, sublicense, and/or sell copies of the Software, and to
permit persons to whom the Software is furnished to do so, subject to
the following conditions:
The above copyright notice and this permission notice shall be
included in all copies or substantial portions of the Software.
THE SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED 'AS IS', WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND,
EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE WARRANTIES OF
MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE AND NONINFRINGEMENT.
IN NO EVENT SHALL THE AUTHORS OR COPYRIGHT HOLDERS BE LIABLE FOR ANY
CLAIM, DAMAGES OR OTHER LIABILITY, WHETHER IN AN ACTION OF CONTRACT,
TORT OR OTHERWISE, ARISING FROM, OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE
SOFTWARE OR THE USE OR OTHER DEALINGS IN THE SOFTWARE.
We should have better guidelines around Accessibility. Let's do it!
We need to codify best practices for writing UI components that are reusable across all our codebases and stack variants.
ES6 is becoming more practical pretty quickly, especially thanks to transpilers and things like sweet.js.
See http://glenmaddern.com/articles/javascript-in-2015 for an example of what that feels like. See also io.js if we wanted to be bleeding-edge on the server side.
My guess is we don't want to be early adopters just yet, but it's worth a conversation.
Coming out of https://docs.google.com/document/d/1BZVJYo3ELxDAcIyU5y_1ScjMtxBYegp5k9gc2rH0kgQ, this needs:
For setup of new users, it would be helpful to have a checklist of github groups, repos, and orgs we add folks to.
(will fill out more later)
Goal: Create a mostly "offline" experience by aggregating project modifications and only saving these to the database at specific times, firing off all operations as an ordered batch update
Implement java-side object caching (mozilla/webmaker-android#2414) so that edits can be made to pages and elements without needing to synchronize with the database every time a webview is swapped in or out.
Rather than syncing with the database, objects that need to be shared between multiple webviews (effectively: different React applications running in different "tabs") can be cached to java when one view swaps out, and then be retrieved from cache when another view is swapped in, bypassing the need for an external database until the user leaves the page
view, at which point all pending modifications for that page get synchronised with the database using a single HTTP call that contains a batch of sequential updates.
This touches quite a few aspects of the code, documented in https://github.com/mozilla/webmaker-core/wiki/Mostly-offline-java-caching-diagrams but summarized here:
With this in place, modifications need only be synchronized with the database when a page view is exited. This is, in fact, still an incomplete solution, and the modifications that are necessary to make this synchronisation only occur when a project is considered "done" (or needing to be saved by the user) have not yet been put in place, instead having been scheduled as follow up (mozilla/webmaker-core#452, with mozilla/webmaker-core#451 as a clean-up followup)
Goal: Support front-end requirements to limit network requests to a minimum
Given an array of actions, reduce into an array of results
http://git.io/vOX0w && http://bit.ly/1M5h5AO
(I tried to do the nested list justice in MD, but I think I failed. This further illustrates some of the problems outlined below) - Simon
I'd like to have a running record indicating anytime we fail over, and for how long.
So there's also a MoFo-Design-Handbook, and I thought it might be cool to have a chapter that's shared between both handbooks on how designers and engineers can successfully collaborate.
Alternatively, the design handbook could have a chapter on working with engineers, and the engineering handbook could have a chapter on working with designers.
I've already filed this same ticket as MozillaFoundation/Design#11, so if you have thoughts on this, please post them there instead.
We should describe where and how we communicate so our community can join our party.
Things to cover:
A fair evaluation may require we see how hard it is to make an actual app with these things. A "todo" app or stress test app is likely not reflective of how we're going to end up actually using whatever choice we settle on.
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TypeScript is a superset of JavaScript that compiles to clean JavaScript output.
An Open Source Machine Learning Framework for Everyone
The Web framework for perfectionists with deadlines.
A PHP framework for web artisans
Bring data to life with SVG, Canvas and HTML. 📊📈🎉
JavaScript (JS) is a lightweight interpreted programming language with first-class functions.
Some thing interesting about web. New door for the world.
A server is a program made to process requests and deliver data to clients.
Machine learning is a way of modeling and interpreting data that allows a piece of software to respond intelligently.
Some thing interesting about visualization, use data art
Some thing interesting about game, make everyone happy.
We are working to build community through open source technology. NB: members must have two-factor auth.
Open source projects and samples from Microsoft.
Google ❤️ Open Source for everyone.
Alibaba Open Source for everyone
Data-Driven Documents codes.
China tencent open source team.