2

JavaScript for impatient programmers

(ES2020 edition)

Dr. Axel Rauschmayer

2020

“An exhaustive resource, yet cuts out the fluff that clutters many
programming books – with explanations that are understandable and to
the point, as promised by the title! The quizzes and exercises are a very
useful feature to check and lock in your knowledge. And you can
definitely tear through the book fairly quickly, to get up and running in
JavaScript.”
— Pam Selle, thewebivore.com

“The best introductory book for modern JavaScript.”

— Tejinder Singh, Senior Software Engineer, IBM

“This is JavaScript. No filler. No frameworks. No third-party libraries.

If you want to learn JavaScript, you need this book.”
— Shelley Powers, Software Engineer/Writer
Copyright © 2020 by Dr. Axel Rauschmayer
Cover by Fran Caye
All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in
any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the publisher except
for the use of brief quotations in a book review or scholarly journal.
ISBN 978-1-09-121009-7
exploringjs.com
Contents

I Background 13
1 About this book 15
1.1 About the content . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
1.2 Previewing and buying this book . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
1.3 What’s new in this book? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
1.4 About the author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
1.5 Acknowledgements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

2 FAQ: Book and supplementary material 19

2.1 How to read this book . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
2.2 I own a digital edition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
2.3 I own the print edition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
2.4 Notations and conventions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

3 Why JavaScript? (bonus) 23

3.1 The cons of JavaScript . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
3.2 The pros of JavaScript . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
3.3 Pro and con of JavaScript: innovation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

4 The nature of JavaScript (bonus) 27

4.1 JavaScript’s influences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
4.2 The nature of JavaScript . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
4.3 Tips for getting started with JavaScript . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28

5 History and evolution of JavaScript 31

5.1 How JavaScript was created . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
5.2 Standardizing JavaScript . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
5.3 Timeline of ECMAScript versions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
5.4 Ecma Technical Committee 39 (TC39) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
5.5 The TC39 process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
5.6 FAQ: TC39 process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
5.7 Evolving JavaScript: Don’t break the web . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35

6 FAQ: JavaScript 37
6.1 What are good references for JavaScript? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
6.2 How do I find out what JavaScript features are supported where? . . . . 37
6.3 Where can I look up what features are planned for JavaScript? . . . . . . 38

3
4 CONTENTS

6.4 Why does JavaScript fail silently so often? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38

6.5 Why can’t we clean up JavaScript, by removing quirks and outdated fea-
tures? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
6.6 How can I quickly try out a piece of JavaScript code? . . . . . . . . . . . 38

II First steps 39
7 The big picture 41
7.1 What are you learning in this book? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
7.2 The structure of browsers and Node.js . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
7.3 JavaScript references . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
7.4 Further reading . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42

8 Syntax 43
8.1 An overview of JavaScript’s syntax . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
8.2 (Advanced) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
8.3 Identifiers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
8.4 Statement vs. expression . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
8.5 Ambiguous syntax . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51
8.6 Semicolons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
8.7 Automatic semicolon insertion (ASI) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
8.8 Semicolons: best practices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55
8.9 Strict mode vs. sloppy mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55

9 Consoles: interactive JavaScript command lines 59

9.1 Trying out JavaScript code . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59
9.2 The console.* API: printing data and more . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61

10 Assertion API 65
10.1 Assertions in software development . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65
10.2 How assertions are used in this book . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65
10.3 Normal comparison vs. deep comparison . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66
10.4 Quick reference: module assert . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67

11 Getting started with quizzes and exercises 71

11.1 Quizzes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71
11.2 Exercises . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71
11.3 Unit tests in JavaScript . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72

III Variables and values 75

12 Variables and assignment 77
12.1 let . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
12.2 const . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
12.3 Deciding between const and let . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79
12.4 The scope of a variable . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79
12.5 (Advanced) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81
12.6 Terminology: static vs. dynamic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81
CONTENTS 5

12.7 Global variables and the global object . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82

12.8 Declarations: scope and activation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84
12.9 Closures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88

13 Values 91
13.1 What’s a type? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91
13.2 JavaScript’s type hierarchy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92
13.3 The types of the language specification . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92
13.4 Primitive values vs. objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93
13.5 The operators typeof and instanceof: what’s the type of a value? . . . . 95
13.6 Classes and constructor functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97
13.7 Converting between types . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98

14 Operators 101
14.1 Making sense of operators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101
14.2 The plus operator (+) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102
14.3 Assignment operators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103
14.4 Equality: == vs. === . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104
14.5 Ordering operators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107
14.6 The nullish coalescing operator (??) for default values [ES2020] . . . . . . 107
14.7 Various other operators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109

IV Primitive values 111

15 The non-values undefined and null 113
15.1 undefined vs. null . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113
15.2 Occurrences of undefined and null . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114
15.3 Checking for undefined or null . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115
15.4 undefined and null don’t have properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115
15.5 The history of undefined and null . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 116

16 Booleans 117
16.1 Converting to boolean . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117
16.2 Falsy and truthy values . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118
16.3 Truthiness-based existence checks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119
16.4 Conditional operator (? :) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121
16.5 Binary logical operators: And (x && y), Or (x || y) . . . . . . . . . . . . 122
16.6 Logical Not (!) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 123

17 Numbers 125
17.1 Numbers are used for both floating point numbers and integers . . . . . 126
17.2 Number literals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 126
17.3 Arithmetic operators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 127
17.4 Converting to number . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130
17.5 Error values . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130
17.6 Error value: NaN . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131
17.7 Error value: Infinity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 132
17.8 The precision of numbers: careful with decimal fractions . . . . . . . . . 133
6 CONTENTS

17.9 (Advanced) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133

17.10Background: floating point precision . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133
17.11 Integer numbers in JavaScript . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 135
17.12Bitwise operators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 138
17.13Quick reference: numbers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 140

18 Math 147
18.1 Data properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147
18.2 Exponents, roots, logarithms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148
18.3 Rounding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 149
18.4 Trigonometric Functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 150
18.5 Various other functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 152
18.6 Sources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 153

19 Bigints – arbitrary-precision integers [ES2020] (early access) 155

19.1 Why bigints? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 156
19.2 Bigints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 156
19.3 Bigint literals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 158
19.4 Reusing number operators for bigints (overloading) . . . . . . . . . . . . 158
19.5 The wrapper constructor BigInt . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 161
19.6 Coercing bigints to other primitive types . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 163
19.7 TypedArrays and DataView operations for 64-bit values . . . . . . . . . . 164
19.8 Bigints and JSON . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 164
19.9 FAQ: Bigints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 165

20 Unicode – a brief introduction (advanced) 167

20.1 Code points vs. code units . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 167
20.2 Encodings used in web development: UTF-16 and UTF-8 . . . . . . . . . 170
20.3 Grapheme clusters – the real characters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 170

21 Strings 173
21.1 Plain string literals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 174
21.2 Accessing characters and code points . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 174
21.3 String concatenation via + . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 175
21.4 Converting to string . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 175
21.5 Comparing strings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 177
21.6 Atoms of text: Unicode characters, JavaScript characters, grapheme clusters178
21.7 Quick reference: Strings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 180

22 Using template literals and tagged templates 189

22.1 Disambiguation: “template” . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 189
22.2 Template literals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 190
22.3 Tagged templates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 191
22.4 Raw string literals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 193
22.5 (Advanced) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 193
22.6 Multiline template literals and indentation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 194
22.7 Simple templating via template literals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 195

23 Symbols 199
CONTENTS 7

23.1 Use cases for symbols . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 200

23.2 Publicly known symbols . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 202
23.3 Converting symbols . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 202

V Control flow and data flow 205

24 Control flow statements 207

24.1 Conditions of control flow statements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 208
24.2 Controlling loops: break and continue . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 208
24.3 if statements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 210
24.4 switch statements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 211
24.5 while loops . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 213
24.6 do-while loops . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 214
24.7 for loops . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 214
24.8 for-of loops . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 215
24.9 for-await-of loops . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 217
24.10 for-in loops (avoid) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 217

25 Exception handling 219

25.1 Motivation: throwing and catching exceptions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 219
25.2 throw . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 220
25.3 The try statement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 221
25.4 Error classes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 223

26 Callable values 225

26.1 Kinds of functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 225
26.2 Ordinary functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 226
26.3 Specialized functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 228
26.4 More kinds of functions and methods . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 231
26.5 Returning values from functions and methods . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 232
26.6 Parameter handling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 233
26.7 Dynamically evaluating code: eval(), new Function() (advanced) . . . . 237

VI Modularity 241

27 Modules 243
27.1 Overview: syntax of ECMAScript modules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 244
27.2 JavaScript source code formats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 245
27.3 Before we had modules, we had scripts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 245
27.4 Module systems created prior to ES6 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 246
27.5 ECMAScript modules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 248
27.6 Named exports and imports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 249
27.7 Default exports and imports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 251
27.8 More details on exporting and importing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 254
27.9 npm packages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 255
27.10Naming modules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 257
27.11 Module specifiers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 258
8 CONTENTS

27.12Loading modules dynamically via import() [ES2020] . . . . . . . . . . . 260

27.13 import.meta.url . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 262
27.14Polyfills: emulating native web platform features (advanced) . . . . . . . 264

28 Single objects 265

28.1 What is an object? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 267
28.2 Objects as records . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 267
28.3 Spreading into object literals (...) [ES2018] . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 270
28.4 Methods . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 272
28.5 Optional chaining for property accesses and method calls (advanced)
[ES2020] . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 279
28.6 Objects as dictionaries (advanced) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 282
28.7 Standard methods (advanced) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 290
28.8 Advanced topics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 290

29 Prototype chains and classes 293

29.1 Prototype chains . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 294
29.2 Classes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 299
29.3 Private data for classes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 303
29.4 Subclassing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 305
29.5 FAQ: objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 313

VII Collections 315

30 Synchronous iteration 317
30.1 What is synchronous iteration about? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 317
30.2 Core iteration constructs: iterables and iterators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 318
30.3 Iterating manually . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 319
30.4 Iteration in practice . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 320
30.5 Quick reference: synchronous iteration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 321

31 Arrays (Array) 323

31.1 The two roles of Arrays in JavaScript . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 324
31.2 Basic Array operations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 324
31.3 for-of and Arrays [ES6] . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 327
31.4 Array-like objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 328
31.5 Converting iterable and Array-like values to Arrays . . . . . . . . . . . . 329
31.6 Creating and filling Arrays with arbitrary lengths . . . . . . . . . . . . . 330
31.7 Multidimensional Arrays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 331
31.8 More Array features (advanced) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 332
31.9 Adding and removing elements (destructively and non-destructively) . . 335
31.10Methods: iteration and transformation (.find(), .map(), .filter(), etc.) 337
31.11 .sort(): sorting Arrays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 344
31.12Quick reference: Array<T> . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 346

32 Typed Arrays: handling binary data (Advanced) 355

32.1 The basics of the API . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 356
32.2 Element types . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 358
CONTENTS 9

32.3 More information on Typed Arrays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 361

32.4 Quick references: indices vs. offsets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 364
32.5 Quick reference: ArrayBuffers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 365
32.6 Quick reference: Typed Arrays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 366
32.7 Quick reference: DataViews . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 369

33 Maps (Map) 371

33.1 Using Maps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 372
33.2 Example: Counting characters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 375
33.3 A few more details about the keys of Maps (advanced) . . . . . . . . . . 375
33.4 Missing Map operations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 376
33.5 Quick reference: Map<K,V> . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 378
33.6 FAQ: Maps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 381

34 WeakMaps (WeakMap) 383

34.1 WeakMaps are black boxes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 383
34.2 The keys of a WeakMap are weakly held . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 384
34.3 Examples . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 385
34.4 WeakMap API . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 386

35 Sets (Set) 387

35.1 Using Sets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 388
35.2 Examples of using Sets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 389
35.3 What Set elements are considered equal? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 389
35.4 Missing Set operations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 390
35.5 Quick reference: Set<T> . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 391
35.6 FAQ: Sets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 393

36 WeakSets (WeakSet) 395

36.1 Example: Marking objects as safe to use with a method . . . . . . . . . . 395
36.2 WeakSet API . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 396

37 Destructuring 397
37.1 A first taste of destructuring . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 398
37.2 Constructing vs. extracting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 398
37.3 Where can we destructure? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 399
37.4 Object-destructuring . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 400
37.5 Array-destructuring . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 401
37.6 Examples of destructuring . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 402
37.7 What happens if a pattern part does not match anything? . . . . . . . . . 404
37.8 What values can’t be destructured? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 404
37.9 (Advanced) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 405
37.10Default values . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 405
37.11 Parameter definitions are similar to destructuring . . . . . . . . . . . . . 406
37.12Nested destructuring . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 407

38 Synchronous generators (advanced) 409

38.1 What are synchronous generators? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 409
38.2 Calling generators from generators (advanced) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 413
10 CONTENTS

38.3 Background: external iteration vs. internal iteration . . . . . . . . . . . . 415

38.4 Use case for generators: reusing traversals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 416
38.5 Advanced features of generators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 417

VIII Asynchronicity 419

39 Asynchronous programming in JavaScript 421
39.1 A roadmap for asynchronous programming in JavaScript . . . . . . . . . 422
39.2 The call stack . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 424
39.3 The event loop . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 425
39.4 How to avoid blocking the JavaScript process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 426
39.5 Patterns for delivering asynchronous results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 428
39.6 Asynchronous code: the downsides . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 431
39.7 Resources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 432

40 Promises for asynchronous programming 433

40.1 The basics of using Promises . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 434
40.2 Examples . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 440
40.3 Error handling: don’t mix rejections and exceptions . . . . . . . . . . . . 443
40.4 Promise-based functions start synchronously, settle asynchronously . . . 445
40.5 Promise combinators: working with Arrays of Promises . . . . . . . . . . 446
40.6 Concurrency and Promise.all() (advanced) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 456
40.7 Tips for chaining Promises . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 457

41 Async functions 461

41.1 Async functions: the basics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 461
41.2 Returning from async functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 463
41.3 await: working with Promises . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 465
41.4 (Advanced) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 467
41.5 Immediately invoked async arrow functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 467
41.6 Concurrency and await . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 467
41.7 Tips for using async functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 469

42 Asynchronous iteration 471

42.1 Basic asynchronous iteration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 471
42.2 Asynchronous generators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 474
42.3 Async iteration over Node.js streams . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 478

IX More standard library 481

43 Regular expressions (RegExp) 483
43.1 Creating regular expressions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 484
43.2 Syntax . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 485
43.3 Flags . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 489
43.4 Properties of regular expression objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 493
43.5 Methods for working with regular expressions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 494
43.6 The flags /g, /y, and the property .lastIndex (advanced) . . . . . . . . . 500
43.7 Techniques for working with regular expressions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 509
CONTENTS 11

44 Dates (Date) 511

44.1 Best practice: avoid the built-in Date . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 511
44.2 Time standards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 512
44.3 Background: date time formats (ISO) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 513
44.4 Time values . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 515
44.5 Creating Dates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 516
44.6 Getters and setters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 517
44.7 Converting Dates to strings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 517

45 Creating and parsing JSON (JSON) 519

45.1 The discovery and standardization of JSON . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 520
45.2 JSON syntax . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 520
45.3 Using the JSON API . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 521
45.4 Customizing stringification and parsing (advanced) . . . . . . . . . . . . 523
45.5 FAQ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 527

X Miscellaneous topics 529

46 Next steps: overview of web development (bonus) 531
46.1 Tips against feeling overwhelmed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 531
46.2 Things worth learning for web development . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 532
46.3 Example: tool-based JavaScript workflow . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 534
46.4 An overview of JavaScript tools . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 536
46.5 Tools not related to JavaScript . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 538

XI Appendices 541
47 Index 543
12 CONTENTS
 Part I

Background

13
Chapter 1

About this book

Contents
1.1 About the content . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
1.1.1 What’s in this book? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
1.1.2 What is not covered by this book? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
1.1.3 Isn’t this book too long for impatient people? . . . . . . . . . . 16
1.2 Previewing and buying this book . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
1.2.1 How can I preview the book, the exercises, and the quizzes? . 16
1.2.2 How can I buy a digital edition of this book? . . . . . . . . . . 16
1.2.3 How can I buy the print edition of this book? . . . . . . . . . . 16
1.3 What’s new in this book? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
1.4 About the author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
1.5 Acknowledgements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

1.1 About the content

1.1.1 What’s in this book?
This book makes JavaScript less challenging to learn for newcomers by offering a modern
view that is as consistent as possible.

Highlights:

• Get started quickly by initially focusing on modern features.

• Test-driven exercises and quizzes available for most chapters.
• Covers all essential features of JavaScript, up to and including ES2020.
• Optional advanced sections let you dig deeper.

No prior knowledge of JavaScript is required, but you should know how to program.

15
16 1 About this book

1.1.2 What is not covered by this book?

• Some advanced language features are not explained, but references to appropri-
ate material are provided – for example, to my other JavaScript books at Explor-
ingJS.com, which are free to read online.
• This book deliberately focuses on the language. Browser-only features, etc. are
not described.

1.1.3 Isn’t this book too long for impatient people?

There are several ways in which you can read this book. One of them involves skipping
much of the content in order to get started quickly. For details, see §2.1.1 “In which order
should I read the content in this book?”.

1.2 Previewing and buying this book

1.2.1 How can I preview the book, the exercises, and the quizzes?
Go to the homepage of this book:
• All essential chapters of this book can be read online.
• The first half of the test-driven exercises can be downloaded.
• The first half of the quizzes can be tried online.

1.2.2 How can I buy a digital edition of this book?

There are two digital editions of JavaScript for impatient programmers:
• Ebooks: PDF, EPUB, MOBI, HTML (all without DRM)
• Ebooks plus exercises and quizzes
The home page of this book describes how you can buy them.

1.2.3 How can I buy the print edition of this book?

The print edition of JavaScript for impatient programmers is available on Amazon.

1.3 What’s new in this book?

Compared to the ES2019 edition of this book, the following changes were made:
• Chapter “Operators”:
– New section “The nullish coalescing operator (??) for default values”
• New chapter: “Bigints – arbitrary precision integers”
– Bigints are also mentioned throughout the book (primitive values, falsy val-
ues, etc.)
• Chapter “Typed Arrays”:
– New classes: BigInt64Array, BigUint64Array
– New element types (e.g. in DataViews): BigInt64, BigUint64
• Chapter “Modules“:
1.4 About the author 17

– Rewritten section on import.meta.url

• Chapter “Single objects”:
– New section “Optional chaining for property accesses and method calls”
• Chapter “Promises for asynchronous programming”:
– Comprehensive new section “Promise combinators: working with Arrays of
Promises”
• Chapter “Regular expressions”:
– New section “The flags /g, /y, and the property .lastIndex”
• Omitted chapter: “Environments: under the hood of variables”
– This chapter didn’t fit into the book anymore. I’ll try to publish it somewhere
else, free online.

1.4 About the author

Dr. Axel Rauschmayer specializes in JavaScript and web development. He has been de-
veloping web applications since 1995. In 1999, he was technical manager at a German
internet startup that later expanded internationally. In 2006, he held his first talk on Ajax.
In 2010, he received a PhD in Informatics from the University of Munich.
Since 2011, he has been blogging about web development at 2ality.com and has written
several books on JavaScript. He has held trainings and talks for companies such as eBay,
Bank of America, and O’Reilly Media.
He lives in Munich, Germany.

1.5 Acknowledgements
• Cover by Fran Caye
• Parts of this book were edited by Adaobi Obi Tulton.
• Thanks for answering questions, discussing language topics, etc.:
– Allen Wirfs-Brock (@awbjs)
– Benedikt Meurer (@bmeurer)
– Brian Terlson (@bterlson)
– Daniel Ehrenberg (@littledan)
– Jordan Harband (@ljharb)
– Maggie Johnson-Pint (@maggiepint)
– Mathias Bynens (@mathias)
– Myles Borins (@MylesBorins)
– Rob Palmer (@robpalmer2)
– Šime Vidas (@simevidas)
– And many others
• Thanks for reviewing:
– Johannes Weber (@jowe)
[Generated: 2020-06-23 21:19]
18 1 About this book
Chapter 2

FAQ: Book and supplementary

material

Contents
2.1 How to read this book . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
2.1.1 In which order should I read the content in this book? . . . . . 19
2.1.2 Why are some chapters and sections marked with “(advanced)”? 20
2.1.3 Why are some chapters marked with “(bonus)”? . . . . . . . . 20
2.2 I own a digital edition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
2.2.1 How do I submit feedback and corrections? . . . . . . . . . . 20
2.2.2 How do I get updates for the downloads I bought at Payhip? . 20
2.2.3 Can I upgrade from package “Ebooks” to package “Ebooks +
exercises + quizzes”? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
2.3 I own the print edition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
2.3.1 Can I get a discount for a digital edition? . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
2.3.2 Can I submit an error or see submitted errors? . . . . . . . . . 21
2.3.3 Is there an online list with the URLs in this book? . . . . . . . 21
2.4 Notations and conventions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
2.4.1 What is a type signature? Why am I seeing static types in this
book? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
2.4.2 What do the notes with icons mean? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

This chapter answers questions you may have and gives tips for reading this book.

2.1 How to read this book

2.1.1 In which order should I read the content in this book?
This book is three books in one:
• You can use it to get started with JavaScript as quickly as possible. This “mode” is
for impatient people:

19
20 2 FAQ: Book and supplementary material

– Start reading with §7 “The big picture”.

– Skip all chapters and sections marked as “advanced”, and all quick refer-
ences.
• It gives you a comprehensive look at current JavaScript. In this “mode”, you read
everything and don’t skip advanced content and quick references.
• It serves as a reference. If there is a topic that you are interested in, you can find
information on it via the table of contents or via the index. Due to basic and ad-
vanced content being mixed, everything you need is usually in a single location.

The quizzes and exercises play an important part in helping you practice and retain what
you have learned.

2.1.2 Why are some chapters and sections marked with “(advanced)”?
Several chapters and sections are marked with “(advanced)”. The idea is that you can
initially skip them. That is, you can get a quick working knowledge of JavaScript by only
reading the basic (non-advanced) content.

As your knowledge evolves, you can later come back to some or all of the advanced
content.

2.1.3 Why are some chapters marked with “(bonus)”?

The bonus chapters are only available in the paid versions of this book (print and ebook).
They are listed in the full table of contents.

2.2 I own a digital edition

2.2.1 How do I submit feedback and corrections?
The HTML version of this book (online, or ad-free archive in the paid version) has a link
at the end of each chapter that enables you to give feedback.

2.2.2 How do I get updates for the downloads I bought at Payhip?

• The receipt email for the purchase includes a link. You’ll always be able to down-
load the latest version of the files at that location.

• If you opted into emails while buying, you’ll get an email whenever there is new
content. To opt in later, you must contact Payhip (see bottom of payhip.com).

2.2.3 Can I upgrade from package “Ebooks” to package “Ebooks + ex-

ercises + quizzes”?
Yes. The instructions for doing so are on the homepage of this book.
2.3 I own the print edition 21

2.3 I own the print edition

2.3.1 Can I get a discount for a digital edition?
If you bought the print edition, you can get a discount for a digital edition. The homepage
of the print edition explains how.

Alas, the reverse is not possible: you cannot get a discount for the print edition if you
bought a digital edition.

2.3.2 Can I submit an error or see submitted errors?

On the homepage of the print edition, you can submit errors and see submitted errors.

2.3.3 Is there an online list with the URLs in this book?

The homepage of the print edition has a list with all the URLs that you see in the footnotes
of the print edition.

2.4 Notations and conventions

2.4.1 What is a type signature? Why am I seeing static types in this
book?
For example, you may see:

Number.isFinite(num: number): boolean

That is called the type signature of Number.isFinite(). This notation, especially the static
types number of num and boolean of the result, are not real JavaScript. The notation
is borrowed from the compile-to-JavaScript language TypeScript (which is mostly just
JavaScript plus static typing).

Why is this notation being used? It helps give you a quick idea of how a function works.
The notation is explained in detail in “Tackling TypeScript”, but is usually relatively in-
tuitive.

2.4.2 What do the notes with icons mean?

Reading instructions
Explains how to best read the content.

External content
Points to additional, external, content.
22 2 FAQ: Book and supplementary material

Tip
Gives a tip related to the current content.

Question
Asks and answers a question pertinent to the current content (think FAQ).

Warning
Warns about pitfalls, etc.

Details
Provides additional details, complementing the current content. It is similar to a
footnote.

Exercise
Mentions the path of a test-driven exercise that you can do at that point.

Quiz
Indicates that there is a quiz for the current (part of a) chapter.
Chapter 3

Why JavaScript? (bonus)

Contents
3.1 The cons of JavaScript . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
3.2 The pros of JavaScript . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
3.2.1 Community . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
3.2.2 Practically useful . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
3.2.3 Language . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
3.3 Pro and con of JavaScript: innovation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

In this chapter, we examine the pros and cons of JavaScript.

“ECMAScript 6” and “ES6” refer to versions of JavaScript

ECMAScript is the name of the language standard; the number refers to the version
of that standard. For more information, consult §5.2 “Standardizing JavaScript”.

3.1 The cons of JavaScript

Among programmers, JavaScript isn’t always well liked. One reason is that it has a fair
amount of quirks. Some of them are just unusual ways of doing something. Others are
considered bugs. Either way, learning why JavaScript does something the way it does,
helps with dealing with the quirks and with accepting JavaScript (maybe even liking it).
Hopefully, this book can be of assistance here.

Additionally, many traditional quirks have been eliminated now. For example:

• Traditionally, JavaScript variables weren’t block-scoped. ES6 introduced let and

const, which let you declare block-scoped variables.
• Prior to ES6, implementing object factories and inheritance via function and .pro-
totype was clumsy. ES6 introduced classes, which provide more convenient syn-
tax for these mechanisms.

23
24 3 Why JavaScript? (bonus)

• Traditionally, JavaScript did not have built-in modules. ES6 added them to the
language.
Lastly, JavaScript’s standard library is limited, but:
• There are plans for adding more functionality.
• Many libraries are easily available via the npm software registry.

3.2 The pros of JavaScript

On the plus side, JavaScript offers many benefits.

3.2.1 Community
JavaScript’s popularity means that it’s well supported and well documented. Whenever
you create something in JavaScript, you can rely on many people being (potentially) in-
terested. And there is a large pool of JavaScript programmers from which you can hire,
if you need to.
No single party controls JavaScript – it is evolved by TC39, a committee comprising many
organizations. The language is evolved via an open process that encourages feedback
from the public.

3.2.2 Practically useful

With JavaScript, you can write apps for many client platforms. These are a few example
technologies:
• Progressive Web Apps can be installed natively on Android and many desktop op-
erating systems.
• Electron lets you build cross-platform desktop apps.
• React Native lets you write apps for iOS and Android that have native user inter-
faces.
• Node.js provides extensive support for writing shell scripts (in addition to being a
platform for web servers).
JavaScript is supported by many server platforms and services – for example:
• Node.js (many of the following services are based on Node.js or support its APIs)
• ZEIT Now
• Microsoft Azure Functions
• AWS Lambda
• Google Cloud Functions
There are many data technologies available for JavaScript: many databases support it
and intermediate layers (such as GraphQL) exist. Additionally, the standard data format
JSON (JavaScript Object Notation) is based on JavaScript and supported by its standard
library.
Lastly, many, if not most, tools for JavaScript are written in JavaScript. That includes
IDEs, build tools, and more. As a consequence, you install them the same way you install
your libraries and you can customize them in JavaScript.
3.3 Pro and con of JavaScript: innovation 25

3.2.3 Language
• Many libraries are available, via the de-facto standard in the JavaScript universe,
the npm software registry.
• If you are unhappy with “plain” JavaScript, it is relatively easy to add more fea-
tures:
– You can compile future and modern language features to current and past
versions of JavaScript, via Babel.
– You can add static typing, via TypeScript and Flow.
– You can work with ReasonML, which is, roughly, OCaml with JavaScript
syntax. It can be compiled to JavaScript or native code.
• The language is flexible: it is dynamic and supports both object-oriented program-
ming and functional programming.
• JavaScript has become suprisingly fast for such a dynamic language.
– Whenever it isn’t fast enough, you can switch to WebAssembly, a universal
virtual machine built into most JavaScript engines. It can run static code at
nearly native speeds.

3.3 Pro and con of JavaScript: innovation

There is much innovation in the JavaScript ecosystem: new approaches to implementing
user interfaces, new ways of optimizing the delivery of software, and more. The upside is
that you will constantly learn new things. The downside is that the constant change can
be exhausting at times. Thankfully, things have somewhat slowed down, recently: all of
ES6 (which was a considerable modernization of the language) is becoming established,
as are certain tools and workflows.

Quiz
See quiz app.
26 3 Why JavaScript? (bonus)
Chapter 4

The nature of JavaScript (bonus)

Contents
4.1 JavaScript’s influences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
4.2 The nature of JavaScript . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
4.2.1 JavaScript often fails silently . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
4.3 Tips for getting started with JavaScript . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28

4.1 JavaScript’s influences

When JavaScript was created in 1995, it was influenced by several programming lan-
guages:
• JavaScript’s syntax is largely based on Java.
• Self inspired JavaScript’s prototypal inheritance.
• Closures and environments were borrowed from Scheme.
• AWK influenced JavaScript’s functions (including the keyword function).
• JavaScript’s strings, Arrays, and regular expressions take cues from Perl.
• HyperTalk inspired event handling via onclick in web browsers.
With ECMAScript 6, new influences came to JavaScript:
• Generators were borrowed from Python.
• The syntax of arrow functions came from CoffeeScript.
• C++ contributed the keyword const.
• Destructuring was inspired by Lisp’s destructuring bind.
• Template literals came from the E language (where they are called quasi literals).

4.2 The nature of JavaScript

These are a few traits of the language:
• Its syntax is part of the C family of languages (curly braces, etc.).

27
28 4 The nature of JavaScript (bonus)

• It is a dynamic language: most objects can be changed in various ways at runtime,

objects can be created directly, etc.
• It is a dynamically typed language: variables don’t have fixed static types and you
can assign any value to a given (mutable) variable.
• It has functional programming features: first-class functions, closures, partial ap-
plication via bind(), etc.
• It has object-oriented features: mutable state, objects, inheritance, classes, etc.
• It often fails silently: see the next subsection for details.
• It is deployed as source code. But that source code is often minified (rewritten to
require less storage). And there are plans for a binary source code format.
• JavaScript is part of the web platform – it is the language built into web browsers.
But it is also used elsewhere – for example, in Node.js, for server things, and shell
scripting.
• JavaScript engines often optimize less-efficient language mechanisms under the
hood. For example, in principle, JavaScript Arrays are dictionaries. But under the
hood, engines store Arrays contiguously if they have contiguous indices.

4.2.1 JavaScript often fails silently

JavaScript often fails silently. Let’s look at two examples.
First example: If the operands of an operator don’t have the appropriate types, they are
converted as necessary.
> '3' * '5'
15

Second example: If an arithmetic computation fails, you get an error value, not an excep-
tion.
> 1 / 0
Infinity

The reason for the silent failures is historical: JavaScript did not have exceptions until
ECMAScript 3. Since then, its designers have tried to avoid silent failures.

4.3 Tips for getting started with JavaScript

These are a few tips to help you get started with JavaScript:
• Take your time to really get to know this language. The conventional C-style syn-
tax hides that this is a very unconventional language. Learn especially the quirks
and the rationales behind them. Then you will understand and appreciate the lan-
guage better.
– In addition to details, this book also teaches simple rules of thumb to be safe
– for example, “Always use === to determine if two values are equal, never
==.”
4.3 Tips for getting started with JavaScript 29

• Language tools make it easier to work with JavaScript. For example:

– You can statically type JavaScript via TypeScript or Flow.
– You can check for problems and anti-patterns via linters such as ESLint.
– You can format your code automatically via code formatters such as Prettier.
• Get in contact with the community:
– Twitter is popular among JavaScript programmers. As a mode of communi-
cation that sits between the spoken and the written word, it is well suited for
exchanging knowledge.
– Many cities have regular free meetups where people come together to learn
topics related to JavaScript.
– JavaScript conferences are another convenient way of meeting other
JavaScript programmers.
• Read books and blogs. Much material is free online!
30 4 The nature of JavaScript (bonus)
Chapter 5

History and evolution of

JavaScript

Contents
5.1 How JavaScript was created . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
5.2 Standardizing JavaScript . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
5.3 Timeline of ECMAScript versions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
5.4 Ecma Technical Committee 39 (TC39) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
5.5 The TC39 process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
5.5.1 Tip: Think in individual features and stages, not ECMAScript
versions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
5.6 FAQ: TC39 process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
5.6.1 How is [my favorite proposed feature] doing? . . . . . . . . . 35
5.6.2 Is there an official list of ECMAScript features? . . . . . . . . . 35
5.7 Evolving JavaScript: Don’t break the web . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35

5.1 How JavaScript was created

JavaScript was created in May 1995 in 10 days, by Brendan Eich. Eich worked at Netscape
and implemented JavaScript for their web browser, Netscape Navigator.
The idea was that major interactive parts of the client-side web were to be implemented
in Java. JavaScript was supposed to be a glue language for those parts and to also make
HTML slightly more interactive. Given its role of assisting Java, JavaScript had to look
like Java. That ruled out existing solutions such as Perl, Python, TCL, and others.
Initially, JavaScript’s name changed several times:
• Its code name was Mocha.
• In the Netscape Navigator 2.0 betas (September 1995), it was called LiveScript.
• In Netscape Navigator 2.0 beta 3 (December 1995), it got its final name, JavaScript.

31
32 5 History and evolution of JavaScript

5.2 Standardizing JavaScript

There are two standards for JavaScript:
• ECMA-262 is hosted by Ecma International. It is the primary standard.
• ISO/IEC 16262 is hosted by the International Organization for Standardization
(ISO) and the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC). This is a secondary
standard.
The language described by these standards is called ECMAScript, not JavaScript. A differ-
ent name was chosen because Sun (now Oracle) had a trademark for the latter name. The
“ECMA” in “ECMAScript” comes from the organization that hosts the primary standard.

The original name of that organization was ECMA, an acronym for European Computer
Manufacturers Association. It was later changed to Ecma International (with “Ecma” be-
ing a proper name, not an acronym) because the organization’s activities had expanded
beyond Europe. The initial all-caps acronym explains the spelling of ECMAScript.
In principle, JavaScript and ECMAScript mean the same thing. Sometimes the following
distinction is made:
• The term JavaScript refers to the language and its implementations.
• The term ECMAScript refers to the language standard and language versions.
Therefore, ECMAScript 6 is a version of the language (its 6th edition).

5.3 Timeline of ECMAScript versions

This is a brief timeline of ECMAScript versions:
• ECMAScript 1 (June 1997): First version of the standard.
• ECMAScript 2 (June 1998): Small update to keep ECMA-262 in sync with the ISO
standard.
• ECMAScript 3 (December 1999): Adds many core features – “[…] regular expres-
sions, better string handling, new control statements [do-while, switch], try/catch
exception handling, […]”
• ECMAScript 4 (abandoned in July 2008): Would have been a massive upgrade
(with static typing, modules, namespaces, and more), but ended up being too am-
bitious and dividing the language’s stewards.
• ECMAScript 5 (December 2009): Brought minor improvements – a few standard
library features and strict mode.
• ECMAScript 5.1 (June 2011): Another small update to keep Ecma and ISO stan-
dards in sync.
• ECMAScript 6 (June 2015): A large update that fulfilled many of the promises of
ECMAScript 4. This version is the first one whose official name – ECMAScript 2015
– is based on the year of publication.
• ECMAScript 2016 (June 2016): First yearly release. The shorter release life cycle
resulted in fewer new features compared to the large ES6.
• ECMAScript 2017 (June 2017). Second yearly release.
• Subsequent ECMAScript versions (ES2018, etc.) are always ratified in June.
5.4 Ecma Technical Committee 39 (TC39) 33

5.4 Ecma Technical Committee 39 (TC39)

TC39 is the committee that evolves JavaScript. Its member are, strictly speaking, compa-
nies: Adobe, Apple, Facebook, Google, Microsoft, Mozilla, Opera, Twitter, and others.
That is, companies that are usually fierce competitors are working together for the good
of the language.

Every two months, TC39 has meetings that member-appointed delegates and invited
experts attend. The minutes of those meetings are public in a GitHub repository.

5.5 The TC39 process

With ECMAScript 6, two issues with the release process used at that time became obvi-
ous:

• If too much time passes between releases then features that are ready early, have
to wait a long time until they can be released. And features that are ready late, risk
being rushed to make the deadline.

• Features were often designed long before they were implemented and used. De-
sign deficiencies related to implementation and use were therefore discovered too
late.

In response to these issues, TC39 instituted the new TC39 process:

• ECMAScript features are designed independently and go through stages, starting

at 0 (“strawman”), ending at 4 (“finished”).
• Especially the later stages require prototype implementations and real-world test-
ing, leading to feedback loops between designs and implementations.
• ECMAScript versions are released once per year and include all features that have
reached stage 4 prior to a release deadline.

The result: smaller, incremental releases, whose features have already been field-tested.
Fig. 5.1 illustrates the TC39 process.

ES2016 was the first ECMAScript version that was designed according to the TC39 pro-
cess.

5.5.1 Tip: Think in individual features and stages, not ECMAScript

versions
Up to and including ES6, it was most common to think about JavaScript in terms of
ECMAScript versions – for example, “Does this browser support ES6 yet?”

Starting with ES2016, it’s better to think in individual features: once a feature reaches
stage 4, you can safely use it (if it’s supported by the JavaScript engines you are targeting).
You don’t have to wait until the next ECMAScript release.
34 5 History and evolution of JavaScript

Review at TC39 meeting

Stage 0: strawman Sketch

Pick champions

Stage 1: proposal TC39 helps

First spec text, 2 implementations

Stage 2: draft Likely to be standardized

Spec complete

Stage 3: candidate Done, needs feedback from implementations

Test 262 acceptance tests

Stage 4: finished Ready for standardization

Figure 5.1: Each ECMAScript feature proposal goes through stages that are numbered
from 0 to 4. Champions are TC39 members that support the authors of a feature. Test
262 is a suite of tests that checks JavaScript engines for compliance with the language
specification.
5.6 FAQ: TC39 process 35

5.6 FAQ: TC39 process

5.6.1 How is [my favorite proposed feature] doing?
If you are wondering what stages various proposed features are in, consult the GitHub
repository proposals.

5.6.2 Is there an official list of ECMAScript features?

Yes, the TC39 repo lists finished proposals and mentions in which ECMAScript versions
they were introduced.

5.7 Evolving JavaScript: Don’t break the web

One idea that occasionally comes up is to clean up JavaScript by removing old features
and quirks. While the appeal of that idea is obvious, it has significant downsides.
Let’s assume we create a new version of JavaScript that is not backward compatible and
fix all of its flaws. As a result, we’d encounter the following problems:
• JavaScript engines become bloated: they need to support both the old and the new
version. The same is true for tools such as IDEs and build tools.
• Programmers need to know, and be continually conscious of, the differences be-
tween the versions.
• You can either migrate all of an existing code base to the new version (which can
be a lot of work). Or you can mix versions and refactoring becomes harder because
you can’t move code between versions without changing it.
• You somehow have to specify per piece of code – be it a file or code embedded in
a web page – what version it is written in. Every conceivable solution has pros
and cons. For example, strict mode is a slightly cleaner version of ES5. One of the
reasons why it wasn’t as popular as it should have been: it was a hassle to opt in
via a directive at the beginning of a file or a function.
So what is the solution? Can we have our cake and eat it? The approach that was chosen
for ES6 is called “One JavaScript”:
• New versions are always completely backward compatible (but there may occa-
sionally be minor, hardly noticeable clean-ups).
• Old features aren’t removed or fixed. Instead, better versions of them are intro-
duced. One example is declaring variables via let – which is an improved version
of var.
• If aspects of the language are changed, it is done inside new syntactic constructs.
That is, you opt in implicitly. For example, yield is only a keyword inside gen-
erators (which were introduced in ES6). And all code inside modules and classes
(both introduced in ES6) is implicitly in strict mode.

Quiz
See quiz app.
36 5 History and evolution of JavaScript
Chapter 6

FAQ: JavaScript

Contents
6.1 What are good references for JavaScript? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
6.2 How do I find out what JavaScript features are supported where? . . 37
6.3 Where can I look up what features are planned for JavaScript? . . . 38
6.4 Why does JavaScript fail silently so often? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
6.5 Why can’t we clean up JavaScript, by removing quirks and outdated
features? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
6.6 How can I quickly try out a piece of JavaScript code? . . . . . . . . . 38

6.1 What are good references for JavaScript?

Please consult §7.3 “JavaScript references”.

6.2 How do I find out what JavaScript features are sup-

ported where?
This book usually mentions if a feature is part of ECMAScript 5 (as required by older
browsers) or a newer version. For more detailed information (including pre-ES5 ver-
sions), there are several good compatibility tables available online:

• ECMAScript compatibility tables for various engines (by kangax, webbedspace,

zloirock)
• Node.js compatibility tables (by William Kapke)
• Mozilla’s MDN web docs have tables for each feature that describe relevant ECMA-
Script versions and browser support.
• “Can I use…” documents what features (including JavaScript language features)
are supported by web browsers.

37
38 6 FAQ: JavaScript

6.3 Where can I look up what features are planned for

JavaScript?
Please consult the following sources:
• §5.5 “The TC39 process” describes how upcoming features are planned.
• §5.6 “FAQ: TC39 process” answers various questions regarding upcoming
features.

6.4 Why does JavaScript fail silently so often?

JavaScript often fails silently. Let’s look at two examples.
First example: If the operands of an operator don’t have the appropriate types, they are
converted as necessary.
> '3' * '5'
15

Second example: If an arithmetic computation fails, you get an error value, not an excep-
tion.
> 1 / 0
Infinity

The reason for the silent failures is historical: JavaScript did not have exceptions until
ECMAScript 3. Since then, its designers have tried to avoid silent failures.

6.5 Why can’t we clean up JavaScript, by removing quirks

and outdated features?
This question is answered in §5.7 “Evolving JavaScript: Don’t break the web”.

6.6 How can I quickly try out a piece of JavaScript code?

§9.1 “Trying out JavaScript code” explains how to do that.
 Part II

First steps

39
Chapter 7

The big picture

Contents
7.1 What are you learning in this book? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
7.2 The structure of browsers and Node.js . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
7.3 JavaScript references . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
7.4 Further reading . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42

In this chapter, I’d like to paint the big picture: what are you learning in this book, and
how does it fit into the overall landscape of web development?

7.1 What are you learning in this book?

This book teaches the JavaScript language. It focuses on just the language, but offers
occasional glimpses at two platforms where JavaScript can be used:

• Web browser
• Node.js

Node.js is important for web development in three ways:

• You can use it to write server-side software in JavaScript.

• You can also use it to write software for the command line (think Unix shell, Win-
dows PowerShell, etc.). Many JavaScript-related tools are based on (and executed
via) Node.js.
• Node’s software registry, npm, has become the dominant way of installing tools
(such as compilers and build tools) and libraries – even for client-side develop-
ment.

7.2 The structure of browsers and Node.js

The structures of the two JavaScript platforms web browser and Node.js are similar (fig. 7.1):

41
42 7 The big picture

JS standard
Platform API
library

JavaScript engine Platform core

Figure 7.1: The structure of the two JavaScript platforms web browser and Node.js. The
APIs “standard library” and “platform API” are hosted on top of a foundational layer
with a JavaScript engine and a platform-specific “core”.

• The foundational layer consists of the JavaScript engine and platform-specific

“core” functionality.
• Two APIs are hosted on top of this foundation:
– The JavaScript standard library is part of JavaScript proper and runs on top
of the engine.
– The platform API are also available from JavaScript – it provides access to
platform-specific functionality. For example:
* In browsers, you need to use the platform-specific API if you want to do
anything related to the user interface: react to mouse clicks, play sounds,
etc.
* In Node.js, the platform-specific API lets you read and write files, down-
load data via HTTP, etc.

7.3 JavaScript references

When you have a question about a JavaScript, a web search usually helps. I can recom-
mend the following online sources:
• MDN web docs: cover various web technologies such as CSS, HTML, JavaScript,
and more. An excellent reference.
• Node.js Docs: document the Node.js API.
• ExploringJS.com: My other books on JavaScript go into greater detail than this
book and are free to read online. You can look up features by ECMAScript version:
– ES1–ES5: Speaking JavaScript
– ES6: Exploring ES6
– ES2016–ES2017: Exploring ES2016 and ES2017
– Etc.

7.4 Further reading

• §46 “Next steps: overview of web development” provides a more comprehensive
look at web development.
Chapter 8

Syntax

Contents
8.1 An overview of JavaScript’s syntax . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
8.1.1 Basic syntax . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
8.1.2 Modules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
8.1.3 Legal variable and property names . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
8.1.4 Casing styles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
8.1.5 Capitalization of names . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
8.1.6 More naming conventions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
8.1.7 Where to put semicolons? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
8.2 (Advanced) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
8.3 Identifiers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
8.3.1 Valid identifiers (variable names, etc.) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
8.3.2 Reserved words . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
8.4 Statement vs. expression . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
8.4.1 Statements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
8.4.2 Expressions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
8.4.3 What is allowed where? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51
8.5 Ambiguous syntax . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51
8.5.1 Same syntax: function declaration and function expression . . 51
8.5.2 Same syntax: object literal and block . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
8.5.3 Disambiguation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
8.6 Semicolons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
8.6.1 Rule of thumb for semicolons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
8.6.2 Semicolons: control statements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
8.7 Automatic semicolon insertion (ASI) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
8.7.1 ASI triggered unexpectedly . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54
8.7.2 ASI unexpectedly not triggered . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54
8.8 Semicolons: best practices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55
8.9 Strict mode vs. sloppy mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55

43
44 8 Syntax

8.9.1 Switching on strict mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56

8.9.2 Improvements in strict mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56

8.1 An overview of JavaScript’s syntax

8.1.1 Basic syntax
Comments:
// single-line comment

/*
Comment with
multiple lines
*/

Primitive (atomic) values:

// Booleans
true
false

// Numbers (JavaScript only has a single type for numbers)

-123
1.141

// Strings (JavaScript has no type for characters)

'abc'
"abc"

An assertion describes what the result of a computation is expected to look like and throws
an exception if those expectations aren’t correct. For example, the following assertion
states that the result of the computation 7 plus 1 must be 8:
assert.equal(7 + 1, 8);

assert.equal() is a method call (the object is assert, the method is .equal()) with two
arguments: the actual result and the expected result. It is part of a Node.js assertion API
that is explained later in this book.
Logging to the console of a browser or Node.js:
// Printing a value to standard out (another method call)
console.log('Hello!');

// Printing error information to standard error

console.error('Something went wrong!');

Operators:
// Operators for booleans
assert.equal(true && false, false); // And
8.1 An overview of JavaScript’s syntax 45

assert.equal(true || false, true); // Or

// Operators for numbers

assert.equal(3 + 4, 7);
assert.equal(5 - 1, 4);
assert.equal(3 * 4, 12);
assert.equal(9 / 3, 3);

// Operators for strings

assert.equal('a' + 'b', 'ab');
assert.equal('I see ' + 3 + ' monkeys', 'I see 3 monkeys');

// Comparison operators
assert.equal(3 < 4, true);
assert.equal(3 <= 4, true);
assert.equal('abc' === 'abc', true);
assert.equal('abc' !== 'def', true);

Declaring variables:

let x; // declaring x (mutable)

x = 3 * 5; // assign a value to x

let y = 3 * 5; // declaring and assigning

const z = 8; // declaring z (immutable)

Control flow statements:

// Conditional statement
if (x < 0) { // is x less than zero?
x = -x;
}

Ordinary function declarations:

// add1() has the parameters a and b

function add1(a, b) {
return a + b;
}
// Calling function add1()
assert.equal(add1(5, 2), 7);

Arrow function expressions (used especially as arguments of function calls and method
calls):

const add2 = (a, b) => { return a + b };

// Calling function add2()
assert.equal(add2(5, 2), 7);

// Equivalent to add2:
const add3 = (a, b) => a + b;
46 8 Syntax

The previous code contains the following two arrow functions (the terms expression and
statement are explained later in this chapter):

// An arrow function whose body is a code block

(a, b) => { return a + b }

// An arrow function whose body is an expression

(a, b) => a + b

Objects:

// Creating a plain object via an object literal

const obj = {
first: 'Jane', // property
last: 'Doe', // property
getFullName() { // property (method)
return this.first + ' ' + this.last;
},
};

// Getting a property value

assert.equal(obj.first, 'Jane');
// Setting a property value
obj.first = 'Janey';

// Calling the method

assert.equal(obj.getFullName(), 'Janey Doe');

Arrays (Arrays are also objects):

// Creating an Array via an Array literal

const arr = ['a', 'b', 'c'];

// Getting an Array element

assert.equal(arr[1], 'b');
// Setting an Array element
arr[1] = 'β';

8.1.2 Modules
Each module is a single file. Consider, for example, the following two files with modules
in them:

file-tools.mjs
main.mjs

The module in file-tools.mjs exports its function isTextFilePath():

export function isTextFilePath(filePath) {

return filePath.endsWith('.txt');
}
8.1 An overview of JavaScript’s syntax 47

The module in main.mjs imports the whole module path and the function is-
TextFilePath():

// Import whole module as namespace object `path`

import * as path from 'path';
// Import a single export of module file-tools.mjs
import {isTextFilePath} from './file-tools.mjs';

8.1.3 Legal variable and property names

The grammatical category of variable names and property names is called identifier.

Identifiers are allowed to have the following characters:

• Unicode letters: A–Z, a–z (etc.)

• $, _
• Unicode digits: 0–9 (etc.)
– Variable names can’t start with a digit

Some words have special meaning in JavaScript and are called reserved. Examples in-
clude: if, true, const.

Reserved words can’t be used as variable names:

const if = 123;
// SyntaxError: Unexpected token if

But they are allowed as names of properties:

> const obj = { if: 123 };

> obj.if
123

8.1.4 Casing styles

Common casing styles for concatenating words are:

• Camel case: threeConcatenatedWords

• Underscore case (also called snake case): three_concatenated_words
• Dash case (also called kebab case): three-concatenated-words

8.1.5 Capitalization of names

In general, JavaScript uses camel case, except for constants.

Lowercase:

• Functions, variables: myFunction

• Methods: obj.myMethod
• CSS:
– CSS entity: special-class
– Corresponding JavaScript variable: specialClass

Uppercase:
48 8 Syntax

• Classes: MyClass
• Constants: MY_CONSTANT
– Constants are also often written in camel case: myConstant

8.1.6 More naming conventions

The following naming conventions are popular in JavaScript.

If the name of a parameter starts with an underscore (or is an underscore) it means that
this parameter is not used – for example:

arr.map((_x, i) => i)

If the name of a property of an object starts with an underscore then that property is
considered private:

class ValueWrapper {
constructor(value) {
this._value = value;
}
}

8.1.7 Where to put semicolons?

At the end of a statement:

const x = 123;
func();

But not if that statement ends with a curly brace:

while (false) {
// ···
} // no semicolon

function func() {
// ···
} // no semicolon

However, adding a semicolon after such a statement is not a syntax error – it is interpreted
as an empty statement:

// Function declaration followed by empty statement:

function func() {
// ···
};

Quiz: basic
See quiz app.
8.2 (Advanced) 49

8.2 (Advanced)
All remaining sections of this chapter are advanced.

8.3 Identifiers
8.3.1 Valid identifiers (variable names, etc.)
First character:

• Unicode letter (including accented characters such as é and ü and characters from
non-latin alphabets, such as α)
• $
• _

Subsequent characters:

• Legal first characters

• Unicode digits (including Eastern Arabic numerals)
• Some other Unicode marks and punctuations

Examples:

const ε = 0.0001;
const строка = '';
let _tmp = 0;
const $foo2 = true;

8.3.2 Reserved words

Reserved words can’t be variable names, but they can be property names.

All JavaScript keywords are reserved words:

await break case catch class const continue debugger default delete
do else export extends finally for function if import in instanceof
let new return static super switch this throw try typeof var void while
with yield

The following tokens are also keywords, but currently not used in the language:

enum implements package protected interface private public

The following literals are reserved words:

true false null

Technically, these words are not reserved, but you should avoid them, too, because they
effectively are keywords:

Infinity NaN undefined async

You shouldn’t use the names of global variables (String, Math, etc.) for your own vari-
ables and parameters, either.
50 8 Syntax

8.4 Statement vs. expression

In this section, we explore how JavaScript distinguishes two kinds of syntactic constructs:
statements and expressions. Afterward, we’ll see that that can cause problems because the
same syntax can mean different things, depending on where it is used.

We pretend there are only statements and expressions

For the sake of simplicity, we pretend that there are only statements and expressions
in JavaScript.

8.4.1 Statements
A statement is a piece of code that can be executed and performs some kind of action. For
example, if is a statement:

let myStr;
if (myBool) {
myStr = 'Yes';
} else {
myStr = 'No';
}

One more example of a statement: a function declaration.

function twice(x) {
return x + x;
}

8.4.2 Expressions
An expression is a piece of code that can be evaluated to produce a value. For example, the
code between the parentheses is an expression:

let myStr = (myBool ? 'Yes' : 'No');

The operator _?_:_ used between the parentheses is called the ternary operator. It is the
expression version of the if statement.

Let’s look at more examples of expressions. We enter expressions and the REPL evaluates
them for us:

> 'ab' + 'cd'

'abcd'
> Number('123')
123
> true || false
true
8.5 Ambiguous syntax 51

8.4.3 What is allowed where?

The current location within JavaScript source code determines which kind of syntactic
constructs you are allowed to use:

• The body of a function must be a sequence of statements:

function max(x, y) {
if (x > y) {
return x;
} else {
return y;
}
}

• The arguments of a function call or a method call must be expressions:

console.log('ab' + 'cd', Number('123'));

However, expressions can be used as statements. Then they are called expression state-
ments. The opposite is not true: when the context requires an expression, you can’t use
a statement.

The following code demonstrates that any expression bar() can be either expression or
statement – it depends on the context:

function f() {
console.log(bar()); // bar() is expression
bar(); // bar(); is (expression) statement
}

8.5 Ambiguous syntax

JavaScript has several programming constructs that are syntactically ambiguous: the
same syntax is interpreted differently, depending on whether it is used in statement con-
text or in expression context. This section explores the phenomenon and the pitfalls it
causes.

8.5.1 Same syntax: function declaration and function expression

A function declaration is a statement:

function id(x) {
return x;
}

A function expression is an expression (right-hand side of =):

const id = function me(x) {

return x;
};
52 8 Syntax

8.5.2 Same syntax: object literal and block

In the following code, {} is an object literal: an expression that creates an empty object.

const obj = {};

This is an empty code block (a statement):

{
}

8.5.3 Disambiguation
The ambiguities are only a problem in statement context: If the JavaScript parser en-
counters ambiguous syntax, it doesn’t know if it’s a plain statement or an expression
statement. For example:

• If a statement starts with function: Is it a function declaration or a function ex-

pression?
• If a statement starts with {: Is it an object literal or a code block?

To resolve the ambiguity, statements starting with function or { are never interpreted as
expressions. If you want an expression statement to start with either one of these tokens,
you must wrap it in parentheses:

(function (x) { console.log(x) })('abc');

// Output:
// 'abc'

In this code:

1. We first create a function via a function expression:

function (x) { console.log(x) }

2. Then we invoke that function: ('abc')

The code fragment shown in (1) is only interpreted as an expression because we wrap it in
parentheses. If we didn’t, we would get a syntax error because then JavaScript expects a
function declaration and complains about the missing function name. Additionally, you
can’t put a function call immediately after a function declaration.

Later in this book, we’ll see more examples of pitfalls caused by syntactic ambiguity:

• Assigning via object destructuring

• Returning an object literal from an arrow function

8.6 Semicolons
8.6.1 Rule of thumb for semicolons
Each statement is terminated by a semicolon:
8.7 Automatic semicolon insertion (ASI) 53

const x = 3;
someFunction('abc');
i++;

except statements ending with blocks:

function foo() {
// ···
}
if (y > 0) {
// ···
}

The following case is slightly tricky:

const func = () => {}; // semicolon!

The whole const declaration (a statement) ends with a semicolon, but inside it, there is
an arrow function expression. That is, it’s not the statement per se that ends with a curly
brace; it’s the embedded arrow function expression. That’s why there is a semicolon at
the end.

8.6.2 Semicolons: control statements

The body of a control statement is itself a statement. For example, this is the syntax of
the while loop:

while (condition)
statement

The body can be a single statement:

while (a > 0) a--;

But blocks are also statements and therefore legal bodies of control statements:

while (a > 0) {
a--;
}

If you want a loop to have an empty body, your first option is an empty statement (which
is just a semicolon):

while (processNextItem() > 0);

Your second option is an empty block:

while (processNextItem() > 0) {}

8.7 Automatic semicolon insertion (ASI)

While I recommend to always write semicolons, most of them are optional in JavaScript.
The mechanism that makes this possible is called automatic semicolon insertion (ASI). In a
way, it corrects syntax errors.
54 8 Syntax

ASI works as follows. Parsing of a statement continues until there is either:

• A semicolon
• A line terminator followed by an illegal token
In other words, ASI can be seen as inserting semicolons at line breaks. The next subsec-
tions cover the pitfalls of ASI.

8.7.1 ASI triggered unexpectedly

The good news about ASI is that – if you don’t rely on it and always write semicolons
– there is only one pitfall that you need to be aware of. It is that JavaScript forbids line
breaks after some tokens. If you do insert a line break, a semicolon will be inserted, too.
The token where this is most practically relevant is return. Consider, for example, the
following code:
return
{
first: 'jane'
};

This code is parsed as:

return;
{
first: 'jane';
}
;

That is:
• Return statement without operand: return;
• Start of code block: {
• Expression statement 'jane'; with label first:
• End of code block: }
• Empty statement: ;
Why does JavaScript do this? It protects against accidentally returning a value in a line
after a return.

8.7.2 ASI unexpectedly not triggered

In some cases, ASI is not triggered when you think it should be. That makes life more
complicated for people who don’t like semicolons because they need to be aware of those
cases. The following are three examples. There are more.
Example 1: Unintended function call.
a = b + c
(d + e).print()

Parsed as:
a = b + c(d + e).print();
8.8 Semicolons: best practices 55

Example 2: Unintended division.

a = b
/hi/g.exec(c).map(d)

Parsed as:

a = b / hi / g.exec(c).map(d);

Example 3: Unintended property access.

someFunction()
['ul', 'ol'].map(x => x + x)

Executed as:

const propKey = ('ul','ol'); // comma operator

assert.equal(propKey, 'ol');

someFunction()[propKey].map(x => x + x);

8.8 Semicolons: best practices

I recommend that you always write semicolons:

• I like the visual structure it gives code – you clearly see when a statement ends.
• There are less rules to keep in mind.
• The majority of JavaScript programmers use semicolons.

However, there are also many people who don’t like the added visual clutter of semi-
colons. If you are one of them: Code without them is legal. I recommend that you use
tools to help you avoid mistakes. The following are two examples:

• The automatic code formatter Prettier can be configured to not use semicolons. It
then automatically fixes problems. For example, if it encounters a line that starts
with a square bracket, it prefixes that line with a semicolon.
• The static checker ESLint has a rule that you tell your preferred style (always semi-
colons or as few semicolons as possible) and that warns you about critical issues.

8.9 Strict mode vs. sloppy mode

Starting with ECMAScript 5, JavaScript has two modes in which JavaScript can be exe-
cuted:

• Normal “sloppy” mode is the default in scripts (code fragments that are a precur-
sor to modules and supported by browsers).
• Strict mode is the default in modules and classes, and can be switched on in scripts
(how, is explained later). In this mode, several pitfalls of normal mode are removed
and more exceptions are thrown.

You’ll rarely encounter sloppy mode in modern JavaScript code, which is almost always
located in modules. In this book, I assume that strict mode is always switched on.
56 8 Syntax

8.9.1 Switching on strict mode

In script files and CommonJS modules, you switch on strict mode for a complete file, by
putting the following code in the first line:

'use strict';

The neat thing about this “directive” is that ECMAScript versions before 5 simply ignore
it: it’s an expression statement that does nothing.

You can also switch on strict mode for just a single function:

function functionInStrictMode() {
'use strict';
}

8.9.2 Improvements in strict mode

Let’s look at three things that strict mode does better than sloppy mode. Just in this one
section, all code fragments are executed in sloppy mode.

8.9.2.1 Sloppy mode pitfall: changing an undeclared variable creates a global vari-
able

In non-strict mode, changing an undeclared variable creates a global variable.

function sloppyFunc() {
undeclaredVar1 = 123;
}
sloppyFunc();
// Created global variable `undeclaredVar1`:
assert.equal(undeclaredVar1, 123);

Strict mode does it better and throws a ReferenceError. That makes it easier to detect
typos.

function strictFunc() {
'use strict';
undeclaredVar2 = 123;
}
assert.throws(
() => strictFunc(),
{
name: 'ReferenceError',
message: 'undeclaredVar2 is not defined',
});

The assert.throws() states that its first argument, a function, throws a ReferenceError
when it is called.
8.9 Strict mode vs. sloppy mode 57

8.9.2.2 Function declarations are block-scoped in strict mode, function-scoped in

sloppy mode

In strict mode, a variable created via a function declaration only exists within the inner-
most enclosing block:
function strictFunc() {
'use strict';
{
function foo() { return 123 }
}
return foo(); // ReferenceError
}
assert.throws(
() => strictFunc(),
{
name: 'ReferenceError',
message: 'foo is not defined',
});

In sloppy mode, function declarations are function-scoped:

function sloppyFunc() {
{
function foo() { return 123 }
}
return foo(); // works
}
assert.equal(sloppyFunc(), 123);

8.9.2.3 Sloppy mode doesn’t throw exceptions when changing immutable data

In strict mode, you get an exception if you try to change immutable data:
function strictFunc() {
'use strict';
true.prop = 1; // TypeError
}
assert.throws(
() => strictFunc(),
{
name: 'TypeError',
message: "Cannot create property 'prop' on boolean 'true'",
});

In sloppy mode, the assignment fails silently:

function sloppyFunc() {
true.prop = 1; // fails silently
return true.prop;
}
assert.equal(sloppyFunc(), undefined);
58 8 Syntax

Further reading: sloppy mode

For more information on how sloppy mode differs from strict mode, see MDN.

Quiz: advanced
See quiz app.
Chapter 9

Consoles: interactive JavaScript

command lines

Contents
9.1 Trying out JavaScript code . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59
9.1.1 Browser consoles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59
9.1.2 The Node.js REPL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
9.1.3 Other options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
9.2 The console.* API: printing data and more . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
9.2.1 Printing values: console.log() (stdout) . . . . . . . . . . . . 62
9.2.2 Printing error information: console.error() (stderr) . . . . . 63
9.2.3 Printing nested objects via JSON.stringify() . . . . . . . . . 63

9.1 Trying out JavaScript code

You have many options for quickly running pieces of JavaScript code. The following
subsections describe a few of them.

9.1.1 Browser consoles

Web browsers have so-called consoles: interactive command lines to which you can print
text via console.log() and where you can run pieces of code. How to open the console
differs from browser to browser. Fig. 9.1 shows the console of Google Chrome.
To find out how to open the console in your web browser, you can do a web search
for “console «name-of-your-browser»”. These are pages for a few commonly used web
browsers:
• Apple Safari
• Google Chrome
• Microsoft Edge
• Mozilla Firefox

59
60 9 Consoles: interactive JavaScript command lines

Figure 9.1: The console of the web browser “Google Chrome” is open (in the bottom half
of window) while visiting a web page.
9.2 The console.* API: printing data and more 61

9.1.2 The Node.js REPL

REPL stands for read-eval-print loop and basically means command line. To use it, you must
first start Node.js from an operating system command line, via the command node. Then
an interaction with it looks as depicted in fig. 9.2: The text after > is input from the user;
everything else is output from Node.js.

Figure 9.2: Starting and using the Node.js REPL (interactive command line).

Reading: REPL interactions

I occasionally demonstrate JavaScript via REPL interactions. Then I also use greater-
than symbols (>) to mark input – for example:
> 3 + 5
8

9.1.3 Other options

Other options include:

• There are many web apps that let you experiment with JavaScript in web browsers
– for example, Babel’s REPL.

• There are also native apps and IDE plugins for running JavaScript.

Consoles often run in non-strict mode

In modern JavaScript, most code (e.g., modules) is executed in strict mode. How-
ever, consoles often run in non-strict mode. Therefore, you may occasionally get
slightly different results when using a console to execute code from this book.

9.2 The console.* API: printing data and more

In browsers, the console is something you can bring up that is normally hidden. For
Node.js, the console is the terminal that Node.js is currently running in.
62 9 Consoles: interactive JavaScript command lines

The full console.* API is documented on MDN web docs and on the Node.js website. It
is not part of the JavaScript language standard, but much functionality is supported by
both browsers and Node.js.
In this chapter, we only look at the following two methods for printing data (“printing”
means displaying in the console):
• console.log()
• console.error()

9.2.1 Printing values: console.log() (stdout)

There are two variants of this operation:
console.log(...values: any[]): void
console.log(pattern: string, ...values: any[]): void

9.2.1.1 Printing multiple values

The first variant prints (text representations of) values on the console:
console.log('abc', 123, true);
// Output:
// abc 123 true

At the end, console.log() always prints a newline. Therefore, if you call it with zero
arguments, it just prints a newline.

9.2.1.2 Printing a string with substitutions

The second variant performs string substitution:

console.log('Test: %s %j', 123, 'abc');
// Output:
// Test: 123 "abc"

These are some of the directives you can use for substitutions:
• %s converts the corresponding value to a string and inserts it.
console.log('%s %s', 'abc', 123);
// Output:
// abc 123

• %o inserts a string representation of an object.

console.log('%o', {foo: 123, bar: 'abc'});
// Output:
// { foo: 123, bar: 'abc' }

• %j converts a value to a JSON string and inserts it.

console.log('%j', {foo: 123, bar: 'abc'});
// Output:
// {"foo":123,"bar":"abc"}
9.2 The console.* API: printing data and more 63

• %% inserts a single %.
console.log('%s%%', 99);
// Output:
// 99%

9.2.2 Printing error information: console.error() (stderr)

console.error() works the same as console.log(), but what it logs is considered error
information. For Node.js, that means that the output goes to stderr instead of stdout on
Unix.

9.2.3 Printing nested objects via JSON.stringify()

JSON.stringify() is occasionally useful for printing nested objects:

console.log(JSON.stringify({first: 'Jane', last: 'Doe'}, null, 2));

Output:
{
"first": "Jane",
"last": "Doe"
}
64 9 Consoles: interactive JavaScript command lines
Chapter 10

Assertion API

Contents
10.1 Assertions in software development . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65
10.2 How assertions are used in this book . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65
10.2.1 Documenting results in code examples via assertions . . . . . 66
10.2.2 Implementing test-driven exercises via assertions . . . . . . . 66
10.3 Normal comparison vs. deep comparison . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66
10.4 Quick reference: module assert . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67
10.4.1 Normal equality . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67
10.4.2 Deep equality . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67
10.4.3 Expecting exceptions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67
10.4.4 Another tool function . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68

10.1 Assertions in software development

In software development, assertions state facts about values or pieces of code that must
be true. If they aren’t, an exception is thrown. Node.js supports assertions via its built-in
module assert – for example:

import {strict as assert} from 'assert';

assert.equal(3 + 5, 8);

This assertion states that the expected result of 3 plus 5 is 8. The import statement uses
the recommended strict version of assert.

10.2 How assertions are used in this book

In this book, assertions are used in two ways: to document results in code examples and
to implement test-driven exercises.

65
66 10 Assertion API

10.2.1 Documenting results in code examples via assertions

In code examples, assertions express expected results. Take, for example, the following
function:

function id(x) {
return x;
}

id() returns its parameter. We can show it in action via an assertion:

assert.equal(id('abc'), 'abc');

In the examples, I usually omit the statement for importing assert.

The motivation behind using assertions is:

• You can specify precisely what is expected.

• Code examples can be tested automatically, which ensures that they really work.

10.2.2 Implementing test-driven exercises via assertions

The exercises for this book are test-driven, via the test framework AVA. Checks inside
the tests are made via methods of assert.

The following is an example of such a test:

// For the exercise, you must implement the function hello().

// The test checks if you have done it properly.
test('First exercise', t => {
assert.equal(hello('world'), 'Hello world!');
assert.equal(hello('Jane'), 'Hello Jane!');
assert.equal(hello('John'), 'Hello John!');
assert.equal(hello(''), 'Hello !');
});

For more information, consult §11 “Getting started with quizzes and exercises”.

10.3 Normal comparison vs. deep comparison

The strict equal() uses === to compare values. Therefore, an object is only equal to itself
– even if another object has the same content (because === does not compare the contents
of objects, only their identities):

assert.notEqual({foo: 1}, {foo: 1});

deepEqual() is a better choice for comparing objects:

assert.deepEqual({foo: 1}, {foo: 1});

This method works for Arrays, too:

assert.notEqual(['a', 'b', 'c'], ['a', 'b', 'c']);

assert.deepEqual(['a', 'b', 'c'], ['a', 'b', 'c']);
10.4 Quick reference: module assert 67

10.4 Quick reference: module assert

For the full documentation, see the Node.js docs.

10.4.1 Normal equality

• function equal(actual: any, expected: any, message?: string): void
actual === expected must be true. If not, an AssertionError is thrown.

assert.equal(3+3, 6);

• function notEqual(actual: any, expected: any, message?: string): void

actual !== expected must be true. If not, an AssertionError is thrown.

assert.notEqual(3+3, 22);

The optional last parameter message can be used to explain what is asserted. If the asser-
tion fails, the message is used to set up the AssertionError that is thrown.
let e;
try {
const x = 3;
assert.equal(x, 8, 'x must be equal to 8')
} catch (err) {
assert.equal(
String(err),
'AssertionError [ERR_ASSERTION]: x must be equal to 8');
}

10.4.2 Deep equality

• function deepEqual(actual: any, expected: any, message?: string): void
actual must be deeply equal to expected. If not, an AssertionError is thrown.

assert.deepEqual([1,2,3], [1,2,3]);
assert.deepEqual([], []);

// To .equal(), an object is only equal to itself:

assert.notEqual([], []);

• function notDeepEqual(actual: any, expected: any, message?: string):

void

actual must not be deeply equal to expected. If it is, an AssertionError is thrown.

assert.notDeepEqual([1,2,3], [1,2]);

10.4.3 Expecting exceptions

If you want to (or expect to) receive an exception, you need throws(): This function
calls its first parameter, the function block, and only succeeds if it throws an exception.
Additional parameters can be used to specify what that exception must look like.
68 10 Assertion API

• function throws(block: Function, message?: string): void

assert.throws(
() => {
null.prop;
}
);

• function throws(block: Function, error: Function, message?: string):

void

assert.throws(
() => {
null.prop;
},
TypeError
);

• function throws(block: Function, error: RegExp, message?: string): void

assert.throws(
() => {
null.prop;
},
/^TypeError: Cannot read property 'prop' of null$/
);

• function throws(block: Function, error: Object, message?: string): void

assert.throws(
() => {
null.prop;
},
{
name: 'TypeError',
message: `Cannot read property 'prop' of null`,
}
);

10.4.4 Another tool function

• function fail(message: string | Error): never

Always throws an AssertionError when it is called. That is occasionally useful

for unit testing.

try {
functionThatShouldThrow();
assert.fail();
} catch (_) {
// Success
}
10.4 Quick reference: module assert 69

Quiz
See quiz app.
70 10 Assertion API
Chapter 11

Getting started with quizzes and

exercises

Contents
11.1 Quizzes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71
11.2 Exercises . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71
11.2.1 Installing the exercises . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71
11.2.2 Running exercises . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72
11.3 Unit tests in JavaScript . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72
11.3.1 A typical test . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72
11.3.2 Asynchronous tests in AVA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73

Throughout most chapters, there are quizzes and exercises. These are a paid feature, but
a comprehensive preview is available. This chapter explains how to get started with
them.

11.1 Quizzes
Installation:
• Download and unzip impatient-js-quiz.zip
Running the quiz app:
• Open impatient-js-quiz/index.html in a web browser
• You’ll see a TOC of all the quizzes.

11.2 Exercises
11.2.1 Installing the exercises
To install the exercises:

71
72 11 Getting started with quizzes and exercises

• Download and unzip impatient-js-code.zip

• Follow the instructions in README.txt

11.2.2 Running exercises

• Exercises are referred to by path in this book.
– For example: exercises/quizzes-exercises/first_module_test.mjs
• Within each file:
– The first line contains the command for running the exercise.
– The following lines describe what you have to do.

11.3 Unit tests in JavaScript

All exercises in this book are tests that are run via the test framework AVA. This section
gives a brief introduction.

11.3.1 A typical test

Typical test code is split into two parts:
• Part 1: the code to be tested.
• Part 2: the tests for the code.
Take, for example, the following two files:
• id.mjs (code to be tested)
• id_test.mjs (tests)

11.3.1.1 Part 1: the code

The code itself resides in id.mjs:

export function id(x) {
return x;
}

The key thing here is: everything you want to test must be exported. Otherwise, the test
code can’t access it.

11.3.1.2 Part 2: the tests

Don’t worry about the exact details of tests

You don’t need to worry about the exact details of tests: They are always imple-
mented for you. Therefore, you only need to read them, but not write them.

The tests for the code reside in id_test.mjs:

// npm t demos/quizzes-exercises/id_test.mjs

import test from 'ava'; // (A)

11.3 Unit tests in JavaScript 73

import {strict as assert} from 'assert'; // (B)

import {id} from './id.mjs'; // (C)

test('My test', t => { // (D)

assert.equal(id('abc'), 'abc'); // (E)
});

The core of this test file is line E – an assertion: assert.equal() specifies that the expected
result of id('abc') is 'abc'.

As for the other lines:

• The comment at the very beginning shows the shell command for running the test.
• Line A: We import the test framework.
• Line B: We import the assertion library. AVA has built-in assertions, but module
assert lets us remain compatible with plain Node.js.
• Line C: We import the function to test.
• Line D: We define a test. This is done by calling the function test():
– First parameter: the name of the test.
– Second parameter: the test code, which is provided via an arrow function.
The parameter t gives us access to AVA’s testing API (assertions, etc.).

To run the test, we execute the following in a command line:

npm t demos/quizzes-exercises/id_test.mjs

The t is an abbreviation for test. That is, the long version of this command is:

npm test demos/quizzes-exercises/id_test.mjs

Exercise: Your first exercise

The following exercise gives you a first taste of what exercises are like:
• exercises/quizzes-exercises/first_module_test.mjs

11.3.2 Asynchronous tests in AVA

Reading
You can postpone reading this section until you get to the chapters on asynchronous
programming.

Writing tests for asynchronous code requires extra work: The test receives its results
later and has to signal to AVA that it isn’t finished yet when it returns. The following
subsections examine three ways of doing so.

11.3.2.1 Asynchronicity via callbacks

If we call test.cb() instead of test(), AVA switches to callback-based asynchronicity.

When we are done with our asynchronous work, we have to call t.end():
74 11 Getting started with quizzes and exercises

test.cb('divideCallback', t => {
divideCallback(8, 4, (error, result) => {
if (error) {
t.end(error);
} else {
assert.strictEqual(result, 2);
t.end();
}
});
});

11.3.2.2 Asynchronicity via Promises

If a test returns a Promise, AVA switches to Promise-based asynchronicity. A test is con-

sidered successful if the Promise is fulfilled and failed if the Promise is rejected.
test('dividePromise 1', t => {
return dividePromise(8, 4)
.then(result => {
assert.strictEqual(result, 2);
});
});

11.3.2.3 Async functions as test “bodies”

Async functions always return Promises. Therefore, an async function is a convenient

way of implementing an asynchronous test. The following code is equivalent to the pre-
vious example.
test('dividePromise 2', async t => {
const result = await dividePromise(8, 4);
assert.strictEqual(result, 2);
// No explicit return necessary!
});

You don’t need to explicitly return anything: The implicitly returned undefined is used
to fulfill the Promise returned by this async function. And if the test code throws an
exception, then the async function takes care of rejecting the returned Promise.
 Part III

Variables and values

75
Chapter 12

Variables and assignment

Contents
12.1 let . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
12.2 const . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
12.2.1 const and immutability . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
12.2.2 const and loops . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79
12.3 Deciding between const and let . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79
12.4 The scope of a variable . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79
12.4.1 Shadowing variables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80
12.5 (Advanced) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81
12.6 Terminology: static vs. dynamic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81
12.6.1 Static phenomenon: scopes of variables . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81
12.6.2 Dynamic phenomenon: function calls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81
12.7 Global variables and the global object . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82
12.7.1 globalThis [ES2020] . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82
12.8 Declarations: scope and activation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84
12.8.1 const and let: temporal dead zone . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84
12.8.2 Function declarations and early activation . . . . . . . . . . . 85
12.8.3 Class declarations are not activated early . . . . . . . . . . . . 87
12.8.4 var: hoisting (partial early activation) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87
12.9 Closures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88
12.9.1 Bound variables vs. free variables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88
12.9.2 What is a closure? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88
12.9.3 Example: A factory for incrementors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89
12.9.4 Use cases for closures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90

These are JavaScript’s main ways of declaring variables:

• let declares mutable variables.
• const declares constants (immutable variables).
Before ES6, there was also var. But it has several quirks, so it’s best to avoid it in modern
JavaScript. You can read more about it in Speaking JavaScript.

77
78 12 Variables and assignment

12.1 let

Variables declared via let are mutable:

let i;
i = 0;
i = i + 1;
assert.equal(i, 1);

You can also declare and assign at the same time:

let i = 0;

12.2 const

Variables declared via const are immutable. You must always initialize immediately:

const i = 0; // must initialize

assert.throws(
() => { i = i + 1 },
{
name: 'TypeError',
message: 'Assignment to constant variable.',
}
);

12.2.1 const and immutability

In JavaScript, const only means that the binding (the association between variable name
and variable value) is immutable. The value itself may be mutable, like obj in the fol-
lowing example.

const obj = { prop: 0 };

// Allowed: changing properties of `obj`

obj.prop = obj.prop + 1;
assert.equal(obj.prop, 1);

// Not allowed: assigning to `obj`

assert.throws(
() => { obj = {} },
{
name: 'TypeError',
message: 'Assignment to constant variable.',
}
);
12.3 Deciding between const and let 79

12.2.2 const and loops

You can use const with for-of loops, where a fresh binding is created for each iteration:

const arr = ['hello', 'world'];

for (const elem of arr) {
console.log(elem);
}
// Output:
// 'hello'
// 'world'

In plain for loops, you must use let, however:

const arr = ['hello', 'world'];

for (let i=0; i<arr.length; i++) {
const elem = arr[i];
console.log(elem);
}

12.3 Deciding between const and let

I recommend the following rules to decide between const and let:

• const indicates an immutable binding and that a variable never changes its value.
Prefer it.
• let indicates that the value of a variable changes. Use it only when you can’t use
const.

Exercise: const
exercises/variables-assignment/const_exrc.mjs

12.4 The scope of a variable

The scope of a variable is the region of a program where it can be accessed. Consider the
following code.

{ // // Scope A. Accessible: x
const x = 0;
assert.equal(x, 0);
{ // Scope B. Accessible: x, y
const y = 1;
assert.equal(x, 0);
assert.equal(y, 1);
{ // Scope C. Accessible: x, y, z
const z = 2;
assert.equal(x, 0);
assert.equal(y, 1);
80 12 Variables and assignment

assert.equal(z, 2);
}
}
}
// Outside. Not accessible: x, y, z
assert.throws(
() => console.log(x),
{
name: 'ReferenceError',
message: 'x is not defined',
}
);

• Scope A is the (direct) scope of x.

• Scopes B and C are inner scopes of scope A.
• Scope A is an outer scope of scope B and scope C.

Each variable is accessible in its direct scope and all scopes nested within that scope.

The variables declared via const and let are called block-scoped because their scopes are
always the innermost surrounding blocks.

12.4.1 Shadowing variables

You can’t declare the same variable twice at the same level:

assert.throws(
() => {
eval('let x = 1; let x = 2;');
},
{
name: 'SyntaxError',
message: "Identifier 'x' has already been declared",
});

Why eval()?
eval() delays parsing (and therefore the SyntaxError), until the callback of as-
sert.throws() is executed. If we didn’t use it, we’d already get an error when this
code is parsed and assert.throws() wouldn’t even be executed.

You can, however, nest a block and use the same variable name x that you used outside
the block:

const x = 1;
assert.equal(x, 1);
{
const x = 2;
assert.equal(x, 2);
12.5 (Advanced) 81

}
assert.equal(x, 1);

Inside the block, the inner x is the only accessible variable with that name. The inner x is
said to shadow the outer x. Once you leave the block, you can access the old value again.

Quiz: basic
See quiz app.

12.5 (Advanced)
All remaining sections are advanced.

12.6 Terminology: static vs. dynamic

These two adjectives describe phenomena in programming languages:

• Static means that something is related to source code and can be determined with-
out executing code.
• Dynamic means at runtime.

Let’s look at examples for these two terms.

12.6.1 Static phenomenon: scopes of variables

Variable scopes are a static phenomenon. Consider the following code:

function f() {
const x = 3;
// ···
}

x is statically (or lexically) scoped. That is, its scope is fixed and doesn’t change at runtime.

Variable scopes form a static tree (via static nesting).

12.6.2 Dynamic phenomenon: function calls

Function calls are a dynamic phenomenon. Consider the following code:

function g(x) {}
function h(y) {
if (Math.random()) g(y); // (A)
}

Whether or not the function call in line A happens, can only be decided at runtime.

Function calls form a dynamic tree (via dynamic calls).

82 12 Variables and assignment

12.7 Global variables and the global object

JavaScript’s variable scopes are nested. They form a tree:

• The outermost scope is the root of the tree.

• The scopes directly contained in that scope are the children of the root.
• And so on.

The root is also called the global scope. In web browsers, the only location where one is
directly in that scope is at the top level of a script. The variables of the global scope are
called global variables and accessible everywhere. There are two kinds of global variables:

• Global declarative variables are normal variables.

– They can only be created while at the top level of a script, via const, ‘let, and
class declarations.
• Global object variables are stored in properties of the so-called global object.
– They are created in the top level of a script, via var and function declarations.
– The global object can be accessed via the global variable globalThis. It can
be used to create, read, and delete global object variables.
– Other than that, global object variables work like normal variables.

The following HTML fragment demonstrates globalThis and the two kinds of global
variables.

<script>
const declarativeVariable = 'd';
var objectVariable = 'o';
</script>
<script>
// All scripts share the same top-level scope:
console.log(declarativeVariable); // 'd'
console.log(objectVariable); // 'o'

// Not all declarations create properties of the global object:

console.log(globalThis.declarativeVariable); // undefined
console.log(globalThis.objectVariable); // 'o'
</script>

Each ECMAScript module has its own scope. Therefore, variables that exist at the top
level of a module are not global. Fig. 12.1 illustrates how the various scopes are related.

12.7.1 globalThis [ES2020]

The global variable globalThis is the new standard way of accessing the global object.
It got its name from the fact that it has the same value as this in global scope.

globalThis does not always directly point to the global object

For example, in browsers, there is an indirection. That indirection is normally not

noticable, but it is there and can be observed.
12.7 Global variables and the global object 83

Global scope

Top level of scripts:

Object variables
var, function declarations

const, let, class declarations

Declarative variables

Module scope 1 Module scope 2 ···

Figure 12.1: The global scope is JavaScript’s outermost scope. It has two kinds of vari-
ables: object variables (managed via the global object) and normal declarative variables. Each
ECMAScript module has its own scope which is contained in the global scope.

12.7.1.1 Alternatives to globalThis

Older ways of accessing the global object depend on the platform:

• Global variable window: is the classic way of referring to the global object. But it
doesn’t work in Node.js and in Web Workers.
• Global variable self: is available in Web Workers and browsers in general. But it
isn’t supported by Node.js.
• Global variable global: is only available in Node.js.

12.7.1.2 Use cases for globalThis

The global object is now considered a mistake that JavaScript can’t get rid of, due to
backward compatibility. It affects performance negatively and is generally confusing.

ECMAScript 6 introduced several features that make it easier to avoid the global object
– for example:

• const, let, and class declarations don’t create global object properties when used
in global scope.
• Each ECMAScript module has its own local scope.

It is usually better to access global object variables via variables and not via properties
of globalThis. The former has always worked the same on all JavaScript platforms.

Tutorials on the web occasionally access global variables globVar via window.globVar.
But the prefix “window.” is not necessary and I recommend to omit it:

window.encodeURIComponent(str); // no
encodeURIComponent(str); // yes

Therefore, there are relatively few use cases for globalThis – for example:
84 12 Variables and assignment

• Polyfills that add new features to old JavaScript engines.

• Feature detection, to find out what features a JavaScript engine supports.

12.8 Declarations: scope and activation

These are two key aspects of declarations:
• Scope: Where can a declared entity be seen? This is a static trait.
• Activation: When can I access an entity? This is a dynamic trait. Some entities
can be accessed as soon as we enter their scopes. For others, we have to wait until
execution reaches their declarations.
Tbl. 12.1 summarizes how various declarations handle these aspects.

Table 12.1: Aspects of declarations. “Duplicates” describes if a declara-

tion can be used twice with the same name (per scope). “Global prop.”
describes if a declaration adds a property to the global object, when it is
executed in the global scope of a script. TDZ means temporal dead zone
(which is explained later). (*) Function declarations are normally block-
scoped, but function-scoped in sloppy mode.

Scope Activation Duplicates Global prop.

const Block decl. (TDZ) ✘ ✘
let Block decl. (TDZ) ✘ ✘
function Block (*) start ✔ ✔
class Block decl. (TDZ) ✘ ✘
import Module same as export ✘ ✘
var Function start, partially ✔ ✔

import is described in §27.5 “ECMAScript modules”. The following sections describe

the other constructs in more detail.

12.8.1 const and let: temporal dead zone

For JavaScript, TC39 needed to decide what happens if you access a constant in its direct
scope, before its declaration:

{
console.log(x); // What happens here?
const x;
}

Some possible approaches are:

1. The name is resolved in the scope surrounding the current scope.

2. You get undefined.
3. There is an error.
12.8 Declarations: scope and activation 85

Approach 1 was rejected because there is no precedent in the language for this approach.
It would therefore not be intuitive to JavaScript programmers.
Approach 2 was rejected because then x wouldn’t be a constant – it would have different
values before and after its declaration.
let uses the same approach 3 as const, so that both work similarly and it’s easy to switch
between them.
The time between entering the scope of a variable and executing its declaration is called
the temporal dead zone (TDZ) of that variable:
• During this time, the variable is considered to be uninitialized (as if that were a
special value it has).
• If you access an uninitialized variable, you get a ReferenceError.
• Once you reach a variable declaration, the variable is set to either the value of
the initializer (specified via the assignment symbol) or undefined – if there is no
initializer.
The following code illustrates the temporal dead zone:
if (true) { // entering scope of `tmp`, TDZ starts
// `tmp` is uninitialized:
assert.throws(() => (tmp = 'abc'), ReferenceError);
assert.throws(() => console.log(tmp), ReferenceError);

let tmp; // TDZ ends

assert.equal(tmp, undefined);
}

The next example shows that the temporal dead zone is truly temporal (related to time):
if (true) { // entering scope of `myVar`, TDZ starts
const func = () => {
console.log(myVar); // executed later
};

// We are within the TDZ:

// Accessing `myVar` causes `ReferenceError`

let myVar = 3; // TDZ ends

func(); // OK, called outside TDZ
}

Even though func() is located before the declaration of myVar and uses that variable, we
can call func(). But we have to wait until the temporal dead zone of myVar is over.

12.8.2 Function declarations and early activation

More information on functions

86 12 Variables and assignment

In this section, we are using functions – before we had a chance to learn them prop-
erly. Hopefully, everything still makes sense. Whenever it doesn’t, please see §26
“Callable values”.

A function declaration is always executed when entering its scope, regardless of where it
is located within that scope. That enables you to call a function foo() before it is declared:
assert.equal(foo(), 123); // OK
function foo() { return 123; }

The early activation of foo() means that the previous code is equivalent to:
function foo() { return 123; }
assert.equal(foo(), 123);

If you declare a function via const or let, then it is not activated early. In the following
example, you can only use bar() after its declaration.
assert.throws(
() => bar(), // before declaration
ReferenceError);

const bar = () => { return 123; };

assert.equal(bar(), 123); // after declaration

12.8.2.1 Calling ahead without early activation

Even if a function g() is not activated early, it can be called by a preceding function f()
(in the same scope) if we adhere to the following rule: f() must be invoked after the
declaration of g().
const f = () => g();
const g = () => 123;

// We call f() after g() was declared:

assert.equal(f(), 123);

The functions of a module are usually invoked after its complete body is executed. There-
fore, in modules, you rarely need to worry about the order of functions.
Lastly, note how early activation automatically keeps the aforementioned rule: when
entering a scope, all function declarations are executed first, before any calls are made.

12.8.2.2 A pitfall of early activation

If you rely on early activation to call a function before its declaration, then you need to
be careful that it doesn’t access data that isn’t activated early.
funcDecl();

const MY_STR = 'abc';

function funcDecl() {
12.8 Declarations: scope and activation 87

assert.throws(
() => MY_STR,
ReferenceError);
}

The problem goes away if you make the call to funcDecl() after the declaration of MY_-
STR.

12.8.2.3 The pros and cons of early activation

We have seen that early activation has a pitfall and that you can get most of its benefits
without using it. Therefore, it is better to avoid early activation. But I don’t feel strongly
about this and, as mentioned before, often use function declarations because I like their
syntax.

12.8.3 Class declarations are not activated early

Even though they are similar to function declarations in some ways, class declarations
are not activated early:
assert.throws(
() => new MyClass(),
ReferenceError);

class MyClass {}

assert.equal(new MyClass() instanceof MyClass, true);

Why is that? Consider the following class declaration:

class MyClass extends Object {}

The operand of extends is an expression. Therefore, you can do things like this:
const identity = x => x;
class MyClass extends identity(Object) {}

Evaluating such an expression must be done at the location where it is mentioned. Any-
thing else would be confusing. That explains why class declarations are not activated
early.

12.8.4 var: hoisting (partial early activation)

var is an older way of declaring variables that predates const and let (which are pre-
ferred now). Consider the following var declaration.
var x = 123;

This declaration has two parts:

• Declaration var x: The scope of a var-declared variable is the innermost surround-
ing function and not the innermost surrounding block, as for most other declara-
tions. Such a variable is already active at the beginning of its scope and initialized
with undefined.
88 12 Variables and assignment

• Assignment x = 123: The assignment is always executed in place.

The following code demonstrates the effects of var:

function f() {
// Partial early activation:
assert.equal(x, undefined);
if (true) {
var x = 123;
// The assignment is executed in place:
assert.equal(x, 123);
}
// Scope is function, not block:
assert.equal(x, 123);
}

12.9 Closures
Before we can explore closures, we need to learn about bound variables and free vari-
ables.

12.9.1 Bound variables vs. free variables

Per scope, there is a set of variables that are mentioned. Among these variables we dis-
tinguish:

• Bound variables are declared within the scope. They are parameters and local vari-
ables.
• Free variables are declared externally. They are also called non-local variables.

Consider the following code:

function func(x) {
const y = 123;
console.log(z);
}

In the body of func(), x and y are bound variables. z is a free variable.

12.9.2 What is a closure?

What is a closure then?

A closure is a function plus a connection to the variables that exist at its “birth
place”.

What is the point of keeping this connection? It provides the values for the free variables
of the function – for example:

function funcFactory(value) {
return () => {
return value;
12.9 Closures 89

};
}

const func = funcFactory('abc');

assert.equal(func(), 'abc'); // (A)

funcFactory returns a closure that is assigned to func. Because func has the connection
to the variables at its birth place, it can still access the free variable value when it is called
in line A (even though it “escaped” its scope).

All functions in JavaScript are closures

Static scoping is supported via closures in JavaScript. Therefore, every function is
a closure.

12.9.3 Example: A factory for incrementors

The following function returns incrementors (a name that I just made up). An incrementor
is a function that internally stores a number. When it is called, it updates that number
by adding the argument to it and returns the new value.

function createInc(startValue) {
return (step) => { // (A)
startValue += step;
return startValue;
};
}
const inc = createInc(5);
assert.equal(inc(2), 7);

We can see that the function created in line A keeps its internal number in the free variable
startValue. This time, we don’t just read from the birth scope, we use it to store data
that we change and that persists across function calls.

We can create more storage slots in the birth scope, via local variables:

function createInc(startValue) {
let index = -1;
return (step) => {
startValue += step;
index++;
return [index, startValue];
};
}
const inc = createInc(5);
assert.deepEqual(inc(2), [0, 7]);
assert.deepEqual(inc(2), [1, 9]);
assert.deepEqual(inc(2), [2, 11]);
90 12 Variables and assignment

12.9.4 Use cases for closures

What are closures good for?
• For starters, they are simply an implementation of static scoping. As such, they
provide context data for callbacks.
• They can also be used by functions to store state that persists across function calls.
createInc() is an example of that.

• And they can provide private data for objects (produced via literals or classes).
The details of how that works are explained in Exploring ES6.

Quiz: advanced
See quiz app.
Chapter 13

Values

Contents
13.1 What’s a type? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91
13.2 JavaScript’s type hierarchy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92
13.3 The types of the language specification . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92
13.4 Primitive values vs. objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93
13.4.1 Primitive values (short: primitives) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93
13.4.2 Objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94
13.5 The operators typeof and instanceof: what’s the type of a value? . 95
13.5.1 typeof . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96
13.5.2 instanceof . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97
13.6 Classes and constructor functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97
13.6.1 Constructor functions associated with primitive types . . . . . 97
13.7 Converting between types . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98
13.7.1 Explicit conversion between types . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99
13.7.2 Coercion (automatic conversion between types) . . . . . . . . 99

In this chapter, we’ll examine what kinds of values JavaScript has.

Supporting tool: ===

In this chapter, we’ll occasionally use the strict equality operator. a === b evaluates
to true if a and b are equal. What exactly that means is explained in §14.4.2 “Strict
equality (=== and !==)”.

13.1 What’s a type?

For this chapter, I consider types to be sets of values – for example, the type boolean is
the set { false, true }.

91
92 13 Values

13.2 JavaScript’s type hierarchy

(any)

(primitive value) (object)

undefined boolean Object

null number
Array Function
string
Map RegExp
symbol

Set Date

Figure 13.1: A partial hierarchy of JavaScript’s types. Missing are the classes for errors,
the classes associated with primitive types, and more. The diagram hints at the fact that
not all objects are instances of Object.

Fig. 13.1 shows JavaScript’s type hierarchy. What do we learn from that diagram?

• JavaScript distinguishes two kinds of values: primitive values and objects. We’ll
see soon what the difference is.
• The diagram differentiates objects and instances of class Object. Each instance
of Object is also an object, but not vice versa. However, virtually all objects that
you’ll encounter in practice are instances of Object – for example, objects created
via object literals. More details on this topic are explained in §29.4.3.4 “Objects that
aren’t instances of Object”.

13.3 The types of the language specification

The ECMAScript specification only knows a total of seven types. The names of those
types are (I’m using TypeScript’s names, not the spec’s names):

• undefined with the only element undefined

• null with the only element null
• boolean with the elements false and true
• number the type of all numbers (e.g., -123, 3.141)
• bigint the type of all big integers (e.g., -123n)
• string the type of all strings (e.g., 'abc')
• symbol the type of all symbols (e.g., Symbol('My Symbol'))
• object the type of all objects (different from Object, the type of all instances of
class Object and its subclasses)
13.4 Primitive values vs. objects 93

13.4 Primitive values vs. objects

The specification makes an important distinction between values:

• Primitive values are the elements of the types undefined, null, boolean, number,
bigint, string, symbol.
• All other values are objects.

In contrast to Java (that inspired JavaScript here), primitive values are not second-class
citizens. The difference between them and objects is more subtle. In a nutshell:

• Primitive values: are atomic building blocks of data in JavaScript.

– They are passed by value: when primitive values are assigned to variables or
passed to functions, their contents are copied.
– They are compared by value: when comparing two primitive values, their con-
tents are compared.
• Objects: are compound pieces of data.
– They are passed by identity (my term): when objects are assigned to variables
or passed to functions, their identities (think pointers) are copied.
– They are compared by identity (my term): when comparing two objects, their
identities are compared.

Other than that, primitive values and objects are quite similar: they both have properties
(key-value entries) and can be used in the same locations.

Next, we’ll look at primitive values and objects in more depth.

13.4.1 Primitive values (short: primitives)

13.4.1.1 Primitives are immutable

You can’t change, add, or remove properties of primitives:

let str = 'abc';

assert.equal(str.length, 3);
assert.throws(
() => { str.length = 1 },
/^TypeError: Cannot assign to read only property 'length'/
);

13.4.1.2 Primitives are passed by value

Primitives are passed by value: variables (including parameters) store the contents of the
primitives. When assigning a primitive value to a variable or passing it as an argument
to a function, its content is copied.

let x = 123;
let y = x;
assert.equal(y, 123);
94 13 Values

13.4.1.3 Primitives are compared by value

Primitives are compared by value: when comparing two primitive values, we compare
their contents.

assert.equal(123 === 123, true);

assert.equal('abc' === 'abc', true);

To see what’s so special about this way of comparing, read on and find out how objects
are compared.

13.4.2 Objects
Objects are covered in detail in §28 “Single objects” and the following chapter. Here, we
mainly focus on how they differ from primitive values.

Let’s first explore two common ways of creating objects:

• Object literal:

const obj = {
first: 'Jane',
last: 'Doe',
};

The object literal starts and ends with curly braces {}. It creates an object with
two properties. The first property has the key 'first' (a string) and the value
'Jane'. The second property has the key 'last' and the value 'Doe'. For more
information on object literals, consult §28.2.1 “Object literals: properties”.

• Array literal:

const arr = ['foo', 'bar'];

The Array literal starts and ends with square brackets []. It creates an Array with
two elements: 'foo' and 'bar'. For more information on Array literals, consult
§31.2.1 “Creating, reading, writing Arrays”.

13.4.2.1 Objects are mutable by default

By default, you can freely change, add, and remove the properties of objects:

const obj = {};

obj.foo = 'abc'; // add a property

assert.equal(obj.foo, 'abc');

obj.foo = 'def'; // change a property

assert.equal(obj.foo, 'def');

13.4.2.2 Objects are passed by identity

Objects are passed by identity (my term): variables (including parameters) store the identi-
ties of objects.
13.5 The operators typeof and instanceof: what’s the type of a value? 95

The identity of an object is like a pointer (or a transparent reference) to the object’s actual
data on the heap (think shared main memory of a JavaScript engine).

When assigning an object to a variable or passing it as an argument to a function, its

identity is copied. Each object literal creates a fresh object on the heap and returns its
identity.

const a = {}; // fresh empty object

// Pass the identity in `a` to `b`:
const b = a;

// Now `a` and `b` point to the same object

// (they “share” that object):
assert.equal(a === b, true);

// Changing `a` also changes `b`:

a.foo = 123;
assert.equal(b.foo, 123);

JavaScript uses garbage collection to automatically manage memory:

let obj = { prop: 'value' };

obj = {};

Now the old value { prop: 'value' } of obj is garbage (not used anymore). JavaScript
will automatically garbage-collect it (remove it from memory), at some point in time (pos-
sibly never if there is enough free memory).

Details: passing by identity

“Passing by identity” means that the identity of an object (a transparent reference)
is passed by value. This approach is also called “passing by sharing”.

13.4.2.3 Objects are compared by identity

Objects are compared by identity (my term): two variables are only equal if they contain
the same object identity. They are not equal if they refer to different objects with the same
content.

const obj = {}; // fresh empty object

assert.equal(obj === obj, true); // same identity
assert.equal({} === {}, false); // different identities, same content

13.5 The operators typeof and instanceof: what’s the type

of a value?
The two operators typeof and instanceof let you determine what type a given value x
has:
96 13 Values

if (typeof x === 'string') ···

if (x instanceof Array) ···

How do they differ?

• typeof distinguishes the 7 types of the specification (minus one omission, plus one
addition).
• instanceof tests which class created a given value.

Rule of thumb: typeof is for primitive values; instanceof is for objects

13.5.1 typeof

Table 13.1: The results of the typeof operator.

x typeof x

undefined 'undefined'
null 'object'
Boolean 'boolean'
Number 'number'
Bigint 'bigint'
String 'string'
Symbol 'symbol'
Function 'function'
All other objects 'object'

Tbl. 13.1 lists all results of typeof. They roughly correspond to the 7 types of the language
specification. Alas, there are two differences, and they are language quirks:
• typeof null returns 'object' and not 'null'. That’s a bug. Unfortunately, it
can’t be fixed. TC39 tried to do that, but it broke too much code on the web.
• typeof of a function should be 'object' (functions are objects). Introducing a
separate category for functions is confusing.
These are a few examples of using typeof:
> typeof undefined
'undefined'
> typeof 123n
'bigint'
> typeof 'abc'
'string'
> typeof {}
'object'

Exercises: Two exercises on typeof

13.6 Classes and constructor functions 97

• exercises/values/typeof_exrc.mjs
• Bonus: exercises/values/is_object_test.mjs

13.5.2 instanceof
This operator answers the question: has a value x been created by a class C?
x instanceof C

For example:
> (function() {}) instanceof Function
true
> ({}) instanceof Object
true
> [] instanceof Array
true

Primitive values are not instances of anything:

> 123 instanceof Number
false
> '' instanceof String
false
> '' instanceof Object
false

Exercise: instanceof
exercises/values/instanceof_exrc.mjs

13.6 Classes and constructor functions

JavaScript’s original factories for objects are constructor functions: ordinary functions that
return “instances” of themselves if you invoke them via the new operator.
ES6 introduced classes, which are mainly better syntax for constructor functions.
In this book, I’m using the terms constructor function and class interchangeably.
Classes can be seen as partitioning the single type object of the specification into sub-
types – they give us more types than the limited 7 ones of the specification. Each class is
the type of the objects that were created by it.

13.6.1 Constructor functions associated with primitive types

Each primitive type (except for the spec-internal types for undefined and null) has an
associated constructor function (think class):
• The constructor function Boolean is associated with booleans.
• The constructor function Number is associated with numbers.
98 13 Values

• The constructor function String is associated with strings.

• The constructor function Symbol is associated with symbols.

Each of these functions plays several roles – for example, Number:

• You can use it as a function and convert values to numbers:

assert.equal(Number('123'), 123);

• Number.prototype provides the properties for numbers – for example, method

.toString():

assert.equal((123).toString, Number.prototype.toString);

• Number is a namespace/container object for tool functions for numbers – for exam-
ple:

assert.equal(Number.isInteger(123), true);

• Lastly, you can also use Number as a class and create number objects. These objects
are different from real numbers and should be avoided.

assert.notEqual(new Number(123), 123);

assert.equal(new Number(123).valueOf(), 123);

13.6.1.1 Wrapping primitive values

The constructor functions related to primitive types are also called wrapper types because
they provide the canonical way of converting primitive values to objects. In the process,
primitive values are “wrapped” in objects.

const prim = true;

assert.equal(typeof prim, 'boolean');
assert.equal(prim instanceof Boolean, false);

const wrapped = Object(prim);

assert.equal(typeof wrapped, 'object');
assert.equal(wrapped instanceof Boolean, true);

assert.equal(wrapped.valueOf(), prim); // unwrap

Wrapping rarely matters in practice, but it is used internally in the language specification,
to give primitives properties.

13.7 Converting between types

There are two ways in which values are converted to other types in JavaScript:

• Explicit conversion: via functions such as String().

• Coercion (automatic conversion): happens when an operation receives operands/-
parameters that it can’t work with.
13.7 Converting between types 99

13.7.1 Explicit conversion between types

The function associated with a primitive type explicitly converts values to that type:
> Boolean(0)
false
> Number('123')
123
> String(123)
'123'

You can also use Object() to convert values to objects:

> typeof Object(123)
'object'

The following table describes in more detail how this conversion works:

x Object(x)

undefined {}
null {}
boolean new Boolean(x)
number new Number(x)
bigint An instance of BigInt (new throws TypeError)
string new String(x)
symbol An instance of Symbol (new throws TypeError)
object x

13.7.2 Coercion (automatic conversion between types)

For many operations, JavaScript automatically converts the operands/parameters if their
types don’t fit. This kind of automatic conversion is called coercion.
For example, the multiplication operator coerces its operands to numbers:
> '7' * '3'
21

Many built-in functions coerce, too. For example, parseInt() coerces its parameter to
string (parsing stops at the first character that is not a digit):
> parseInt(123.45)
123

Exercise: Converting values to primitives

exercises/values/conversion_exrc.mjs
100 13 Values

Quiz
See quiz app.
Chapter 14

Operators

Contents
14.1 Making sense of operators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101
14.1.1 Operators coerce their operands to appropriate types . . . . . 102
14.1.2 Most operators only work with primitive values . . . . . . . . 102
14.2 The plus operator (+) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102
14.3 Assignment operators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103
14.3.1 The plain assignment operator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103
14.3.2 Compound assignment operators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103
14.3.3 A list of all compound assignment operators . . . . . . . . . . 103
14.4 Equality: == vs. === . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104
14.4.1 Loose equality (== and !=) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104
14.4.2 Strict equality (=== and !==) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105
14.4.3 Recommendation: always use strict equality . . . . . . . . . . 105
14.4.4 Even stricter than ===: Object.is() . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106
14.5 Ordering operators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107
14.6 The nullish coalescing operator (??) for default values [ES2020] . . 107
14.6.1 Example: counting matches . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107
14.6.2 Example: specifying a default value for a property . . . . . . . 108
14.6.3 Using destructuring for default values . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108
14.6.4 Legacy approach: using logical Or (||) for default values . . . 108
14.7 Various other operators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109
14.7.1 Comma operator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109
14.7.2 void operator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109

14.1 Making sense of operators

JavaScript’s operators may seem quirky. With the following two rules, they are easier to
understand:

101
102 14 Operators

• Operators coerce their operands to appropriate types

• Most operators only work with primitive values

14.1.1 Operators coerce their operands to appropriate types

If an operator gets operands that don’t have the proper types, it rarely throws an excep-
tion. Instead, it coerces (automatically converts) the operands so that it can work with
them. Let’s look at two examples.

First, the multiplication operator can only work with numbers. Therefore, it converts
strings to numbers before computing its result.

> '7' * '3'

21

Second, the square brackets operator ([ ]) for accessing the properties of an object can
only handle strings and symbols. All other values are coerced to string:

const obj = {};

obj['true'] = 123;

// Coerce true to the string 'true'

assert.equal(obj[true], 123);

14.1.2 Most operators only work with primitive values

As mentioned before, most operators only work with primitive values. If an operand is
an object, it is usually coerced to a primitive value – for example:

> [1,2,3] + [4,5,6]

'1,2,34,5,6'

Why? The plus operator first coerces its operands to primitive values:

> String([1,2,3])
'1,2,3'
> String([4,5,6])
'4,5,6'

Next, it concatenates the two strings:

> '1,2,3' + '4,5,6'

'1,2,34,5,6'

14.2 The plus operator (+)

The plus operator works as follows in JavaScript:

• First, it converts both operands to primitive values. Then it switches to one of two
modes:
– String mode: If one of the two primitive values is a string, then it converts
the other one to a string, concatenates both strings, and returns the result.
14.3 Assignment operators 103

– Number mode: Otherwise, It converts both operands to numbers, adds them,

and returns the result.

String mode lets us use + to assemble strings:

> 'There are ' + 3 + ' items'

'There are 3 items'

Number mode means that if neither operand is a string (or an object that becomes a
string) then everything is coerced to numbers:

> 4 + true
5

Number(true) is 1.

14.3 Assignment operators

14.3.1 The plain assignment operator
The plain assignment operator is used to change storage locations:

x = value; // assign to a previously declared variable

obj.propKey = value; // assign to a property
arr[index] = value; // assign to an Array element

Initializers in variable declarations can also be viewed as a form of assignment:

const x = value;
let y = value;

14.3.2 Compound assignment operators

Given an operator op, the following two ways of assigning are equivalent:

myvar op= value

myvar = myvar op value

If, for example, op is +, then we get the operator += that works as follows.

let str = '';

str += '<b>';
str += 'Hello!';
str += '</b>';

assert.equal(str, '<b>Hello!</b>');

14.3.3 A list of all compound assignment operators

• Arithmetic operators:

+= -= *= /= %= **=

+= also works for string concatenation

104 14 Operators

• Bitwise operators:
<<= >>= >>>= &= ^= |=

14.4 Equality: == vs. ===

JavaScript has two kinds of equality operators: loose equality (==) and strict equality
(===). The recommendation is to always use the latter.

Other names for == and ===

• == is also called double equals. Its official name in the language specification
is abstract equality comparison.
• === is also called triple equals.

14.4.1 Loose equality (== and !=)

Loose equality is one of JavaScript’s quirks. It often coerces operands. Some of those
coercions make sense:
> '123' == 123
true
> false == 0
true

Others less so:

> '' == 0
true

Objects are coerced to primitives if (and only if!) the other operand is primitive:
> [1, 2, 3] == '1,2,3'
true
> ['1', '2', '3'] == '1,2,3'
true

If both operands are objects, they are only equal if they are the same object:
> [1, 2, 3] == ['1', '2', '3']
false
> [1, 2, 3] == [1, 2, 3]
false

> const arr = [1, 2, 3];

> arr == arr
true

Lastly, == considers undefined and null to be equal:

> undefined == null
true
14.4 Equality: == vs. === 105

14.4.2 Strict equality (=== and !==)

Strict equality never coerces. Two values are only equal if they have the same type. Let’s
revisit our previous interaction with the == operator and see what the === operator does:

> false === 0

false
> '123' === 123
false

An object is only equal to another value if that value is the same object:

> [1, 2, 3] === '1,2,3'

false
> ['1', '2', '3'] === '1,2,3'
false

> [1, 2, 3] === ['1', '2', '3']

false
> [1, 2, 3] === [1, 2, 3]
false

> const arr = [1, 2, 3];

> arr === arr
true

The === operator does not consider undefined and null to be equal:

> undefined === null

false

14.4.3 Recommendation: always use strict equality

I recommend to always use ===. It makes your code easier to understand and spares you
from having to think about the quirks of ==.

Let’s look at two use cases for == and what I recommend to do instead.

14.4.3.1 Use case for ==: comparing with a number or a string

== lets you check if a value x is a number or that number as a string – with a single
comparison:

if (x == 123) {
// x is either 123 or '123'
}

I prefer either of the following two alternatives:

if (x === 123 || x === '123') ···

if (Number(x) === 123) ···

You can also convert x to a number when you first encounter it.
106 14 Operators

14.4.3.2 Use case for ==: comparing with undefined or null

Another use case for == is to check if a value x is either undefined or null:

if (x == null) {
// x is either null or undefined
}

The problem with this code is that you can’t be sure if someone meant to write it that
way or if they made a typo and meant === null.
I prefer either of the following two alternatives:
if (x === undefined || x === null) ···
if (!x) ···

A downside of the second alternative is that it accepts values other than undefined and
null, but it is a well-established pattern in JavaScript (to be explained in detail in §16.3
“Truthiness-based existence checks”).
The following three conditions are also roughly equivalent:
if (x != null) ···
if (x !== undefined && x !== null) ···
if (x) ···

14.4.4 Even stricter than ===: Object.is()

Method Object.is() compares two values:
> Object.is(123, 123)
true
> Object.is(123, '123')
false

It is even stricter than ===. For example, it considers NaN, the error value for computations
involving numbers, to be equal to itself:
> Object.is(NaN, NaN)
true
> NaN === NaN
false

That is occasionally useful. For example, you can use it to implement an improved ver-
sion of the Array method .indexOf():
const myIndexOf = (arr, elem) => {
return arr.findIndex(x => Object.is(x, elem));
};

myIndexOf() finds NaN in an Array, while .indexOf() doesn’t:

> myIndexOf([0,NaN,2], NaN)

1
> [0,NaN,2].indexOf(NaN)
-1
14.6 The nullish coalescing operator (??) for default values [ES2020] 107

The result -1 means that .indexOf() couldn’t find its argument in the Array.

14.5 Ordering operators

Table 14.1: JavaScript’s ordering operators.

Operator name
< less than
<= Less than or equal
> Greater than
>= Greater than or equal

JavaScript’s ordering operators (tbl. 14.1) work for both numbers and strings:
> 5 >= 2
true
> 'bar' < 'foo'
true

<= and >= are based on strict equality.

The ordering operators don’t work well for human languages

The ordering operators don’t work well for comparing text in a human language,
e.g., when capitalization or accents are involved. The details are explained in §21.5
“Comparing strings”.

14.6 The nullish coalescing operator (??) for default val-

ues [ES2020]
Sometimes we receive a value and only want to use it if it isn’t either null or undefined.
Otherwise, we’d like to use a default value, as a fallback. We can do that via the nullish
coalescing operator (??):
const valueToUse = receivedValue ?? defaultValue;

The following two expressions are equivalent:

a ?? b
a !== undefined && a !== null ? a : b

14.6.1 Example: counting matches

The following code shows a real-world example:
function countMatches(regex, str) {
const matchResult = str.match(regex); // null or Array
108 14 Operators

return (matchResult ?? []).length;

}

assert.equal(
countMatches(/a/g, 'ababa'), 3);
assert.equal(
countMatches(/b/g, 'ababa'), 2);
assert.equal(
countMatches(/x/g, 'ababa'), 0);

If there are one or more matches for regex inside str, then .match() returns an Array.
If there are no matches, it unfortunately returns null (and not the empty Array). We fix
that via the ?? operator.

We also could have used optional chaining:

return matchResult?.length ?? 0;

14.6.2 Example: specifying a default value for a property

function getTitle(fileDesc) {
return fileDesc.title ?? '(Untitled)';
}

const files = [
{path: 'index.html', title: 'Home'},
{path: 'tmp.html'},
];
assert.deepEqual(
files.map(f => getTitle(f)),
['Home', '(Untitled)']);

14.6.3 Using destructuring for default values

In some cases, destructuring can also be used for default values – for example:

function getTitle(fileDesc) {
const {title = '(Untitled)'} = fileDesc;
return title;
}

14.6.4 Legacy approach: using logical Or (||) for default values

Before ECMAScript 2020 and the nullish coalescing operator, logical Or was used for
default values. That has a downside.

|| works as expected for undefined and null:

> undefined || 'default'

'default'
14.7 Various other operators 109

> null || 'default'

'default'

But it also returns the default for all other falsy values – for example:
> false || 'default'
'default'
> 0 || 'default'
'default'
> 0n || 'default'
'default'
> '' || 'default'
'default'

Compare that to how ?? works:

> undefined ?? 'default'
'default'
> null ?? 'default'
'default'

> false ?? 'default'

false
> 0 ?? 'default'
0
> 0n ?? 'default'
0n
> '' ?? 'default'
''

14.7 Various other operators

Operators for booleans, strings, numbers, objects: are covered elsewhere in this book.
The next two subsections discuss two operators that are rarely used.

14.7.1 Comma operator

The comma operator has two operands, evaluates both of them and returns the second
one:
> 'a', 'b'
'b'

For more information on this operator, see Speaking JavaScript.

14.7.2 void operator

The void operator evaluates its operand and returns undefined:
> void (3 + 2)
undefined
110 14 Operators

For more information on this operator, see Speaking JavaScript.

Quiz
See quiz app.
 Part IV

Primitive values

111
Chapter 15

The non-values undefined and

null

Contents
15.1 undefined vs. null . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113
15.2 Occurrences of undefined and null . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114
15.2.1 Occurrences of undefined . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114
15.2.2 Occurrences of null . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114
15.3 Checking for undefined or null . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115
15.4 undefined and null don’t have properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115
15.5 The history of undefined and null . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 116

Many programming languages have one “non-value” called null. It indicates that a vari-
able does not currently point to an object – for example, when it hasn’t been initialized
yet.

In contrast, JavaScript has two of them: undefined and null.

15.1 undefined vs. null

Both values are very similar and often used interchangeably. How they differ is therefore
subtle. The language itself makes the following distinction:

• undefined means “not initialized” (e.g., a variable) or “not existing” (e.g., a prop-
erty of an object).
• null means “the intentional absence of any object value” (a quote from the lan-
guage specification).

Programmers may make the following distinction:

• undefined is the non-value used by the language (when something is uninitialized,

etc.).

113
114 15 The non-values undefined and null

• null means “explicitly switched off”. That is, it helps implement a type that com-
prises both meaningful values and a meta-value that stands for “no meaningful
value”. Such a type is called option type or maybe type in functional programming.

15.2 Occurrences of undefined and null

The following subsections describe where undefined and null appear in the language.
We’ll encounter several mechanisms that are explained in more detail later in this book.

15.2.1 Occurrences of undefined

Uninitialized variable myVar:

let myVar;
assert.equal(myVar, undefined);

Parameter x is not provided:

function func(x) {
return x;
}
assert.equal(func(), undefined);

Property .unknownProp is missing:

const obj = {};

assert.equal(obj.unknownProp, undefined);

If you don’t explicitly specify the result of a function via a return statement, JavaScript
returns undefined for you:

function func() {}
assert.equal(func(), undefined);

15.2.2 Occurrences of null

The prototype of an object is either an object or, at the end of a chain of prototypes, null.
Object.prototype does not have a prototype:

> Object.getPrototypeOf(Object.prototype)
null

If you match a regular expression (such as /a/) against a string (such as 'x'), you either
get an object with matching data (if matching was successful) or null (if matching failed):

> /a/.exec('x')
null

The JSON data format does not support undefined, only null:

> JSON.stringify({a: undefined, b: null})

'{"b":null}'
15.3 Checking for undefined or null 115

15.3 Checking for undefined or null

Checking for either:

if (x === null) ···

if (x === undefined) ···

Does x have a value?

if (x !== undefined && x !== null) {

// ···
}
if (x) { // truthy?
// x is neither: undefined, null, false, 0, NaN, ''
}

Is x either undefined or null?

if (x === undefined || x === null) {

// ···
}
if (!x) { // falsy?
// x is: undefined, null, false, 0, NaN, ''
}

Truthy means “is true if coerced to boolean”. Falsy means “is false if coerced to boolean”.
Both concepts are explained properly in §16.2 “Falsy and truthy values”.

15.4 undefined and null don’t have properties

undefined and null are the two only JavaScript values where you get an exception if
you try to read a property. To explore this phenomenon, let’s use the following function,
which reads (“gets”) property .foo and returns the result.

function getFoo(x) {
return x.foo;
}

If we apply getFoo() to various values, we can see that it only fails for undefined and
null:

> getFoo(undefined)
TypeError: Cannot read property 'foo' of undefined
> getFoo(null)
TypeError: Cannot read property 'foo' of null

> getFoo(true)
undefined
> getFoo({})
undefined
116 15 The non-values undefined and null

15.5 The history of undefined and null

In Java (which inspired many aspects of JavaScript), initialization values depend on the
static type of a variable:
• Variables with object types are initialized with null.
• Each primitive type has its own initialization value. For example, int variables
are initialized with 0.
In JavaScript, each variable can hold both object values and primitive values. Therefore,
if null means “not an object”, JavaScript also needs an initialization value that means
“neither an object nor a primitive value”. That initialization value is undefined.

Quiz
See quiz app.
Chapter 16

Booleans

Contents
16.1 Converting to boolean . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117
16.2 Falsy and truthy values . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118
16.2.1 Checking for truthiness or falsiness . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119
16.3 Truthiness-based existence checks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119
16.3.1 Pitfall: truthiness-based existence checks are imprecise . . . . 120
16.3.2 Use case: was a parameter provided? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120
16.3.3 Use case: does a property exist? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121
16.4 Conditional operator (? :) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121
16.5 Binary logical operators: And (x && y), Or (x || y) . . . . . . . . . 122
16.5.1 Logical And (x && y) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122
16.5.2 Logical Or (||) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 123
16.5.3 Legacy use case for logical Or (||): providing default values . 123
16.6 Logical Not (!) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 123

The primitive type boolean comprises two values – false and true:
> typeof false
'boolean'
> typeof true
'boolean'

16.1 Converting to boolean

The meaning of “converting to [type]”

“Converting to [type]” is short for “Converting arbitrary values to values of type
[type]”.

These are three ways in which you can convert an arbitrary value x to a boolean.

117
118 16 Booleans

• Boolean(x)
Most descriptive; recommended.
• x ? true : false
Uses the conditional operator (explained later in this chapter).
• !!x
Uses the logical Not operator (!). This operator coerces its operand to boolean. It
is applied a second time to get a non-negated result.
Tbl. 16.1 describes how various values are converted to boolean.

Table 16.1: Converting values to booleans.

x Boolean(x)

undefined false
null false
boolean x (no change)
number 0 → false, NaN → false
Other numbers → true
bigint 0 → false
Other numbers → true
string '' → false
Other strings → true
symbol true
object Always true

16.2 Falsy and truthy values

When checking the condition of an if statement, a while loop, or a do-while loop,
JavaScript works differently than you may expect. Take, for example, the following
condition:

if (value) {}

In many programming languages, this condition is equivalent to:

if (value === true) {}

However, in JavaScript, it is equivalent to:

if (Boolean(value) === true) {}

That is, JavaScript checks if value is true when converted to boolean. This kind of check
is so common that the following names were introduced:

• A value is called truthy if it is true when converted to boolean.

• A value is called falsy if it is false when converted to boolean.

Each value is either truthy or falsy. Consulting tbl. 16.1, we can make an exhaustive list
of falsy values:
16.3 Truthiness-based existence checks 119

• undefined
• null
• Boolean: false
• Numbers: 0, NaN
• Bigint: 0n
• String: ''

All other values (including all objects) are truthy:

> Boolean('abc')
true
> Boolean([])
true
> Boolean({})
true

16.2.1 Checking for truthiness or falsiness

if (x) {
// x is truthy
}

if (!x) {
// x is falsy
}

if (x) {
// x is truthy
} else {
// x is falsy
}

const result = x ? 'truthy' : 'falsy';

The conditional operator that is used in the last line, is explained later in this chapter.

Exercise: Truthiness
exercises/booleans/truthiness_exrc.mjs

16.3 Truthiness-based existence checks

In JavaScript, if you read something that doesn’t exist (e.g., a missing parameter or a
missing property), you usually get undefined as a result. In these cases, an existence
check amounts to comparing a value with undefined. For example, the following code
checks if object obj has the property .prop:

if (obj.prop !== undefined) {

// obj has property .prop
120 16 Booleans

Due to undefined being falsy, we can shorten this check to:

if (obj.prop) {
// obj has property .prop
}

16.3.1 Pitfall: truthiness-based existence checks are imprecise

Truthiness-based existence checks have one pitfall: they are not very precise. Consider
this previous example:

if (obj.prop) {
// obj has property .prop
}

The body of the if statement is skipped if:

• obj.prop is missing (in which case, JavaScript returns undefined).

However, it is also skipped if:

• obj.prop is undefined.
• obj.prop is any other falsy value (null, 0, '', etc.).

In practice, this rarely causes problems, but you have to be aware of this pitfall.

16.3.2 Use case: was a parameter provided?

A truthiness check is often used to determine if the caller of a function provided a param-
eter:

function func(x) {
if (!x) {
throw new Error('Missing parameter x');
}
// ···
}

On the plus side, this pattern is established and short. It correctly throws errors for un-
defined and null.

On the minus side, there is the previously mentioned pitfall: the code also throws errors
for all other falsy values.

An alternative is to check for undefined:

if (x === undefined) {
throw new Error('Missing parameter x');
}
16.4 Conditional operator (? :) 121

16.3.3 Use case: does a property exist?

Truthiness checks are also often used to determine if a property exists:

function readFile(fileDesc) {
if (!fileDesc.path) {
throw new Error('Missing property: .path');
}
// ···
}
readFile({ path: 'foo.txt' }); // no error

This pattern is also established and has the usual caveat: it not only throws if the property
is missing, but also if it exists and has any of the falsy values.

If you truly want to check if the property exists, you have to use the in operator:

if (! ('path' in fileDesc)) {
throw new Error('Missing property: .path');
}

16.4 Conditional operator (? :)

The conditional operator is the expression version of the if statement. Its syntax is:

«condition» ? «thenExpression» : «elseExpression»

It is evaluated as follows:

• If condition is truthy, evaluate and return thenExpression.

• Otherwise, evaluate and return elseExpression.

The conditional operator is also called ternary operator because it has three operands.

Examples:

> true ? 'yes' : 'no'

'yes'
> false ? 'yes' : 'no'
'no'
> '' ? 'yes' : 'no'
'no'

The following code demonstrates that whichever of the two branches “then” and “else”
is chosen via the condition, only that branch is evaluated. The other branch isn’t.

const x = (true ? console.log('then') : console.log('else'));

// Output:
// 'then'
122 16 Booleans

16.5 Binary logical operators: And (x && y), Or (x || y)

The operators && and || are value-preserving and short-circuiting. What does that mean?

Value-preservation means that operands are interpreted as booleans but returned

unchanged:

> 12 || 'hello'
12
> 0 || 'hello'
'hello'

Short-circuiting means if the first operand already determines the result, then the second
operand is not evaluated. The only other operator that delays evaluating its operands
is the conditional operator. Usually, all operands are evaluated before performing an
operation.

For example, logical And (&&) does not evaluate its second operand if the first one is falsy:

const x = false && console.log('hello');

// No output

If the first operand is truthy, console.log() is executed:

const x = true && console.log('hello');

// Output:
// 'hello'

16.5.1 Logical And (x && y)

The expression a && b (“a And b”) is evaluated as follows:

1. Evaluate a.
2. Is the result falsy? Return it.
3. Otherwise, evaluate b and return the result.

In other words, the following two expressions are roughly equivalent:

a && b
!a ? a : b

Examples:

> false && true

false
> false && 'abc'
false

> true && false

false
> true && 'abc'
'abc'
16.6 Logical Not (!) 123

> '' && 'abc'

''

16.5.2 Logical Or (||)

The expression a || b (“a Or b”) is evaluated as follows:

1. Evaluate a.
2. Is the result truthy? Return it.
3. Otherwise, evaluate b and return the result.

In other words, the following two expressions are roughly equivalent:

a || b
a ? a : b

Examples:

> true || false

true
> true || 'abc'
true

> false || true

true
> false || 'abc'
'abc'

> 'abc' || 'def'

'abc'

16.5.3 Legacy use case for logical Or (||): providing default values
ECMAScript 2020 introduced the nullish coalescing operator (??) for default values. Be-
fore that, logical Or was used for this purpose:

const valueToUse = receivedValue || defaultValue;

See §14.6 “The nullish coalescing operator (??) for default values [ES2020]” for more
information on ?? and the downsides of || in this case.

Legacy exercise: Default values via the Or operator (||)

exercises/booleans/default_via_or_exrc.mjs

16.6 Logical Not (!)

The expression !x (“Not x”) is evaluated as follows:

1. Evaluate x.
2. Is it truthy? Return false.
124 16 Booleans

3. Otherwise, return true.

Examples:
> !false
true
> !true
false

> !0
true
> !123
false

> !''
true
> !'abc'
false

Quiz
See quiz app.
Chapter 17

Numbers

Contents
17.1 Numbers are used for both floating point numbers and integers . . 126
17.2 Number literals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 126
17.2.1 Integer literals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 126
17.2.2 Floating point literals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 127
17.2.3 Syntactic pitfall: properties of integer literals . . . . . . . . . . 127
17.3 Arithmetic operators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 127
17.3.1 Binary arithmetic operators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 127
17.3.2 Unary plus (+) and negation (-) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 128
17.3.3 Incrementing (++) and decrementing (--) . . . . . . . . . . . . 128
17.4 Converting to number . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130
17.5 Error values . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130
17.6 Error value: NaN . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131
17.6.1 Checking for NaN . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131
17.6.2 Finding NaN in Arrays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131
17.7 Error value: Infinity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 132
17.7.1 Infinity as a default value . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 132
17.7.2 Checking for Infinity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 132
17.8 The precision of numbers: careful with decimal fractions . . . . . . 133
17.9 (Advanced) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133
17.10Background: floating point precision . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133
17.10.1 A simplified representation of floating point numbers . . . . . 134
17.11Integer numbers in JavaScript . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 135
17.11.1 Converting to integer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136
17.11.2 Ranges of integer numbers in JavaScript . . . . . . . . . . . . 136
17.11.3 Safe integers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 137
17.12Bitwise operators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 138
17.12.1 Internally, bitwise operators work with 32-bit integers . . . . . 138
17.12.2 Bitwise Not . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 139

125
126 17 Numbers

17.12.3 Binary bitwise operators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 139

17.12.4 Bitwise shift operators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 139
17.12.5 b32(): displaying unsigned 32-bit integers in binary notation . 140
17.13Quick reference: numbers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 140
17.13.1 Global functions for numbers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 140
17.13.2 Static properties of Number . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 141
17.13.3 Static methods of Number . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 141
17.13.4 Methods of Number.prototype . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 143
17.13.5 Sources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145

JavaScript has two kinds of numeric values:

• Numbers are 64-bit floating point numbers and are also used for smaller integers
(within a range of plus/minus 53 bits).
• Bigints represent integers with an arbitrary precision.
This chapter covers numbers. Bigints are covered later in this book.

17.1 Numbers are used for both floating point numbers

and integers
The type number is used for both integers and floating point numbers in JavaScript:
98
123.45

However, all numbers are doubles, 64-bit floating point numbers implemented according
to the IEEE Standard for Floating-Point Arithmetic (IEEE 754).
Integer numbers are simply floating point numbers without a decimal fraction:
> 98 === 98.0
true

Note that, under the hood, most JavaScript engines are often able to use real integers,
with all associated performance and storage size benefits.

17.2 Number literals

Let’s examine literals for numbers.

17.2.1 Integer literals

Several integer literals let you express integers with various bases:
// Binary (base 2)
assert.equal(0b11, 3);

// Octal (base 8)
assert.equal(0o10, 8);
17.3 Arithmetic operators 127

// Decimal (base 10):

assert.equal(35, 35);

// Hexadecimal (base 16)

assert.equal(0xE7, 231);

17.2.2 Floating point literals

Floating point numbers can only be expressed in base 10.
Fractions:
> 35.0
35

Exponent: eN means ×10N

> 3e2
300
> 3e-2
0.03
> 0.3e2
30

17.2.3 Syntactic pitfall: properties of integer literals

Accessing a property of an integer literal entails a pitfall: If the integer literal is immedi-
ately followed by a dot, then that dot is interpreted as a decimal dot:
7.toString(); // syntax error

There are four ways to work around this pitfall:

7.0.toString()
(7).toString()
7..toString()
7 .toString() // space before dot

17.3 Arithmetic operators

17.3.1 Binary arithmetic operators
Tbl. 17.1 lists JavaScript’s binary arithmetic operators.

Table 17.1: Binary arithmetic operators.

Operator Name Example

n + m Addition ES1 3 + 4→7
n - m Subtraction ES1 9 - 1→8
n * m Multiplication ES1 3 * 2.25 → 6.75
128 17 Numbers

Operator Name Example

n / m Division ES1 5.625 / 5 → 1.125
n % m Remainder ES1 8 % 5→3
-8 % 5 → -3
n ** m Exponentiation ES2016 4 ** 2 → 16

17.3.1.1 % is a remainder operator

% is a remainder operator, not a modulo operator. Its result has the sign of the first
operand:
> 5 % 3
2
> -5 % 3
-2

For more information on the difference between remainder and modulo, see the blog
post “Remainder operator vs. modulo operator (with JavaScript code)” on 2ality.

17.3.2 Unary plus (+) and negation (-)

Tbl. 17.2 summarizes the two operators unary plus (+) and negation (-).

Table 17.2: The operators unary plus (+) and negation (-).

Operator Name Example

+n Unary plus ES1 +(-7) → -7
-n Unary negation ES1 -(-7) → 7

Both operators coerce their operands to numbers:

> +'5'
5
> +'-12'
-12
> -'9'
-9

Thus, unary plus lets us convert arbitrary values to numbers.

17.3.3 Incrementing (++) and decrementing (--)

The incrementation operator ++ exists in a prefix version and a suffix version. In both ver-
sions, it destructively adds one to its operand. Therefore, its operand must be a storage
location that can be changed.

The decrementation operator -- works the same, but subtracts one from its operand. The
next two examples explain the difference between the prefix and the suffix version.
17.3 Arithmetic operators 129

Tbl. 17.3 summarizes the incrementation and decrementation operators.

Table 17.3: Incrementation operators and decrementation operators.

Operator Name Example

v++ Increment ES1 let v=0; [v++, v] → [0, 1]
++v Increment ES1 let v=0; [++v, v] → [1, 1]
v-- Decrement ES1 let v=1; [v--, v] → [1, 0]
--v Decrement ES1 let v=1; [--v, v] → [0, 0]

Next, we’ll look at examples of these operators in use.

Prefix ++ and prefix -- change their operands and then return them.

let foo = 3;
assert.equal(++foo, 4);
assert.equal(foo, 4);

let bar = 3;
assert.equal(--bar, 2);
assert.equal(bar, 2);

Suffix ++ and suffix -- return their operands and then change them.

let foo = 3;
assert.equal(foo++, 3);
assert.equal(foo, 4);

let bar = 3;
assert.equal(bar--, 3);
assert.equal(bar, 2);

17.3.3.1 Operands: not just variables

You can also apply these operators to property values:

const obj = { a: 1 };
++obj.a;
assert.equal(obj.a, 2);

And to Array elements:

const arr = [ 4 ];
arr[0]++;
assert.deepEqual(arr, [5]);

Exercise: Number operators

exercises/numbers-math/is_odd_test.mjs
130 17 Numbers

17.4 Converting to number

These are three ways of converting values to numbers:
• Number(value)
• +value
• parseFloat(value) (avoid; different than the other two!)
Recommendation: use the descriptive Number(). Tbl. 17.4 summarizes how it works.

Table 17.4: Converting values to numbers.

x Number(x)

undefined NaN
null +0
boolean false → +0, true → 1
number x (no change)
bigint Throws TypeError
string '' → +0
Other → parsed number, ignoring leading/trailing whitespace
symbol Throws TypeError
object Configurable (e.g. via .valueOf())

Examples:

assert.equal(Number(123.45), 123.45);

assert.equal(Number(''), 0);
assert.equal(Number('\n 123.45 \t'), 123.45);
assert.equal(Number('xyz'), NaN);

How objects are converted to numbers can be configured – for example, by overriding
.valueOf():

> Number({ valueOf() { return 123 } })

123

Exercise: Converting to number

exercises/numbers-math/parse_number_test.mjs

17.5 Error values

Two number values are returned when errors happen:

• NaN
• Infinity
17.6 Error value: NaN 131

17.6 Error value: NaN

NaN is an abbreviation of “not a number”. Ironically, JavaScript considers it to be a num-
ber:

> typeof NaN

'number'

When is NaN returned?

NaN is returned if a number can’t be parsed:

> Number('$$$')
NaN
> Number(undefined)
NaN

NaN is returned if an operation can’t be performed:

> Math.log(-1)
NaN
> Math.sqrt(-1)
NaN

NaN is returned if an operand or argument is NaN (to propagate errors):

> NaN - 3
NaN
> 7 ** NaN
NaN

17.6.1 Checking for NaN

NaN is the only JavaScript value that is not strictly equal to itself:

const n = NaN;
assert.equal(n === n, false);

These are several ways of checking if a value x is NaN:

const x = NaN;

assert.equal(Number.isNaN(x), true); // preferred

assert.equal(Object.is(x, NaN), true);
assert.equal(x !== x, true);

In the last line, we use the comparison quirk to detect NaN.

17.6.2 Finding NaN in Arrays

Some Array methods can’t find NaN:

> [NaN].indexOf(NaN)
-1
132 17 Numbers

Others can:

> [NaN].includes(NaN)
true
> [NaN].findIndex(x => Number.isNaN(x))
0
> [NaN].find(x => Number.isNaN(x))
NaN

Alas, there is no simple rule of thumb. You have to check for each method how it handles
NaN.

17.7 Error value: Infinity

When is the error value Infinity returned?

Infinity is returned if a number is too large:

> Math.pow(2, 1023)

8.98846567431158e+307
> Math.pow(2, 1024)
Infinity

Infinity is returned if there is a division by zero:

> 5 / 0
Infinity
> -5 / 0
-Infinity

17.7.1 Infinity as a default value

Infinity is larger than all other numbers (except NaN), making it a good default value:

function findMinimum(numbers) {
let min = Infinity;
for (const n of numbers) {
if (n < min) min = n;
}
return min;
}

assert.equal(findMinimum([5, -1, 2]), -1);

assert.equal(findMinimum([]), Infinity);

17.7.2 Checking for Infinity

These are two common ways of checking if a value x is Infinity:

const x = Infinity;
17.8 The precision of numbers: careful with decimal fractions 133

assert.equal(x === Infinity, true);

assert.equal(Number.isFinite(x), false);

Exercise: Comparing numbers

exercises/numbers-math/find_max_test.mjs

17.8 The precision of numbers: careful with decimal frac-

tions
Internally, JavaScript floating point numbers are represented with base 2 (according to
the IEEE 754 standard). That means that decimal fractions (base 10) can’t always be
represented precisely:
> 0.1 + 0.2
0.30000000000000004
> 1.3 * 3
3.9000000000000004
> 1.4 * 100000000000000
139999999999999.98

You therefore need to take rounding errors into consideration when performing arith-
metic in JavaScript.
Read on for an explanation of this phenomenon.

Quiz: basic
See quiz app.

17.9 (Advanced)
All remaining sections of this chapter are advanced.

17.10 Background: floating point precision

In JavaScript, computations with numbers don’t always produce correct results – for
example:
> 0.1 + 0.2
0.30000000000000004

To understand why, we need to explore how JavaScript represents floating point numbers
internally. It uses three integers to do so, which take up a total of 64 bits of storage (double
precision):
134 17 Numbers

Component Size Integer range

Sign 1 bit [0, 1]
Fraction 52 bits [0, 252 −1]
Exponent 11 bits [−1023, 1024]

The floating point number represented by these integers is computed as follows:

(–1)sign × 0b1.fraction × 2exponent
This representation can’t encode a zero because its second component (involving the
fraction) always has a leading 1. Therefore, a zero is encoded via the special exponent
−1023 and a fraction 0.

17.10.1 A simplified representation of floating point numbers

To make further discussions easier, we simplify the previous representation:
• Instead of base 2 (binary), we use base 10 (decimal) because that’s what most peo-
ple are more familiar with.
• The fraction is a natural number that is interpreted as a fraction (digits after a point).
We switch to a mantissa, an integer that is interpreted as itself. As a consequence,
the exponent is used differently, but its fundamental role doesn’t change.
• As the mantissa is an integer (with its own sign), we don’t need a separate sign,
anymore.
The new representation works like this:
mantissa × 10exponent
Let’s try out this representation for a few floating point numbers.
• For the integer −123, we mainly need the mantissa:
> -123 * (10 ** 0)
-123

• For the number 1.5, we imagine there being a point after the mantissa. We use a
negative exponent to move that point one digit to the left:
> 15 * (10 ** -1)
1.5

• For the number 0.25, we move the point two digits to the left:
> 25 * (10 ** -2)
0.25

Representations with negative exponents can also be written as fractions with positive
exponents in the denominators:
> 15 * (10 ** -1) === 15 / (10 ** 1)
true
> 25 * (10 ** -2) === 25 / (10 ** 2)
true
17.11 Integer numbers in JavaScript 135

These fractions help with understanding why there are numbers that our encoding can-
not represent:

• 1/10 can be represented. It already has the required format: a power of 10 in the
denominator.

• 1/2 can be represented as 5/10. We turned the 2 in the denominator into a power
of 10 by multiplying the numerator and denominator by 5.

• 1/4 can be represented as 25/100. We turned the 4 in the denominator into a power
of 10 by multiplying the numerator and denominator by 25.

• 1/3 cannot be represented. There is no way to turn the denominator into a power
of 10. (The prime factors of 10 are 2 and 5. Therefore, any denominator that only
has these prime factors can be converted to a power of 10, by multiplying both the
numerator and denominator by enough twos and fives. If a denominator has a
different prime factor, then there’s nothing we can do.)

To conclude our excursion, we switch back to base 2:

• 0.5 = 1/2 can be represented with base 2 because the denominator is already a
power of 2.
• 0.25 = 1/4 can be represented with base 2 because the denominator is already a
power of 2.
• 0.1 = 1/10 cannot be represented because the denominator cannot be converted
to a power of 2.
• 0.2 = 2/10 cannot be represented because the denominator cannot be converted
to a power of 2.

Now we can see why 0.1 + 0.2 doesn’t produce a correct result: internally, neither of
the two operands can be represented precisely.

The only way to compute precisely with decimal fractions is by internally switching to
base 10. For many programming languages, base 2 is the default and base 10 an option.
For example, Java has the class BigDecimal and Python has the module decimal. There
are tentative plans to add something similar to JavaScript: the ECMAScript proposal
“Decimal” is currently at stage 0.

17.11 Integer numbers in JavaScript

Integer numbers are normal (floating point) numbers without decimal fractions:

> 1 === 1.0

true
> Number.isInteger(1.0)
true

In this section, we’ll look at a few tools for working with these pseudo-integers.
JavaScript also supports bigints, which are real integers.
136 17 Numbers

17.11.1 Converting to integer

The recommended way of converting numbers to integers is to use one of the rounding
methods of the Math object:

• Math.floor(n): returns the largest integer i ≤ n

> Math.floor(2.1)
2
> Math.floor(2.9)
2

• Math.ceil(n): returns the smallest integer i ≥ n

> Math.ceil(2.1)
3
> Math.ceil(2.9)
3

• Math.round(n): returns the integer that is “closest” to n with __.5 being rounded
up – for example:

> Math.round(2.4)
2
> Math.round(2.5)
3

• Math.trunc(n): removes any decimal fraction (after the point) that n has, therefore
turning it into an integer.

> Math.trunc(2.1)
2
> Math.trunc(2.9)
2

For more information on rounding, consult §18.3 “Rounding”.

17.11.2 Ranges of integer numbers in JavaScript

These are important ranges of integer numbers in JavaScript:

• Safe integers: can be represented “safely” by JavaScript (more on what that means
in the next subsection)
– Precision: 53 bits plus sign
– Range: (−253 , 253 )
• Array indices
– Precision: 32 bits, unsigned
– Range: [0, 232 −1) (excluding the maximum length)
– Typed Arrays have a larger range of 53 bits (safe and unsigned)
• Bitwise operators (bitwise Or, etc.)
– Precision: 32 bits
– Range of unsigned right shift (>>>): unsigned, [0, 232 )
– Range of all other bitwise operators: signed, [−231 , 231 )
17.11 Integer numbers in JavaScript 137

17.11.3 Safe integers

This is the range of integer numbers that are safe in JavaScript (53 bits plus a sign):

[–253 –1, 253 –1]

An integer is safe if it is represented by exactly one JavaScript number. Given that

JavaScript numbers are encoded as a fraction multiplied by 2 to the power of an
exponent, higher integers can also be represented, but then there are gaps between
them.

For example (18014398509481984 is 254 ):

> 18014398509481984
18014398509481984
> 18014398509481985
18014398509481984
> 18014398509481986
18014398509481984
> 18014398509481987
18014398509481988

The following properties of Number help determine if an integer is safe:

assert.equal(Number.MAX_SAFE_INTEGER, (2 ** 53) - 1);

assert.equal(Number.MIN_SAFE_INTEGER, -Number.MAX_SAFE_INTEGER);

assert.equal(Number.isSafeInteger(5), true);
assert.equal(Number.isSafeInteger('5'), false);
assert.equal(Number.isSafeInteger(5.1), false);
assert.equal(Number.isSafeInteger(Number.MAX_SAFE_INTEGER), true);
assert.equal(Number.isSafeInteger(Number.MAX_SAFE_INTEGER+1), false);

Exercise: Detecting safe integers

exercises/numbers-math/is_safe_integer_test.mjs

17.11.3.1 Safe computations

Let’s look at computations involving unsafe integers.

The following result is incorrect and unsafe, even though both of its operands are safe:

> 9007199254740990 + 3
9007199254740992

The following result is safe, but incorrect. The first operand is unsafe; the second operand
is safe:

> 9007199254740995 - 10
9007199254740986

Therefore, the result of an expression a op b is correct if and only if:

138 17 Numbers

isSafeInteger(a) && isSafeInteger(b) && isSafeInteger(a op b)

That is, both operands and the result must be safe.

17.12 Bitwise operators

17.12.1 Internally, bitwise operators work with 32-bit integers
Internally, JavaScript’s bitwise operators work with 32-bit integers. They produce their
results in the following steps:
• Input (JavaScript numbers): The 1–2 operands are first converted to JavaScript
numbers (64-bit floating point numbers) and then to 32-bit integers.
• Computation (32-bit integers): The actual operation processes 32-bit integers and
produces a 32-bit integer.
• Output (JavaScript number): Before returning the result, it is converted back to a
JavaScript number.

17.12.1.1 The types of operands and results

For each bitwise operator, this book mentions the types of its operands and its result.
Each type is always one of the following two:

Type Description Size Range

Int32 signed 32-bit integer 32 bits incl. sign [−231 , 231 )
Uint32 unsigned 32-bit integer 32 bits [0, 232 )

Considering the previously mentioned steps, I recommend to pretend that bitwise oper-
ators internally work with unsigned 32-bit integers (step “computation”) and that Int32
and Uint32 only affect how JavaScript numbers are converted to and from integers (steps
“input” and “output”).

17.12.1.2 Displaying JavaScript numbers as unsigned 32-bit integers

While exploring the bitwise operators, it occasionally helps to display JavaScript num-
bers as unsigned 32-bit integers in binary notation. That’s what b32() does (whose im-
plementation is shown later):

assert.equal(
b32(-1),
'11111111111111111111111111111111');
assert.equal(
b32(1),
'00000000000000000000000000000001');
assert.equal(
b32(2 ** 31),
'10000000000000000000000000000000');
17.12 Bitwise operators 139

17.12.2 Bitwise Not

Table 17.7: The bitwise Not operator.

Operation Name Type signature

~num Bitwise Not, ones’ complement Int32 → Int32 ES1

The bitwise Not operator (tbl. 17.7) inverts each binary digit of its operand:
> b32(~0b100)
'11111111111111111111111111111011'

This so-called ones’ complement is similar to a negative for some arithmetic operations.
For example, adding an integer to its ones’ complement is always -1:
> 4 + ~4
-1
> -11 + ~-11
-1

17.12.3 Binary bitwise operators

Table 17.8: Binary bitwise operators.

Operation Name Type signature

num1 & num2 Bitwise And Int32 × Int32 → Int32 ES1
num1 ¦ num2 Bitwise Or Int32 × Int32 → Int32 ES1
num1 ^ num2 Bitwise Xor Int32 × Int32 → Int32 ES1

The binary bitwise operators (tbl. 17.8) combine the bits of their operands to produce
their results:
> (0b1010 & 0b0011).toString(2).padStart(4, '0')
'0010'
> (0b1010 | 0b0011).toString(2).padStart(4, '0')
'1011'
> (0b1010 ^ 0b0011).toString(2).padStart(4, '0')
'1001'

17.12.4 Bitwise shift operators

Table 17.9: Bitwise shift operators.

Operation Name Type signature

num << count Left shift Int32 × Uint32 → Int32 ES1
num >> count Signed right shift Int32 × Uint32 → Int32 ES1
140 17 Numbers

Operation Name Type signature

num >>> count Unsigned right shift Uint32 × Uint32 → Uint32 ES1

The shift operators (tbl. 17.9) move binary digits to the left or to the right:
> (0b10 << 1).toString(2)
'100'

>> preserves highest bit, >>> doesn’t:

> b32(0b10000000000000000000000000000010 >> 1)

'11000000000000000000000000000001'
> b32(0b10000000000000000000000000000010 >>> 1)
'01000000000000000000000000000001'

17.12.5 b32(): displaying unsigned 32-bit integers in binary notation

We have now used b32() a few times. The following code is an implementation of it:
/**
* Return a string representing n as a 32-bit unsigned integer,
* in binary notation.
*/
function b32(n) {
// >>> ensures highest bit isn’t interpreted as a sign
return (n >>> 0).toString(2).padStart(32, '0');
}
assert.equal(
b32(6),
'00000000000000000000000000000110');

n >>> 0 means that we are shifting n zero bits to the right. Therefore, in principle, the
>>> operator does nothing, but it still coerces n to an unsigned 32-bit integer:

> 12 >>> 0
12
> -12 >>> 0
4294967284
> (2**32 + 1) >>> 0
1

17.13 Quick reference: numbers

17.13.1 Global functions for numbers
JavaScript has the following four global functions for numbers:
• isFinite()
• isNaN()
• parseFloat()
17.13 Quick reference: numbers 141

• parseInt()

However, it is better to use the corresponding methods of Number (Number.isFinite(),

etc.), which have fewer pitfalls. They were introduced with ES6 and are discussed below.

17.13.2 Static properties of Number

• .EPSILON: number [ES6]

The difference between 1 and the next representable floating point number. In
general, a machine epsilon provides an upper bound for rounding errors in floating
point arithmetic.

– Approximately: 2.2204460492503130808472633361816 × 10-16

• .MAX_SAFE_INTEGER: number [ES6]

The largest integer that JavaScript can represent unambiguously (253 −1).

• .MAX_VALUE: number [ES1]

The largest positive finite JavaScript number.

– Approximately: 1.7976931348623157 × 10308

• .MIN_SAFE_INTEGER: number [ES6]

The smallest integer that JavaScript can represent unambiguously (−253 +1).

• .MIN_VALUE: number [ES1]

The smallest positive JavaScript number. Approximately 5 × 10−324 .

• .NaN: number [ES1]

The same as the global variable NaN.

• .NEGATIVE_INFINITY: number [ES1]

The same as -Number.POSITIVE_INFINITY.

• .POSITIVE_INFINITY: number [ES1]

The same as the global variable Infinity.

17.13.3 Static methods of Number

• .isFinite(num: number): boolean [ES6]

Returns true if num is an actual number (neither Infinity nor -Infinity nor NaN).

> Number.isFinite(Infinity)
false
> Number.isFinite(-Infinity)
false
> Number.isFinite(NaN)
false
142 17 Numbers

> Number.isFinite(123)
true

• .isInteger(num: number): boolean [ES6]

Returns true if num is a number and does not have a decimal fraction.

> Number.isInteger(-17)
true
> Number.isInteger(33)
true
> Number.isInteger(33.1)
false
> Number.isInteger('33')
false
> Number.isInteger(NaN)
false
> Number.isInteger(Infinity)
false

• .isNaN(num: number): boolean [ES6]

Returns true if num is the value NaN:

> Number.isNaN(NaN)
true
> Number.isNaN(123)
false
> Number.isNaN('abc')
false

• .isSafeInteger(num: number): boolean [ES6]

Returns true if num is a number and unambiguously represents an integer.

• .parseFloat(str: string): number [ES6]

Coerces its parameter to string and parses it as a floating point number. For con-
verting strings to numbers, Number() (which ignores leading and trailing white-
space) is usually a better choice than Number.parseFloat() (which ignores leading
whitespace and illegal trailing characters and can hide problems).

> Number.parseFloat(' 123.4#')

123.4
> Number(' 123.4#')
NaN

• .parseInt(str: string, radix=10): number [ES6]

Coerces its parameter to string and parses it as an integer, ignoring leading white-
space and illegal trailing characters:

> Number.parseInt(' 123#')

123
17.13 Quick reference: numbers 143

The parameter radix specifies the base of the number to be parsed:

> Number.parseInt('101', 2)
5
> Number.parseInt('FF', 16)
255

Do not use this method to convert numbers to integers: coercing to string is ineffi-
cient. And stopping before the first non-digit is not a good algorithm for removing
the fraction of a number. Here is an example where it goes wrong:

> Number.parseInt(1e21, 10) // wrong

1

It is better to use one of the rounding functions of Math to convert a number to an

integer:

> Math.trunc(1e21) // correct

1e+21

17.13.4 Methods of Number.prototype

(Number.prototype is where the methods of numbers are stored.)

• .toExponential(fractionDigits?: number): string [ES3]

Returns a string that represents the number via exponential notation. With frac-
tionDigits, you can specify, how many digits should be shown of the number
that is multiplied with the exponent (the default is to show as many digits as nec-
essary).

Example: number too small to get a positive exponent via .toString().

> 1234..toString()
'1234'

> 1234..toExponential() // 3 fraction digits

'1.234e+3'
> 1234..toExponential(5)
'1.23400e+3'
> 1234..toExponential(1)
'1.2e+3'

Example: fraction not small enough to get a negative exponent via .toString().

> 0.003.toString()
'0.003'
> 0.003.toExponential()
'3e-3'

• .toFixed(fractionDigits=0): string [ES3]

Returns an exponent-free representation of the number, rounded to fractionDig-

its digits.
144 17 Numbers

> 0.00000012.toString() // with exponent

'1.2e-7'

> 0.00000012.toFixed(10) // no exponent

'0.0000001200'
> 0.00000012.toFixed()
'0'

If the number is 1021 or greater, even .toFixed() uses an exponent:

> (10 ** 21).toFixed()

'1e+21'

• .toPrecision(precision?: number): string [ES3]

Works like .toString(), but precision specifies how many digits should be
shown. If precision is missing, .toString() is used.

> 1234..toPrecision(3) // requires exponential notation

'1.23e+3'

> 1234..toPrecision(4)
'1234'

> 1234..toPrecision(5)
'1234.0'

> 1.234.toPrecision(3)
'1.23'

• .toString(radix=10): string [ES1]

Returns a string representation of the number.

By default, you get a base 10 numeral as a result:

> 123.456.toString()
'123.456'

If you want the numeral to have a different base, you can specify it via radix:

> 4..toString(2) // binary (base 2)

'100'
> 4.5.toString(2)
'100.1'

> 255..toString(16) // hexadecimal (base 16)

'ff'
> 255.66796875.toString(16)
'ff.ab'

> 1234567890..toString(36)
'kf12oi'
17.13 Quick reference: numbers 145

parseInt() provides the inverse operation: it converts a string that contains an

integer (no fraction!) numeral with a given base, to a number.
> parseInt('kf12oi', 36)
1234567890

17.13.5 Sources
• Wikipedia
• TypeScript’s built-in typings
• MDN web docs for JavaScript
• ECMAScript language specification

Quiz: advanced
See quiz app.
146 17 Numbers
Chapter 18

Math

Contents
18.1 Data properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147
18.2 Exponents, roots, logarithms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148
18.3 Rounding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 149
18.4 Trigonometric Functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 150
18.5 Various other functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 152
18.6 Sources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 153

Math is an object with data properties and methods for processing numbers. You can see
it as a poor man’s module: It was created long before JavaScript had modules.

18.1 Data properties

• Math.E: number [ES1]

Euler’s number, base of the natural logarithms, approximately 2.7182818284590452354.

• Math.LN10: number [ES1]

The natural logarithm of 10, approximately 2.302585092994046.

• Math.LN2: number [ES1]

The natural logarithm of 2, approximately 0.6931471805599453.

• Math.LOG10E: number [ES1]

The logarithm of e to base 10, approximately 0.4342944819032518.

• Math.LOG2E: number [ES1]

The logarithm of e to base 2, approximately 1.4426950408889634.

• Math.PI: number [ES1]

147
148 18 Math

The mathematical constant π, ratio of a circle’s circumference to its diameter, ap-

proximately 3.1415926535897932.

• Math.SQRT1_2: number [ES1]

The square root of 1/2, approximately 0.7071067811865476.

• Math.SQRT2: number [ES1]

The square root of 2, approximately 1.4142135623730951.

18.2 Exponents, roots, logarithms

• Math.cbrt(x: number): number [ES6]

Returns the cube root of x.

> Math.cbrt(8)
2

• Math.exp(x: number): number [ES1]

Returns ex (e being Euler’s number). The inverse of Math.log().

> Math.exp(0)
1
> Math.exp(1) === Math.E
true

• Math.expm1(x: number): number [ES6]

Returns Math.exp(x)-1. The inverse of Math.log1p(). Very small numbers (frac-

tions close to 0) are represented with a higher precision. Therefore, this function
returns more precise values whenever .exp() returns values close to 1.

• Math.log(x: number): number [ES1]

Returns the natural logarithm of x (to base e, Euler’s number). The inverse of
Math.exp().

> Math.log(1)
0
> Math.log(Math.E)
1
> Math.log(Math.E ** 2)
2

• Math.log1p(x: number): number [ES6]

Returns Math.log(1 + x). The inverse of Math.expm1(). Very small numbers

(fractions close to 0) are represented with a higher precision. Therefore, you can
provide this function with a more precise argument whenever the argument for
.log() is close to 1.

• Math.log10(x: number): number [ES6]

18.3 Rounding 149

Returns the logarithm of x to base 10. The inverse of 10 ** x.

> Math.log10(1)
0
> Math.log10(10)
1
> Math.log10(100)
2

• Math.log2(x: number): number [ES6]

Returns the logarithm of x to base 2. The inverse of 2 ** x.

> Math.log2(1)
0
> Math.log2(2)
1
> Math.log2(4)
2

• Math.pow(x: number, y: number): number [ES1]

Returns xy , x to the power of y. The same as x ** y.

> Math.pow(2, 3)
8
> Math.pow(25, 0.5)
5

• Math.sqrt(x: number): number [ES1]

Returns the square root of x. The inverse of x ** 2.

> Math.sqrt(9)
3

18.3 Rounding
Rounding means converting an arbitrary number to an integer (a number without a dec-
imal fraction). The following functions implement different approaches to rounding.

• Math.ceil(x: number): number [ES1]

Returns the smallest (closest to −∞) integer i with x ≤ i.

> Math.ceil(2.1)
3
> Math.ceil(2.9)
3

• Math.floor(x: number): number [ES1]

Returns the largest (closest to +∞) integer i with i ≤ x.

150 18 Math

> Math.floor(2.1)
2
> Math.floor(2.9)
2

• Math.round(x: number): number [ES1]

Returns the integer that is closest to x. If the decimal fraction of x is .5 then
.round() rounds up (to the integer closer to positive infinity):

> Math.round(2.4)
2
> Math.round(2.5)
3

• Math.trunc(x: number): number [ES6]

Removes the decimal fraction of x and returns the resulting integer.
> Math.trunc(2.1)
2
> Math.trunc(2.9)
2

Tbl. 18.1 shows the results of the rounding functions for a few representative inputs.

Table 18.1: Rounding functions of Math. Note how things change with
negative numbers because “larger” always means “closer to positive in-
finity”.

-2.9 -2.5 -2.1 2.1 2.5 2.9

Math.floor -3 -3 -3 2 2 2
Math.ceil -2 -2 -2 3 3 3
Math.round -3 -2 -2 2 3 3
Math.trunc -2 -2 -2 2 2 2

18.4 Trigonometric Functions

All angles are specified in radians. Use the following two functions to convert between
degrees and radians.

function degreesToRadians(degrees) {
return degrees / 180 * Math.PI;
}
assert.equal(degreesToRadians(90), Math.PI/2);

function radiansToDegrees(radians) {
return radians / Math.PI * 180;
}
assert.equal(radiansToDegrees(Math.PI), 180);
18.4 Trigonometric Functions 151

• Math.acos(x: number): number [ES1]

Returns the arc cosine (inverse cosine) of x.

> Math.acos(0)
1.5707963267948966
> Math.acos(1)
0

• Math.acosh(x: number): number [ES6]

Returns the inverse hyperbolic cosine of x.

• Math.asin(x: number): number [ES1]

Returns the arc sine (inverse sine) of x.

> Math.asin(0)
0
> Math.asin(1)
1.5707963267948966

• Math.asinh(x: number): number [ES6]

Returns the inverse hyperbolic sine of x.

• Math.atan(x: number): number [ES1]

Returns the arc tangent (inverse tangent) of x.

• Math.atanh(x: number): number [ES6]

Returns the inverse hyperbolic tangent of x.

• Math.atan2(y: number, x: number): number [ES1]

Returns the arc tangent of the quotient y/x.

• Math.cos(x: number): number [ES1]

Returns the cosine of x.

> Math.cos(0)
1
> Math.cos(Math.PI)
-1

• Math.cosh(x: number): number [ES6]

Returns the hyperbolic cosine of x.

• Math.hypot(...values: number[]): number [ES6]

Returns the square root of the sum of the squares of values (Pythagoras’ theorem):

> Math.hypot(3, 4)
5
152 18 Math

• Math.sin(x: number): number [ES1]

Returns the sine of x.

> Math.sin(0)
0
> Math.sin(Math.PI / 2)
1

• Math.sinh(x: number): number [ES6]

Returns the hyperbolic sine of x.

• Math.tan(x: number): number [ES1]

Returns the tangent of x.

> Math.tan(0)
0
> Math.tan(1)
1.5574077246549023

• Math.tanh(x: number): number; [ES6]

Returns the hyperbolic tangent of x.

18.5 Various other functions

• Math.abs(x: number): number [ES1]

Returns the absolute value of x.

> Math.abs(3)
3
> Math.abs(-3)
3
> Math.abs(0)
0

• Math.clz32(x: number): number [ES6]

Counts the leading zero bits in the 32-bit integer x. Used in DSP algorithms.

> Math.clz32(0b01000000000000000000000000000000)
1
> Math.clz32(0b00100000000000000000000000000000)
2
> Math.clz32(2)
30
> Math.clz32(1)
31

• Math.max(...values: number[]): number [ES1]

Converts values to numbers and returns the largest one.

18.6 Sources 153

> Math.max(3, -5, 24)

24

• Math.min(...values: number[]): number [ES1]

Converts values to numbers and returns the smallest one.
> Math.min(3, -5, 24)
-5

• Math.random(): number [ES1]

Returns a pseudo-random number n where 0 ≤ n < 1.
Computing a random integer i where 0 ≤ i < max:
function getRandomInteger(max) {
return Math.floor(Math.random() * max);
}

• Math.sign(x: number): number [ES6]

Returns the sign of a number:
> Math.sign(-8)
-1
> Math.sign(0)
0
> Math.sign(3)
1

18.6 Sources
• Wikipedia
• TypeScript’s built-in typings
• MDN web docs for JavaScript
• ECMAScript language specification
154 18 Math
Chapter 19

Bigints – arbitrary-precision
integers [ES2020] (early access)

Contents
19.1 Why bigints? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 156
19.2 Bigints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 156
19.2.1 Going beyond 53 bits for integers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 157
19.2.2 Example: using bigints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 157
19.3 Bigint literals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 158
19.4 Reusing number operators for bigints (overloading) . . . . . . . . . 158
19.4.1 Arithmetic operators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 158
19.4.2 Ordering operators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 159
19.4.3 Bitwise operators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 159
19.4.4 Loose equality (==) and inequality (!=) . . . . . . . . . . . . . 161
19.4.5 Strict equality (===) and inequality (!==) . . . . . . . . . . . . 161
19.5 The wrapper constructor BigInt . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 161
19.5.1 BigInt as a constructor and as a function . . . . . . . . . . . . 162
19.5.2 BigInt.prototype.* methods . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 163
19.5.3 BigInt.* methods . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 163
19.5.4 Casting and 64-bit integers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 163
19.6 Coercing bigints to other primitive types . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 163
19.7 TypedArrays and DataView operations for 64-bit values . . . . . . . 164
19.8 Bigints and JSON . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 164
19.8.1 Stringifying bigints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 164
19.8.2 Parsing bigints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 165
19.9 FAQ: Bigints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 165
19.9.1 How do I decide when to use numbers and when to use bigints? 165
19.9.2 Why not just increase the precision of numbers in the same man-
ner as is done for bigints? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 165

155
156 19 Bigints – arbitrary-precision integers [ES2020] (early access)

In this chapter, we take a look at bigints, JavaScript’s integers whose storage space grows
and shrinks as needed.

19.1 Why bigints?

Before ECMAScript 2020, JavaScript handled integers as follows:

• There only was a single type for floating point numbers and integers: 64-bit float-
ing point numbers (IEEE 754 double precision).

• Under the hood, most JavaScript engines transparently supported integers: If a

number has no decimal digits and is within a certain range, it can internally be
stored as a genuine integer. This representation is called small integer and usually
fits into 32 bits. For example, the range of small integers on the 64-bit version of
the V8 engine is from −231 to 231 −1 (source).

• JavaScript numbers could also represent integers beyond the small integer range,
as floating point numbers. Here, the safe range is plus/minus 53 bits. For more
information on this topic, see §17.11.3 “Safe integers”.

Sometimes, we need more than signed 53 bits – for example:

• Twitter uses 64-bit integers as IDs for tweets (source). In JavaScript, these IDs had
to be stored in strings.
• Financial technology uses so-called big integers (integers with arbitrary precision)
to represent amounts of money. Internally, the amounts are multiplied so that the
decimal numbers disappear. For example, USD amounts are multiplied by 100 so
that the cents disappear.

19.2 Bigints
Bigint is a new primitive data type for integers. Bigints don’t have a fixed storage size in
bits; their sizes adapt to the integers they represent:

• Small integers are represented with fewer bits than large integers.
• There is no negative lower limit or positive upper limit for the integers that can be
represented.

A bigint literal is a sequence of one or more digits, suffixed with an n – for example:

123n

Operators such as - and * are overloaded and work with bigints:

> 123n * 456n

56088n

Bigints are primitive values. typeof returns a new result for them:

> typeof 123n

'bigint'
19.2 Bigints 157

19.2.1 Going beyond 53 bits for integers

JavaScript numbers are internally represented as a fraction multiplied by an exponent
(see §17.10 “Background: floating point precision” for details). As a consequence, if we
go beyond the highest safe integer 253 −1, there are still some integers that can be repre-
sented, but with gaps between them:

> 2**53 - 2 // safe

9007199254740990
> 2**53 - 1 // safe
9007199254740991

> 2**53 // unsafe, same as next integer

9007199254740992
> 2**53 + 1
9007199254740992
> 2**53 + 2
9007199254740994
> 2**53 + 3
9007199254740996
> 2**53 + 4
9007199254740996
> 2**53 + 5
9007199254740996

Bigints enable us to go beyond 53 bits:

> 2n**53n
9007199254740992n
> 2n**53n + 1n
9007199254740993n
> 2n**53n + 2n
9007199254740994n

19.2.2 Example: using bigints

This is what using bigints looks like (code based on an example in the proposal):

/**
* Takes a bigint as an argument and returns a bigint
*/
function nthPrime(nth) {
if (typeof nth !== 'bigint') {
throw new TypeError();
}
function isPrime(p) {
for (let i = 2n; i < p; i++) {
if (p % i === 0n) return false;
}
return true;
158 19 Bigints – arbitrary-precision integers [ES2020] (early access)

}
for (let i = 2n; ; i++) {
if (isPrime(i)) {
if (--nth === 0n) return i;
}
}
}

assert.deepEqual(
[1n, 2n, 3n, 4n, 5n].map(nth => nthPrime(nth)),
[2n, 3n, 5n, 7n, 11n]
);

19.3 Bigint literals

Like number literals, bigint literals support several bases:

• Decimal: 123n
• Hexadecimal: 0xFFn
• Binary: 0b1101n
• Octal: 0o777n

Negative bigints are produced by prefixing the unary minus operator: -0123n

19.4 Reusing number operators for bigints (overloading)

With most operators, we are not allowed to mix bigints and numbers. If we do, excep-
tions are thrown:

> 2n + 1
TypeError: Cannot mix BigInt and other types, use explicit conversions

The reason for this rule is that there is no general way of coercing a number and a bigint to
a common type: numbers can’t represent bigints beyond 53 bits, bigints can’t represent
fractions. Therefore, the exceptions warn us about typos that may lead to unexpected
results.

For example, should the result of the following expression be 9007199254740993n or

9007199254740992?

2**53 + 1n

It is also not clear what the result of the following expression should be:

2n**53n * 3.3

19.4.1 Arithmetic operators

Binary +, binary -, *, ** work as expected:
19.4 Reusing number operators for bigints (overloading) 159

> 7n * 3n
21n

It is OK to mix bigints and strings:

> 6n + ' apples'
'6 apples'

/, % round towards zero (like Math.trunc()):

> 1n / 2n
0n

Unary - works as expected:

> -(-64n)
64n

Unary + is not supported for bigints because much code relies on it coercing its operand
to number:
> +23n
TypeError: Cannot convert a BigInt value to a number

19.4.2 Ordering operators

Ordering operators <, >, >=, <= work as expected:
> 17n <= 17n
true
> 3n > -1n
true

Comparing bigints and numbers does not pose any risks. Therefore, we can mix bigints
and numbers:
> 3n > -1
true

19.4.3 Bitwise operators

19.4.3.1 Bitwise operators for numbers

Bitwise operators interpret numbers as 32-bit integers. These integers are either unsigned
or signed. If they are signed, the negative of an integer is its two’s complement (adding an
integer to its two’s complement – while ignoring overflow – produces zero):
> 2**32-1 >> 0
-1

Due to these integers having a fixed size, their highest bits indicate their signs:
> 2**31 >> 0 // highest bit is 1
-2147483648
> 2**31 - 1 >> 0 // highest bit is 0
2147483647
160 19 Bigints – arbitrary-precision integers [ES2020] (early access)

19.4.3.2 Bitwise operators for bigints

For bigints, bitwise operators interpret a negative sign as an infinite two’s complement
– for example:

• -1 is ···111111 (ones extend infinitely to the left)

• -2 is ···111110
• -3 is ···111101
• -4 is ···111100

That is, a negative sign is more of an external flag and not represented as an actual bit.

19.4.3.3 Bitwise Not (~)

Bitwise Not (~) inverts all bits:

> ~0b10n
-3n
> ~0n
-1n
> ~-2n
1n

19.4.3.4 Binary bitwise operators (&, |, ^)

Applying binary bitwise operators to bigints works analogously to applying them to

numbers:

> (0b1010n | 0b0111n).toString(2)

'1111'
> (0b1010n & 0b0111n).toString(2)
'10'

> (0b1010n | -1n).toString(2)

'-1'
> (0b1010n & -1n).toString(2)
'1010'

19.4.3.5 Bitwise signed shift operators (<< and >>)

The signed shift operators for bigints preserve the sign of a number:

> 2n << 1n
4n
> -2n << 1n
-4n

> 2n >> 1n
1n
> -2n >> 1n
-1n
19.5 The wrapper constructor BigInt 161

Recall that -1n is a sequence of ones that extends infinitely to the left. That’s why shifting
it left doesn’t change it:

> -1n >> 20n

-1n

19.4.3.6 Bitwise unsigned right shift operator (>>>)

There is no unsigned right shift operator for bigints:

> 2n >>> 1n
TypeError: BigInts have no unsigned right shift, use >> instead

Why? The idea behind unsigned right shifting is that a zero is shifted in “from the left”.
In other words, the assumption is that there is a finite amount of binary digits.

However, with bigints, there is no “left”, their binary digits extend infinitely. This is
especially important with negative numbers.

Signed right shift works even with an infinite number of digits because the highest digit
is preserved. Therefore, it can be adapted to bigints.

19.4.4 Loose equality (==) and inequality (!=)

Loose equality (==) and inequality (!=) coerce values:

> 0n == false
true
> 1n == true
true

> 123n == 123

true

> 123n == '123'

true

19.4.5 Strict equality (===) and inequality (!==)

Strict equality (===) and inequality (!==) only consider values to be equal if they have
the same type:

> 123n === 123

false
> 123n === 123n
true

19.5 The wrapper constructor BigInt

Analogously to numbers, bigints have the associated wrapper constructor BigInt.
162 19 Bigints – arbitrary-precision integers [ES2020] (early access)

19.5.1 BigInt as a constructor and as a function

• new BigInt(): throws a TypeError.
• BigInt(x) converts arbitrary values x to bigint. This works similarly to Number(),
with several differences which are summarized in tbl. 19.1 and explained in more
detail in the following subsections.

Table 19.1: Converting values to bigints.

x BigInt(x)

undefined Throws TypeError

null Throws TypeError
boolean false → 0n, true → 1n
number Example: 123 → 123n
Non-integer → throws RangeError
bigint x (no change)
string Example: '123' → 123n
Unparsable → throws SyntaxError
symbol Throws TypeError
object Configurable (e.g. via .valueOf())

19.5.1.1 Converting undefined and null

A TypeError is thrown if x is either undefined or null:

> BigInt(undefined)
TypeError: Cannot convert undefined to a BigInt
> BigInt(null)
TypeError: Cannot convert null to a BigInt

19.5.1.2 Converting strings

If a string does not represent an integer, BigInt() throws a SyntaxError (whereas Num-
ber() returns the error value NaN):

> BigInt('abc')
SyntaxError: Cannot convert abc to a BigInt

The suffix 'n' is not allowed:

> BigInt('123n')
SyntaxError: Cannot convert 123n to a BigInt

All bases of bigint literals are allowed:

> BigInt('123')
123n
> BigInt('0xFF')
255n
> BigInt('0b1101')
19.6 Coercing bigints to other primitive types 163

13n
> BigInt('0o777')
511n

19.5.1.3 Non-integer numbers produce exceptions

> BigInt(123.45)
RangeError: The number 123.45 cannot be converted to a BigInt because
it is not an integer
> BigInt(123)
123n

19.5.1.4 Converting objects

How objects are converted to bigints can be configured – for example, by overriding
.valueOf():

> BigInt({valueOf() {return 123n}})

123n

19.5.2 BigInt.prototype.* methods

BigInt.prototype holds the methods “inherited” by primitive bigints:

• BigInt.prototype.toLocaleString(reserved1?, reserved2?)
• BigInt.prototype.toString(radix?)
• BigInt.prototype.valueOf()

19.5.3 BigInt.* methods

• BigInt.asIntN(width, theInt)
Casts theInt to width bits (signed). This influences how the value is represented
internally.
• BigInt.asUintN(width, theInt)
Casts theInt to width bits (unsigned).

19.5.4 Casting and 64-bit integers

Casting allows us to create integer values with a specific number of bits. If we want to
restrict ourselves to just 64-bit integers, we have to always cast:
const uint64a = BigInt.asUintN(64, 12345n);
const uint64b = BigInt.asUintN(64, 67890n);
const result = BigInt.asUintN(64, uint64a * uint64b);

19.6 Coercing bigints to other primitive types

This table show what happens if we convert bigints to other primitive types:
164 19 Bigints – arbitrary-precision integers [ES2020] (early access)

Convert to Explicit conversion Coercion (implicit conversion)

boolean Boolean(0n) → false !0n → true
Boolean(int) → true !int → false
number Number(7n) → 7 (example) +int → TypeError (1)
string String(7n) → '7' (example) ''+7n → '7' (example)

Footnote:

• (1) Unary + is not supported for bigints, because much code relies on it coercing
its operand to number.

19.7 TypedArrays and DataView operations for 64-bit val-

ues
Thanks to bigints, Typed Arrays and DataViews can support 64-bit values:

• Typed Array constructors:

– BigInt64Array
– BigUint64Array
• DataView methods:
– DataView.prototype.getBigInt64()
– DataView.prototype.setBigInt64()
– DataView.prototype.getBigUint64()
– DataView.prototype.setBigUint64()

19.8 Bigints and JSON

The JSON standard is fixed and won’t change. The upside is that old JSON parsing code
will never be outdated. The downside is that JSON can’t be extended to contain bigints.

Stringifying bigints throws exceptions:

> JSON.stringify(123n)
TypeError: Do not know how to serialize a BigInt
> JSON.stringify([123n])
TypeError: Do not know how to serialize a BigInt

19.8.1 Stringifying bigints

Therefore, our best option is to store bigints in strings:

const bigintPrefix = '[[bigint]]';

function bigintReplacer(_key, value) {

if (typeof value === 'bigint') {
return bigintPrefix + value;
}
19.9 FAQ: Bigints 165

return value;
}

const data = { value: 9007199254740993n };

assert.equal(
JSON.stringify(data, bigintReplacer),
'{"value":"[[bigint]]9007199254740993"}'
);

19.8.2 Parsing bigints

The following code shows how to parse strings such as the one that we have produced
in the previous example.

function bigintReviver(_key, value) {

if (typeof value === 'string' && value.startsWith(bigintPrefix)) {
return BigInt(value.slice(bigintPrefix.length));
}
return value;
}

const str = '{"value":"[[bigint]]9007199254740993"}';

assert.deepEqual(
JSON.parse(str, bigintReviver),
{ value: 9007199254740993n }
);

19.9 FAQ: Bigints

19.9.1 How do I decide when to use numbers and when to use bigints?
My recommendations:

• Use numbers for up to 53 bits and for Array indices. Rationale: They already
appear everywhere and are handled efficiently by most engines (especially if they
fit into 31 bits). Appearances include:
– Array.prototype.forEach()
– Array.prototype.entries()
• Use bigints for large numeric values: If your fraction-less values don’t fit into 53
bits, you have no choice but to move to bigints.

All existing web APIs return and accept only numbers and will only upgrade to bigint
on a case-by-case basis.

19.9.2 Why not just increase the precision of numbers in the same
manner as is done for bigints?
One could conceivably split number into integer and double, but that would add many
new complexities to the language (several integer-only operators etc.). I’ve sketched the
166 19 Bigints – arbitrary-precision integers [ES2020] (early access)

consequences in a Gist.

Acknowledgements:
• Thanks to Daniel Ehrenberg for reviewing an earlier version of this content.
• Thanks to Dan Callahan for reviewing an earlier version of this content.
Chapter 20

Unicode – a brief introduction

(advanced)

Contents
20.1 Code points vs. code units . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 167
20.1.1 Code points . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 168
20.1.2 Encoding Unicode code points: UTF-32, UTF-16, UTF-8 . . . . 168
20.2 Encodings used in web development: UTF-16 and UTF-8 . . . . . . 170
20.2.1 Source code internally: UTF-16 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 170
20.2.2 Strings: UTF-16 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 170
20.2.3 Source code in files: UTF-8 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 170
20.3 Grapheme clusters – the real characters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 170

Unicode is a standard for representing and managing text in most of the world’s writing
systems. Virtually all modern software that works with text, supports Unicode. The
standard is maintained by the Unicode Consortium. A new version of the standard is
published every year (with new emojis, etc.). Unicode version 1.0.0 was published in
October 1991.

20.1 Code points vs. code units

Two concepts are crucial for understanding Unicode:

• Code points are numbers that represent Unicode characters.

• Code units are numbers that encode code points, to store or transmit Unicode text.
One or more code units encode a single code point. Each code unit has the same
size, which depends on the encoding format that is used. The most popular format,
UTF-8, has 8-bit code units.

167
168 20 Unicode – a brief introduction (advanced)

20.1.1 Code points

The first version of Unicode had 16-bit code points. Since then, the number of characters
has grown considerably and the size of code points was extended to 21 bits. These 21
bits are partitioned in 17 planes, with 16 bits each:

• Plane 0: Basic Multilingual Plane (BMP), 0x0000–0xFFFF

– Contains characters for almost all modern languages (Latin characters, Asian
characters, etc.) and many symbols.
• Plane 1: Supplementary Multilingual Plane (SMP), 0x10000–0x1FFFF
– Supports historic writing systems (e.g., Egyptian hieroglyphs and cuneiform)
and additional modern writing systems.
– Supports emojis and many other symbols.
• Plane 2: Supplementary Ideographic Plane (SIP), 0x20000–0x2FFFF
– Contains additional CJK (Chinese, Japanese, Korean) ideographs.
• Plane 3–13: Unassigned
• Plane 14: Supplementary Special-Purpose Plane (SSP), 0xE0000–0xEFFFF
– Contains non-graphical characters such as tag characters and glyph variation
selectors.
• Plane 15–16: Supplementary Private Use Area (S PUA A/B), 0x0F0000–0x10FFFF
– Available for character assignment by parties outside the ISO and the Uni-
code Consortium. Not standardized.

Planes 1-16 are called supplementary planes or astral planes.

Let’s check the code points of a few characters:

> 'A'.codePointAt(0).toString(16)
'41'
> 'ü'.codePointAt(0).toString(16)
'fc'
> 'π'.codePointAt(0).toString(16)
'3c0'
> '☺'.codePointAt(0).toString(16)
'1f642'

The hexadecimal numbers of the code points tell us that the first three characters reside
in plane 0 (within 16 bits), while the emoji resides in plane 1.

20.1.2 Encoding Unicode code points: UTF-32, UTF-16, UTF-8

The main ways of encoding code points are three Unicode Transformation Formats (UTFs):
UTF-32, UTF-16, UTF-8. The number at the end of each format indicates the size (in bits)
of its code units.

20.1.2.1 UTF-32 (Unicode Transformation Format 32)

UTF-32 uses 32 bits to store code units, resulting in one code unit per code point. This
format is the only one with fixed-length encoding; all others use a varying number of code
units to encode a single code point.
20.1 Code points vs. code units 169

20.1.2.2 UTF-16 (Unicode Transformation Format 16)

UTF-16 uses 16-bit code units. It encodes code points as follows:

• The BMP (first 16 bits of Unicode) is stored in single code units.
• Astral planes: The BMP comprises 0x10_000 code points. Given that Unicode has
a total of 0x110_000 code points, we still need to encode the remaining 0x100_000
code points (20 bits). The BMP has two ranges of unassigned code points that
provide the necessary storage:
– Most significant 10 bits (leading surrogate): 0xD800-0xDBFF
– Least significant 10 bits (trailing surrogate): 0xDC00-0xDFFF
In other words, the two hexadecimal digits at the end contribute 8 bits. But we can only
use those 8 bits if a BMP starts with one of the following 2-digit pairs:
• D8, D9, DA, DB
• DC, DD, DE, DF
Per surrogate, we have a choice between 4 pairs, which is where the remaining 2 bits
come from.
As a consequence, each UTF-16 code unit is always either a leading surrogate, a trailing
surrogate, or encodes a BMP code point.
These are two examples of UTF-16-encoded code points:
• Code point 0x03C0 (π) is in the BMP and can therefore be represented by a single
UTF-16 code unit: 0x03C0.
• Code point 0x1F642 (☺) is in an astral plane and represented by two code units:
0xD83D and 0xDE42.

20.1.2.3 UTF-8 (Unicode Transformation Format 8)

UTF-8 has 8-bit code units. It uses 1–4 code units to encode a code point:

Code points Code units

0000–007F 0bbbbbbb (7 bits)
0080–07FF 110bbbbb, 10bbbbbb (5+6 bits)
0800–FFFF 1110bbbb, 10bbbbbb, 10bbbbbb (4+6+6 bits)
10000–1FFFFF 11110bbb, 10bbbbbb, 10bbbbbb, 10bbbbbb (3+6+6+6 bits)

Notes:
• The bit prefix of each code unit tells us:
– Is it first in a series of code units? If yes, how many code units will follow?
– Is it second or later in a series of code units?
• The character mappings in the 0000–007F range are the same as ASCII, which leads
to a degree of backward compatibility with older software.
Three examples:
170 20 Unicode – a brief introduction (advanced)

Character Code point Code units

A 0x0041 01000001
π 0x03C0 11001111, 10000000
☺ 0x1F642 11110000, 10011111, 10011001, 10000010

20.2 Encodings used in web development: UTF-16 and

UTF-8
The Unicode encoding formats that are used in web development are: UTF-16 and UTF-
8.

20.2.1 Source code internally: UTF-16

The ECMAScript specification internally represents source code as UTF-16.

20.2.2 Strings: UTF-16

The characters in JavaScript strings are based on UTF-16 code units:

> const smiley = '☺';

> smiley.length
2
> smiley === '\uD83D\uDE42' // code units
true

For more information on Unicode and strings, consult §21.6 “Atoms of text: Unicode
characters, JavaScript characters, grapheme clusters”.

20.2.3 Source code in files: UTF-8

HTML and JavaScript are almost always encoded as UTF-8 these days.

For example, this is how HTML files usually start now:

<!doctype html>
<html>
<head>
<meta charset="UTF-8">
···

For HTML modules loaded in web browsers, the standard encoding is also UTF-8.

20.3 Grapheme clusters – the real characters

The concept of a character becomes remarkably complex once you consider many of the
world’s writing systems.

On one hand, there are Unicode characters, as represented by code points.

20.3 Grapheme clusters – the real characters 171

On the other hand, there are grapheme clusters. A grapheme cluster corresponds most
closely to a symbol displayed on screen or paper. It is defined as “a horizontally seg-
mentable unit of text”. Therefore, official Unicode documents also call it a user-perceived
character. One or more code point characters are needed to encode a grapheme cluster.
For example, the Devanagari kshi is encoded by 4 code points. We use spreading (...) to
split a string into an Array with code point characters (for details, consult §21.6.1 “Work-
ing with code points”):

Flag emojis are also grapheme clusters and composed of two code point characters – for
example, the flag of Japan:

More information on grapheme clusters

For more information, consult “Let’s Stop Ascribing Meaning to Code Points” by
Manish Goregaokar.

Quiz
See quiz app.
172 20 Unicode – a brief introduction (advanced)
Chapter 21

Strings

Contents
21.1 Plain string literals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 174
21.1.1 Escaping . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 174
21.2 Accessing characters and code points . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 174
21.2.1 Accessing JavaScript characters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 174
21.2.2 Accessing Unicode code point characters via for-of and
spreading . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 174
21.3 String concatenation via + . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 175
21.4 Converting to string . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 175
21.4.1 Stringifying objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 176
21.4.2 Customizing the stringification of objects . . . . . . . . . . . . 177
21.4.3 An alternate way of stringifying values . . . . . . . . . . . . . 177
21.5 Comparing strings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 177
21.6 Atoms of text: Unicode characters, JavaScript characters, grapheme
clusters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 178
21.6.1 Working with code points . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 178
21.6.2 Working with code units (char codes) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179
21.6.3 Caveat: grapheme clusters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 180
21.7 Quick reference: Strings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 180
21.7.1 Converting to string . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 180
21.7.2 Numeric values of characters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 180
21.7.3 String operators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 180
21.7.4 String.prototype: finding and matching . . . . . . . . . . . 181
21.7.5 String.prototype: extracting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 183
21.7.6 String.prototype: combining . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 184
21.7.7 String.prototype: transforming . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 184
21.7.8 Sources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 187

Strings are primitive values in JavaScript and immutable. That is, string-related opera-
tions always produce new strings and never change existing strings.

173
174 21 Strings

21.1 Plain string literals

Plain string literals are delimited by either single quotes or double quotes:
const str1 = 'abc';
const str2 = "abc";
assert.equal(str1, str2);

Single quotes are used more often because it makes it easier to mention HTML, where
double quotes are preferred.
The next chapter covers template literals, which give you:
• String interpolation
• Multiple lines
• Raw string literals (backslash has no special meaning)

21.1.1 Escaping
The backslash lets you create special characters:
• Unix line break: '\n'
• Windows line break: '\r\n'
• Tab: '\t'
• Backslash: '\\'
The backslash also lets you use the delimiter of a string literal inside that literal:
assert.equal(
'She said: "Let\'s go!"',
"She said: \"Let's go!\"");

21.2 Accessing characters and code points

21.2.1 Accessing JavaScript characters
JavaScript has no extra data type for characters – characters are always represented as
strings.
const str = 'abc';

// Reading a character at a given index

assert.equal(str[1], 'b');

// Counting the characters in a string:

assert.equal(str.length, 3);

21.2.2 Accessing Unicode code point characters via for-of and spread-
ing
Iterating over strings via for-of or spreading (...) visits Unicode code point characters.
Each code point character is encoded by 1–2 JavaScript characters. For more information,
21.3 String concatenation via + 175

see §21.6 “Atoms of text: Unicode characters, JavaScript characters, grapheme clusters”.

This is how you iterate over the code point characters of a string via for-of:

for (const ch of 'x☺y') {

console.log(ch);
}
// Output:
// 'x'
// '☺'
// 'y'

And this is how you convert a string into an Array of code point characters via spreading:

assert.deepEqual([...'x☺y'], ['x', '☺', 'y']);

21.3 String concatenation via +

If at least one operand is a string, the plus operator (+) converts any non-strings to strings
and concatenates the result:

assert.equal(3 + ' times ' + 4, '3 times 4');

The assignment operator += is useful if you want to assemble a string, piece by piece:

let str = ''; // must be `let`!

str += 'Say it';
str += ' one more';
str += ' time';

assert.equal(str, 'Say it one more time');

Concatenating via + is efficient

Using + to assemble strings is quite efficient because most JavaScript engines inter-
nally optimize it.

Exercise: Concatenating strings

exercises/strings/concat_string_array_test.mjs

21.4 Converting to string

These are three ways of converting a value x to a string:

• String(x)
• ''+x
• x.toString() (does not work for undefined and null)
176 21 Strings

Recommendation: use the descriptive and safe String().

Examples:

assert.equal(String(undefined), 'undefined');
assert.equal(String(null), 'null');

assert.equal(String(false), 'false');
assert.equal(String(true), 'true');

assert.equal(String(123.45), '123.45');

Pitfall for booleans: If you convert a boolean to a string via String(), you generally can’t
convert it back via Boolean():

> String(false)
'false'
> Boolean('false')
true

The only string for which Boolean() returns false, is the empty string.

21.4.1 Stringifying objects

Plain objects have a default string representation that is not very useful:

> String({a: 1})

'[object Object]'

Arrays have a better string representation, but it still hides much information:

> String(['a', 'b'])

'a,b'
> String(['a', ['b']])
'a,b'

> String([1, 2])

'1,2'
> String(['1', '2'])
'1,2'

> String([true])
'true'
> String(['true'])
'true'
> String(true)
'true'

Stringifying functions, returns their source code:

> String(function f() {return 4})

'function f() {return 4}'
21.5 Comparing strings 177

21.4.2 Customizing the stringification of objects

You can override the built-in way of stringifying objects by implementing the method
toString():

const obj = {
toString() {
return 'hello';
}
};

assert.equal(String(obj), 'hello');

21.4.3 An alternate way of stringifying values

The JSON data format is a text representation of JavaScript values. Therefore, JSON.
stringify() can also be used to convert values to strings:

> JSON.stringify({a: 1})

'{"a":1}'
> JSON.stringify(['a', ['b']])
'["a",["b"]]'

The caveat is that JSON only supports null, booleans, numbers, strings, Arrays, and
objects (which it always treats as if they were created by object literals).

Tip: The third parameter lets you switch on multiline output and specify how much to
indent – for example:

console.log(JSON.stringify({first: 'Jane', last: 'Doe'}, null, 2));

This statement produces the following output:

{
"first": "Jane",
"last": "Doe"
}

21.5 Comparing strings

Strings can be compared via the following operators:

< <= > >=

There is one important caveat to consider: These operators compare based on the nu-
meric values of JavaScript characters. That means that the order that JavaScript uses for
strings is different from the one used in dictionaries and phone books:

> 'A' < 'B' // ok

true
> 'a' < 'B' // not ok
false
178 21 Strings

> 'ä' < 'b' // not ok

false

Properly comparing text is beyond the scope of this book. It is supported via the ECMA-
Script Internationalization API (Intl).

21.6 Atoms of text: Unicode characters, JavaScript charac-

ters, grapheme clusters
Quick recap of §20 “Unicode – a brief introduction”:
• Unicode characters are represented by code points – numbers which have a range
of 21 bits.
• In JavaScript strings, Unicode is implemented via code units based on the encoding
format UTF-16. Each code unit is a 16-bit number. One to two of code units are
needed to encode a single code point.
– Therefore, each JavaScript character is represented by a code unit. In the
JavaScript standard library, code units are also called char codes. Which is
what they are: numbers for JavaScript characters.
• Grapheme clusters (user-perceived characters) are written symbols, as displayed on
screen or paper. One or more Unicode characters are needed to encode a single
grapheme cluster.
The following code demonstrates that a single Unicode character comprises one or two
JavaScript characters. We count the latter via .length:
// 3 Unicode characters, 3 JavaScript characters:
assert.equal('abc'.length, 3);

// 1 Unicode character, 2 JavaScript characters:

assert.equal('☺'.length, 2);

The following table summarizes the concepts we have just explored:

Entity Numeric representation Size Encoded via

Grapheme cluster 1+ code points
Unicode character Code point 21 bits 1–2 code units
JavaScript character UTF-16 code unit 16 bits –

21.6.1 Working with code points

Let’s explore JavaScript’s tools for working with code points.
A code point escape lets you specify a code point hexadecimally. It produces one or two
JavaScript characters.
> '\u{1F642}'
'☺'

String.fromCodePoint() converts a single code point to 1–2 JavaScript characters:

21.6 Atoms of text: Unicode characters, JavaScript characters, grapheme clusters 179

> String.fromCodePoint(0x1F642)
'☺'

.codePointAt() converts 1–2 JavaScript characters to a single code point:

> '☺'.codePointAt(0).toString(16)
'1f642'

You can iterate over a string, which visits Unicode characters (not JavaScript characters).
Iteration is described later in this book. One way of iterating is via a for-of loop:

const str = '☺a';

assert.equal(str.length, 3);

for (const codePointChar of str) {

console.log(codePointChar);
}

// Output:
// '☺'
// 'a'

Spreading (...) into Array literals is also based on iteration and visits Unicode characters:

> [...'☺a']
[ '☺', 'a' ]

That makes it a good tool for counting Unicode characters:

> [...'☺a'].length
2
> '☺a'.length
3

21.6.2 Working with code units (char codes)

Indices and lengths of strings are based on JavaScript characters (as represented by UTF-
16 code units).

To specify a code unit hexadecimally, you can use a code unit escape:

> '\uD83D\uDE42'
'☺'

And you can use String.fromCharCode(). Char code is the standard library’s name for
code unit:

> String.fromCharCode(0xD83D) + String.fromCharCode(0xDE42)

'☺'

To get the char code of a character, use .charCodeAt():

> '☺'.charCodeAt(0).toString(16)
'd83d'
180 21 Strings

21.6.3 Caveat: grapheme clusters

When working with text that may be written in any human language, it’s best to split at
the boundaries of grapheme clusters, not at the boundaries of Unicode characters.
TC39 is working on Intl.Segmenter, a proposal for the ECMAScript Internationaliza-
tion API to support Unicode segmentation (along grapheme cluster boundaries, word
boundaries, sentence boundaries, etc.).
Until that proposal becomes a standard, you can use one of several libraries that are
available (do a web search for “JavaScript grapheme”).

21.7 Quick reference: Strings

Strings are immutable; none of the string methods ever modify their strings.

21.7.1 Converting to string

Tbl. 21.2 describes how various values are converted to strings.

Table 21.2: Converting values to strings.

x String(x)

undefined 'undefined'
null 'null'
boolean false → 'false', true → 'true'
number Example: 123 → '123'
bigint Example: 123n → '123'
string x (input, unchanged)
symbol Example: Symbol('abc') → 'Symbol(abc)'
object Configurable via, e.g., toString()

21.7.2 Numeric values of characters

• Char code: represents a JavaScript character numerically. JavaScript’s name for
Unicode code unit.
– Size: 16 bits, unsigned
– Convert number to character: String.fromCharCode() [ES1]
– Convert character to number: string method .charCodeAt() [ES1]
• Code point: represents a Unicode character numerically.
– Size: 21 bits, unsigned (17 planes, 16 bits each)
– Convert number to character: String.fromCodePoint() [ES6]
– Convert character to number: string method .codePointAt() [ES6]

21.7.3 String operators

// Access characters via []
const str = 'abc';
21.7 Quick reference: Strings 181

assert.equal(str[1], 'b');

// Concatenate strings via +

assert.equal('a' + 'b' + 'c', 'abc');
assert.equal('take ' + 3 + ' oranges', 'take 3 oranges');

21.7.4 String.prototype: finding and matching

(String.prototype is where the methods of strings are stored.)

• .endsWith(searchString: string, endPos=this.length): boolean [ES6]

Returns true if the string would end with searchString if its length were endPos.
Returns false otherwise.

> 'foo.txt'.endsWith('.txt')
true
> 'abcde'.endsWith('cd', 4)
true

• .includes(searchString: string, startPos=0): boolean [ES6]

Returns true if the string contains the searchString and false otherwise. The
search starts at startPos.

> 'abc'.includes('b')
true
> 'abc'.includes('b', 2)
false

• .indexOf(searchString: string, minIndex=0): number [ES1]

Returns the lowest index at which searchString appears within the string or -1,
otherwise. Any returned index will beminIndex‘ or higher.

> 'abab'.indexOf('a')
0
> 'abab'.indexOf('a', 1)
2
> 'abab'.indexOf('c')
-1

• .lastIndexOf(searchString: string, maxIndex=Infinity): number [ES1]

Returns the highest index at which searchString appears within the string or -1,
otherwise. Any returned index will bemaxIndex‘ or lower.

> 'abab'.lastIndexOf('ab', 2)
2
> 'abab'.lastIndexOf('ab', 1)
0
> 'abab'.lastIndexOf('ab')
2
182 21 Strings

• [1 of 2] .match(regExp: string | RegExp): RegExpMatchArray | null [ES3]

If regExp is a regular expression with flag /g not set, then .match() returns the
first match for regExp within the string. Or null if there is no match. If regExp is a
string, it is used to create a regular expression (think parameter of new RegExp())
before performing the previously mentioned steps.

The result has the following type:

interface RegExpMatchArray extends Array<string> {

index: number;
input: string;
groups: undefined | {
[key: string]: string
};
}

Numbered capture groups become Array indices (which is why this type extends
Array). Named capture groups (ES2018) become properties of .groups. In this
mode, .match() works like RegExp.prototype.exec().

Examples:

> 'ababb'.match(/a(b+)/)
{ 0: 'ab', 1: 'b', index: 0, input: 'ababb', groups: undefined }
> 'ababb'.match(/a(?<foo>b+)/)
{ 0: 'ab', 1: 'b', index: 0, input: 'ababb', groups: { foo: 'b' } }
> 'abab'.match(/x/)
null

• [2 of 2] .match(regExp: RegExp): string[] | null [ES3]

If flag /g of regExp is set, .match() returns either an Array with all matches or
null if there was no match.

> 'ababb'.match(/a(b+)/g)
[ 'ab', 'abb' ]
> 'ababb'.match(/a(?<foo>b+)/g)
[ 'ab', 'abb' ]
> 'abab'.match(/x/g)
null

• .search(regExp: string | RegExp): number [ES3]

Returns the index at which regExp occurs within the string. If regExp is a string, it
is used to create a regular expression (think parameter of new RegExp()).

> 'a2b'.search(/[0-9]/)
1
> 'a2b'.search('[0-9]')
1

• .startsWith(searchString: string, startPos=0): boolean [ES6]

21.7 Quick reference: Strings 183

Returns true if searchString occurs in the string at index startPos. Returns

false otherwise.

> '.gitignore'.startsWith('.')
true
> 'abcde'.startsWith('bc', 1)
true

21.7.5 String.prototype: extracting

• .slice(start=0, end=this.length): string [ES3]

Returns the substring of the string that starts at (including) index start and ends
at (excluding) index end. If an index is negative, it is added to .length before it is
used (-1 becomes this.length-1, etc.).

> 'abc'.slice(1, 3)
'bc'
> 'abc'.slice(1)
'bc'
> 'abc'.slice(-2)
'bc'

• .split(separator: string | RegExp, limit?: number): string[] [ES3]

Splits the string into an Array of substrings – the strings that occur between the
separators. The separator can be a string:

> 'a | b | c'.split('|')

[ 'a ', ' b ', ' c' ]

It can also be a regular expression:

> 'a : b : c'.split(/ *: */)

[ 'a', 'b', 'c' ]
> 'a : b : c'.split(/( *):( *)/)
[ 'a', ' ', ' ', 'b', ' ', ' ', 'c' ]

The last invocation demonstrates that captures made by groups in the regular ex-
pression become elements of the returned Array.

Warning: .split('') splits a string into JavaScript characters. That doesn’t

work well when dealing with astral Unicode characters (which are encoded as
two JavaScript characters). For example, emojis are astral:

> '☺X☺'.split('')
[ '\uD83D', '\uDE42', 'X', '\uD83D', '\uDE42' ]

Instead, it is better to use spreading:

> [...'☺X☺']
[ '☺', 'X', '☺' ]

• .substring(start: number, end=this.length): string [ES1]

184 21 Strings

Use .slice() instead of this method. .substring() wasn’t implemented consis-

tently in older engines and doesn’t support negative indices.

21.7.6 String.prototype: combining

• .concat(...strings: string[]): string [ES3]

Returns the concatenation of the string and strings. 'a'.concat('b') is equiva-

lent to 'a'+'b'. The latter is much more popular.

> 'ab'.concat('cd', 'ef', 'gh')

'abcdefgh'

• .padEnd(len: number, fillString=' '): string [ES2017]

Appends (fragments of) fillString to the string until it has the desired length len.
If it already has or exceeds len, then it is returned without any changes.

> '#'.padEnd(2)
'# '
> 'abc'.padEnd(2)
'abc'
> '#'.padEnd(5, 'abc')
'#abca'

• .padStart(len: number, fillString=' '): string [ES2017]

Prepends (fragments of) fillString to the string until it has the desired length
len. If it already has or exceeds len, then it is returned without any changes.

> '#'.padStart(2)
' #'
> 'abc'.padStart(2)
'abc'
> '#'.padStart(5, 'abc')
'abca#'

• .repeat(count=0): string [ES6]

Returns the string, concatenated count times.

> '*'.repeat()
''
> '*'.repeat(3)
'***'

21.7.7 String.prototype: transforming

• .normalize(form: 'NFC'|'NFD'|'NFKC'|'NFKD' = 'NFC'): string [ES6]

Normalizes the string according to the Unicode Normalization Forms.

• [1 of 2] .replace(searchValue: string | RegExp, replaceValue: string):

string [ES3]
21.7 Quick reference: Strings 185

Replace matches of searchValue with replaceValue. If searchValue is a string,

only the first verbatim occurrence is replaced. If searchValue is a regular expres-
sion without flag /g, only the first match is replaced. If searchValue is a regular
expression with /g then all matches are replaced.

> 'x.x.'.replace('.', '#')

'x#x.'
> 'x.x.'.replace(/./, '#')
'#.x.'
> 'x.x.'.replace(/./g, '#')
'####'

Special characters in replaceValue are:

– $$: becomes $
– $n: becomes the capture of numbered group n (alas, $0 stands for the string
'$0', it does not refer to the complete match)
– $&: becomes the complete match
– $`: becomes everything before the match
– $': becomes everything after the match

Examples:

> 'a 2020-04 b'.replace(/([0-9]{4})-([0-9]{2})/, '|$2|')

'a |04| b'
> 'a 2020-04 b'.replace(/([0-9]{4})-([0-9]{2})/, '|$&|')
'a |2020-04| b'
> 'a 2020-04 b'.replace(/([0-9]{4})-([0-9]{2})/, '|$`|')
'a |a | b'

Named capture groups (ES2018) are supported, too:

– $<name> becomes the capture of named group name

Example:

assert.equal(
'a 2020-04 b'.replace(
/(?<year>[0-9]{4})-(?<month>[0-9]{2})/, '|$<month>|'),
'a |04| b');

• [2 of 2] .replace(searchValue: string | RegExp, replacer: (...args: any[])

=> string): string [ES3]

If the second parameter is a function, occurrences are replaced with the strings it
returns. Its parameters args are:

– matched: string. The complete match

– g1: string|undefined. The capture of numbered group 1
– g2: string|undefined. The capture of numbered group 2
– (Etc.)
– offset: number. Where was the match found in the input string?
– input: string. The whole input string
186 21 Strings

const regexp = /([0-9]{4})-([0-9]{2})/;

const replacer = (all, year, month) => '|' + all + '|';
assert.equal(
'a 2020-04 b'.replace(regexp, replacer),
'a |2020-04| b');

Named capture groups (ES2018) are supported, too. If there are any, an argument
is added at the end with an object whose properties contain the captures:

const regexp = /(?<year>[0-9]{4})-(?<month>[0-9]{2})/;

const replacer = (...args) => {
const groups=args.pop();
return '|' + groups.month + '|';
};
assert.equal(
'a 2020-04 b'.replace(regexp, replacer),
'a |04| b');

• .toUpperCase(): string [ES1]

Returns a copy of the string in which all lowercase alphabetic characters are con-
verted to uppercase. How well that works for various alphabets, depends on the
JavaScript engine.

> '-a2b-'.toUpperCase()
'-A2B-'
> 'αβγ'.toUpperCase()
'ΑΒΓ'

• .toLowerCase(): string [ES1]

Returns a copy of the string in which all uppercase alphabetic characters are con-
verted to lowercase. How well that works for various alphabets, depends on the
JavaScript engine.

> '-A2B-'.toLowerCase()
'-a2b-'
> 'ΑΒΓ'.toLowerCase()
'αβγ'

• .trim(): string [ES5]

Returns a copy of the string in which all leading and trailing whitespace (spaces,
tabs, line terminators, etc.) is gone.

> '\r\n#\t '.trim()

'#'
> ' abc '.trim()
'abc'

• .trimEnd(): string [ES2019]

Similar to .trim() but only the end of the string is trimmed:

21.7 Quick reference: Strings 187

> ' abc '.trimEnd()

' abc'

• .trimStart(): string [ES2019]

Similar to .trim() but only the beginning of the string is trimmed:
> ' abc '.trimStart()
'abc '

21.7.8 Sources
• TypeScript’s built-in typings
• MDN web docs for JavaScript
• ECMAScript language specification

Exercise: Using string methods

exercises/strings/remove_extension_test.mjs

Quiz
See quiz app.
188 21 Strings
Chapter 22

Using template literals and

tagged templates

Contents
22.1 Disambiguation: “template” . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 189
22.2 Template literals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 190
22.3 Tagged templates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 191
22.3.1 Cooked vs. raw template strings (advanced) . . . . . . . . . . 191
22.3.2 Tag function library: lit-html . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 192
22.3.3 Tag function library: re-template-tag . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 192
22.3.4 Tag function library: graphql-tag . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 193
22.4 Raw string literals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 193
22.5 (Advanced) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 193
22.6 Multiline template literals and indentation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 194
22.6.1 Fix: template tag for dedenting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 194
22.6.2 Fix: .trim() . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 195
22.7 Simple templating via template literals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 195
22.7.1 A more complex example . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 196
22.7.2 Simple HTML-escaping . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 197

Before we dig into the two features template literal and tagged template, let’s first examine
the multiple meanings of the term template.

22.1 Disambiguation: “template”

The following three things are significantly different despite all having template in their
names and despite all of them looking similar:
• A text template is a function from data to text. It is frequently used in web devel-
opment and often defined via text files. For example, the following text defines a
template for the library Handlebars:

189
190 22 Using template literals and tagged templates

<div class="entry">
<h1>{{title}}</h1>
<div class="body">
{{body}}
</div>
</div>

This template has two blanks to be filled in: title and body. It is used like this:

// First step: retrieve the template text, e.g. from a text file.
const tmplFunc = Handlebars.compile(TMPL_TEXT); // compile string
const data = {title: 'My page', body: 'Welcome to my page!'};
const html = tmplFunc(data);

• A template literal is similar to a string literal, but has additional features – for exam-
ple, interpolation. It is delimited by backticks:

const num = 5;
assert.equal(`Count: ${num}!`, 'Count: 5!');

• Syntactically, a tagged template is a template literal that follows a function (or rather,
an expression that evaluates to a function). That leads to the function being called.
Its arguments are derived from the contents of the template literal.

const getArgs = (...args) => args;

assert.deepEqual(
getArgs`Count: ${5}!`,
[['Count: ', '!'], 5] );

Note that getArgs() receives both the text of the literal and the data interpolated
via ${}.

22.2 Template literals

A template literal has two new features compared to a normal string literal.

First, it supports string interpolation: if you put a dynamically computed value inside a
${}, it is converted to a string and inserted into the string returned by the literal.

const MAX = 100;

function doSomeWork(x) {
if (x > MAX) {
throw new Error(`At most ${MAX} allowed: ${x}!`);
}
// ···
}
assert.throws(
() => doSomeWork(101),
{message: 'At most 100 allowed: 101!'});

Second, template literals can span multiple lines:

22.3 Tagged templates 191

const str = `this is

a text with
multiple lines`;

Template literals always produce strings.

22.3 Tagged templates

The expression in line A is a tagged template. It is equivalent to invoking tagFunc() with
the arguments listed in the Array in line B.
function tagFunc(...args) {
return args;
}

const setting = 'dark mode';

const value = true;

assert.deepEqual(
tagFunc`Setting ${setting} is ${value}!`, // (A)
[['Setting ', ' is ', '!'], 'dark mode', true] // (B)
);

The function tagFunc before the first backtick is called a tag function. Its arguments are:
• Template strings (first argument): an Array with the text fragments surrounding the
interpolations ${}.
– In the example: ['Setting ', ' is ', '!']
• Substitutions (remaining arguments): the interpolated values.
– In the example: 'dark mode' and true
The static (fixed) parts of the literal (the template strings) are kept separate from the
dynamic parts (the substitutions).
A tag function can return arbitrary values.

22.3.1 Cooked vs. raw template strings (advanced)

So far, we have only seen the cooked interpretation of template strings. But tag functions
actually get two interpretations:
• A cooked interpretation where backslashes have special meaning. For example, \t
produces a tab character. This interpretation of the template strings is stored as an
Array in the first argument.
• A raw interpretation where backslashes do not have special meaning. For exam-
ple, \t produces two characters – a backslash and a t. This interpretation of the
template strings is stored in property .raw of the first argument (an Array).
The following tag function cookedRaw uses both interpretations:
function cookedRaw(templateStrings, ...substitutions) {
return {
192 22 Using template literals and tagged templates

cooked: [...templateStrings], // copy just the Array elements

raw: templateStrings.raw,
substitutions,
};
}
assert.deepEqual(
cookedRaw`\tab${'subst'}\newline\\`,
{
cooked: ['\tab', '\newline\\'],
raw: ['\\tab', '\\newline\\\\'],
substitutions: ['subst'],
});

The raw interpretation enables raw string literals via String.raw (described later) and
similar applications.
Tagged templates are great for supporting small embedded languages (so-called domain-
specific languages). We’ll continue with a few examples.

22.3.2 Tag function library: lit-html

lit-html is a templating library that is based on tagged templates and used by the frontend
framework Polymer:
import {html, render} from 'lit-html';

const template = (items) => html`

<ul>
${
repeat(items,
(item) => item.id,
(item, index) => html`<li>${index}. ${item.name}</li>`
)
}
</ul>
`;

repeat() is a custom function for looping. Its 2nd parameter produces unique keys for
the values returned by the 3rd parameter. Note the nested tagged template used by that
parameter.

22.3.3 Tag function library: re-template-tag

re-template-tag is a simple library for composing regular expressions. Templates tagged
with re produce regular expressions. The main benefit is that you can interpolate regular
expressions and plain text via ${} (line A):
const RE_YEAR = re`(?<year>[0-9]{4})`;
const RE_MONTH = re`(?<month>[0-9]{2})`;
const RE_DAY = re`(?<day>[0-9]{2})`;
const RE_DATE = re`/${RE_YEAR}-${RE_MONTH}-${RE_DAY}/u`; // (A)
22.4 Raw string literals 193

const match = RE_DATE.exec('2017-01-27');

assert.equal(match.groups.year, '2017');

22.3.4 Tag function library: graphql-tag

The library graphql-tag lets you create GraphQL queries via tagged templates:

import gql from 'graphql-tag';

const query = gql`

{
user(id: 5) {
firstName
lastName
}
}
`;

Additionally, there are plugins for pre-compiling such queries in Babel, TypeScript, etc.

22.4 Raw string literals

Raw string literals are implemented via the tag function String.raw. They are string
literals where backslashes don’t do anything special (such as escaping characters, etc.):

assert.equal(String.raw`\back`, '\\back');

This helps whenever data contains backslashes – for example, strings with regular ex-
pressions:

const regex1 = /^\./;

const regex2 = new RegExp('^\\.');
const regex3 = new RegExp(String.raw`^\.`);

All three regular expressions are equivalent. With a normal string literal, you have to
write the backslash twice, to escape it for that literal. With a raw string literal, you don’t
have to do that.

Raw string literals are also useful for specifying Windows filename paths:

const WIN_PATH = String.raw`C:\foo\bar`;

assert.equal(WIN_PATH, 'C:\\foo\\bar');

22.5 (Advanced)
All remaining sections are advanced
194 22 Using template literals and tagged templates

22.6 Multiline template literals and indentation

If you put multiline text in template literals, two goals are in conflict: On one hand, the
template literal should be indented to fit inside the source code. On the other hand, the
lines of its content should start in the leftmost column.

For example:

function div(text) {
return `
<div>
${text}
</div>
`;
}
console.log('Output:');
console.log(
div('Hello!')
// Replace spaces with mid-dots:
.replace(/ /g, '·')
// Replace \n with #\n:
.replace(/\n/g, '#\n')
);

Due to the indentation, the template literal fits well into the source code. Alas, the output
is also indented. And we don’t want the return at the beginning and the return plus two
spaces at the end.

Output:
#
····<div>#
······Hello!#
····</div>#
··

There are two ways to fix this: via a tagged template or by trimming the result of the
template literal.

22.6.1 Fix: template tag for dedenting

The first fix is to use a custom template tag that removes the unwanted whitespace. It
uses the first line after the initial line break to determine in which column the text starts
and shortens the indentation everywhere. It also removes the line break at the very begin-
ning and the indentation at the very end. One such template tag is dedent by Desmond
Brand:

import dedent from 'dedent';

function divDedented(text) {
return dedent`
<div>
${text}
22.7 Simple templating via template literals 195

</div>
`.replace(/\n/g, '#\n');
}
console.log('Output:');
console.log(divDedented('Hello!'));

This time, the output is not indented:

Output:
<div>#
Hello!#
</div>

22.6.2 Fix: .trim()

The second fix is quicker, but also dirtier:

function divDedented(text) {
return `
<div>
${text}
</div>
`.trim().replace(/\n/g, '#\n');
}
console.log('Output:');
console.log(divDedented('Hello!'));

The string method .trim() removes the superfluous whitespace at the beginning and at
the end, but the content itself must start in the leftmost column. The advantage of this
solution is that you don’t need a custom tag function. The downside is that it looks ugly.

The output is the same as with dedent:

Output:
<div>#
Hello!#
</div>

22.7 Simple templating via template literals

While template literals look like text templates, it is not immediately obvious how to use
them for (text) templating: A text template gets its data from an object, while a template
literal gets its data from variables. The solution is to use a template literal in the body of
a function whose parameter receives the templating data – for example:

const tmpl = (data) => `Hello ${data.name}!`;

assert.equal(tmpl({name: 'Jane'}), 'Hello Jane!');
 196 22 Using template literals and tagged templates

22.7.1 A more complex example

As a more complex example, we’d like to take an Array of addresses and produce an
HTML table. This is the Array:

const addresses = [
{ first: '<Jane>', last: 'Bond' },
{ first: 'Lars', last: '<Croft>' },
];

The function tmpl() that produces the HTML table looks as follows:

1 const tmpl = (addrs) => `

2 <table>
3 ${addrs.map(
4 (addr) => `
5 <tr>
6 <td>${escapeHtml(addr.first)}</td>
7 <td>${escapeHtml(addr.last)}</td>
8 </tr>
9 `.trim()
10 ).join('')}
11 </table>
12 `.trim();

This code contains two templating functions:

• The first one (line 1) takes addrs, an Array with addresses, and returns a string
with a table.
• The second one (line 4) takes addr, an object containing an address, and returns a
string with a table row. Note the .trim() at the end, which removes unnecessary
whitespace.

The first templating function produces its result by wrapping a table element around an
Array that it joins into a string (line 10). That Array is produced by mapping the second
templating function to each element of addrs (line 3). It therefore contains strings with
table rows.

The helper function escapeHtml() is used to escape special HTML characters (line 6 and
line 7). Its implementation is shown in the next subsection.

Let us call tmpl() with the addresses and log the result:

console.log(tmpl(addresses));

The output is:

<table>
<tr>
<td>&lt;Jane&gt;</td>
<td>Bond</td>
</tr><tr>
<td>Lars</td>
<td>&lt;Croft&gt;</td>
22.7 Simple templating via template literals 197

</tr>
</table>

22.7.2 Simple HTML-escaping

The following function escapes plain text so that it is displayed verbatim in HTML:
function escapeHtml(str) {
return str
.replace(/&/g, '&amp;') // first!
.replace(/>/g, '&gt;')
.replace(/</g, '&lt;')
.replace(/"/g, '&quot;')
.replace(/'/g, '&#39;')
.replace(/`/g, '&#96;')
;
}
assert.equal(
escapeHtml('Rock & Roll'), 'Rock &amp; Roll');
assert.equal(
escapeHtml('<blank>'), '&lt;blank&gt;');

Exercise: HTML templating

Exercise with bonus challenge: exercises/template-literals/templating_
test.mjs

Quiz
See quiz app.
198 22 Using template literals and tagged templates
Chapter 23

Symbols

Contents
23.1 Use cases for symbols . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 200
23.1.1 Symbols: values for constants . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 200
23.1.2 Symbols: unique property keys . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 201
23.2 Publicly known symbols . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 202
23.3 Converting symbols . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 202

Symbols are primitive values that are created via the factory function Symbol():

const mySymbol = Symbol('mySymbol');

The parameter is optional and provides a description, which is mainly useful for debug-
ging.

On one hand, symbols are like objects in that each value created by Symbol() is unique
and not compared by value:

> Symbol() === Symbol()

false

On the other hand, they also behave like primitive values. They have to be categorized
via typeof:

const sym = Symbol();

assert.equal(typeof sym, 'symbol');

And they can be property keys in objects:

const obj = {
[sym]: 123,
};

199
200 23 Symbols

23.1 Use cases for symbols

The main use cases for symbols, are:

• Values for constants

• Unique property keys

23.1.1 Symbols: values for constants

Let’s assume you want to create constants representing the colors red, orange, yellow,
green, blue, and violet. One simple way of doing so would be to use strings:

const COLOR_BLUE = 'Blue';

On the plus side, logging that constant produces helpful output. On the minus side, there
is a risk of mistaking an unrelated value for a color because two strings with the same
content are considered equal:

const MOOD_BLUE = 'Blue';

assert.equal(COLOR_BLUE, MOOD_BLUE);

We can fix that problem via symbols:

const COLOR_BLUE = Symbol('Blue');

const MOOD_BLUE = Symbol('Blue');

assert.notEqual(COLOR_BLUE, MOOD_BLUE);

Let’s use symbol-valued constants to implement a function:

const COLOR_RED = Symbol('Red');

const COLOR_ORANGE = Symbol('Orange');
const COLOR_YELLOW = Symbol('Yellow');
const COLOR_GREEN = Symbol('Green');
const COLOR_BLUE = Symbol('Blue');
const COLOR_VIOLET = Symbol('Violet');

function getComplement(color) {
switch (color) {
case COLOR_RED:
return COLOR_GREEN;
case COLOR_ORANGE:
return COLOR_BLUE;
case COLOR_YELLOW:
return COLOR_VIOLET;
case COLOR_GREEN:
return COLOR_RED;
case COLOR_BLUE:
return COLOR_ORANGE;
case COLOR_VIOLET:
return COLOR_YELLOW;
default:
23.1 Use cases for symbols 201

throw new Exception('Unknown color: '+color);

}
}
assert.equal(getComplement(COLOR_YELLOW), COLOR_VIOLET);

23.1.2 Symbols: unique property keys

The keys of properties (fields) in objects are used at two levels:

• The program operates at a base level. The keys at that level reflect the problem that
the program solves.

• Libraries and ECMAScript operate at a meta-level. The keys at that level are used
by services operating on base-level data and code. One such key is 'toString'.

The following code demonstrates the difference:

const pt = {
x: 7,
y: 4,
toString() {
return `(${this.x}, ${this.y})`;
},
};
assert.equal(String(pt), '(7, 4)');

Properties .x and .y exist at the base level. They hold the coordinates of the point
represented by pt and are used to solve a problem – computing with points. Method
.toString() exists at a meta-level. It is used by JavaScript to convert this object to a
string.

Meta-level properties must never interfere with base-level properties. That is, their keys
must never overlap. That is difficult when both language and libraries contribute to
the meta-level. For example, it is now impossible to give new meta-level methods sim-
ple names, such as toString because they might clash with existing base-level names.
Python’s solution to this problem is to prefix and suffix special names with two under-
scores: __init__, __iter__, __hash__, etc. However, even with this solution, libraries
can’t have their own meta-level properties because those might be in conflict with future
language properties.

Symbols, used as property keys, help us here: Each symbol is unique and a symbol key
never clashes with any other string or symbol key.

23.1.2.1 Example: a library with a meta-level method

As an example, let’s assume we are writing a library that treats objects differently if they
implement a special method. This is what defining a property key for such a method
and implementing it for an object would look like:

const specialMethod = Symbol('specialMethod');

const obj = {
_id: 'kf12oi',
202 23 Symbols

[specialMethod]() { // (A)
return this._id;
}
};
assert.equal(obj[specialMethod](), 'kf12oi');

The square brackets in line A enable us to specify that the method must have the key
specialMethod. More details are explained in §28.6.2 “Computed property keys”.

23.2 Publicly known symbols

Symbols that play special roles within ECMAScript are called publicly known symbols. Ex-
amples include:
• Symbol.iterator: makes an object iterable. It’s the key of a method that returns an
iterator. For more information on this topic, see §30 “Synchronous iteration”.
• Symbol.hasInstance: customizes how instanceof works. If an object implements
a method with that key, it can be used at the right-hand side of that operator. For
example:
const PrimitiveNull = {
[Symbol.hasInstance](x) {
return x === null;
}
};
assert.equal(null instanceof PrimitiveNull, true);

• Symbol.toStringTag: influences the default .toString() method.

> String({})
'[object Object]'
> String({ [Symbol.toStringTag]: 'is no money' })
'[object is no money]'

Note: It’s usually better to override .toString().

Exercises: Publicly known symbols

• Symbol.toStringTag: exercises/symbols/to_string_tag_test.mjs
• Symbol.hasInstance: exercises/symbols/has_instance_test.mjs

23.3 Converting symbols

What happens if we convert a symbol sym to another primitive type? Tbl. 23.1 has the
answers.
23.3 Converting symbols 203

Table 23.1: The results of converting symbols to other primitive types.

Convert to Explicit conversion Coercion (implicit conv.)

boolean Boolean(sym) → OK !sym → OK
number Number(sym) → TypeError sym*2 → TypeError
string String(sym) → OK ''+sym → TypeError
sym.toString() → OK `${sym}` → TypeError

One key pitfall with symbols is how often exceptions are thrown when converting them
to something else. What is the thinking behind that? First, conversion to number never
makes sense and should be warned about. Second, converting a symbol to a string is
indeed useful for diagnostic output. But it also makes sense to warn about accidentally
turning a symbol into a string (which is a different kind of property key):
const obj = {};
const sym = Symbol();
assert.throws(
() => { obj['__'+sym+'__'] = true },
{ message: 'Cannot convert a Symbol value to a string' });

The downside is that the exceptions make working with symbols more complicated. You
have to explicitly convert symbols when assembling strings via the plus operator:
> const mySymbol = Symbol('mySymbol');
> 'Symbol I used: ' + mySymbol
TypeError: Cannot convert a Symbol value to a string
> 'Symbol I used: ' + String(mySymbol)
'Symbol I used: Symbol(mySymbol)'

Quiz
See quiz app.
204 23 Symbols
 Part V

Control flow and data flow

205
Chapter 24

Control flow statements

Contents
24.1 Conditions of control flow statements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 208
24.2 Controlling loops: break and continue . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 208
24.2.1 break . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 208
24.2.2 break plus label: leaving any labeled statement . . . . . . . . 209
24.2.3 continue . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 209
24.3 if statements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 210
24.3.1 The syntax of if statements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 210
24.4 switch statements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 211
24.4.1 A first example of a switch statement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 211
24.4.2 Don’t forget to return or break! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 212
24.4.3 Empty case clauses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 212
24.4.4 Checking for illegal values via a default clause . . . . . . . . 213
24.5 while loops . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 213
24.5.1 Examples of while loops . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 214
24.6 do-while loops . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 214
24.7 for loops . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 214
24.7.1 Examples of for loops . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 215
24.8 for-of loops . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 215
24.8.1 const: for-of vs. for . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 216
24.8.2 Iterating over iterables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 216
24.8.3 Iterating over [index, element] pairs of Arrays . . . . . . . . . 216
24.9 for-await-of loops . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 217
24.10 for-in loops (avoid) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 217

This chapter covers the following control flow statements:

• if statement (ES1)
• switch statement (ES3)
• while loop (ES1)

207
208 24 Control flow statements

• do-while loop (ES3)

• for loop (ES1)
• for-of loop (ES6)
• for-await-of loop (ES2018)
• for-in loop (ES1)

Before we get to the actual control flow statements, let’s take a look at two operators for
controlling loops.

24.1 Conditions of control flow statements

if, while, and do-while have conditions that are, in principle, boolean. However, a
condition only has to be truthy (true if coerced to boolean) in order to be accepted. In
other words, the following two control flow statements are equivalent:

if (value) {}
if (Boolean(value) === true) {}

This is a list of all falsy values:

• undefined, null
• false
• 0, NaN
• 0n
• ''

All other values are truthy. For more information, see §16.2 “Falsy and truthy values”.

24.2 Controlling loops: break and continue

The two operators break and continue can be used to control loops and other statements
while you are inside them.

24.2.1 break

There are two versions of break: one with an operand and one without an operand. The
latter version works inside the following statements: while, do-while, for, for-of, for-
await-of, for-in and switch. It immediately leaves the current statement:

for (const x of ['a', 'b', 'c']) {

console.log(x);
if (x === 'b') break;
console.log('---')
}

// Output:
// 'a'
// '---'
// 'b'
24.2 Controlling loops: break and continue 209

24.2.2 break plus label: leaving any labeled statement

break with an operand works everywhere. Its operand is a label. Labels can be put in
front of any statement, including blocks. break foo leaves the statement whose label is
foo:

foo: { // label
if (condition) break foo; // labeled break
// ···
}

In the following example, we use break with a label to leave a loop differently when we
succeeded (line A). Then we skip what comes directly after the loop, which is where we
end up if we failed.

function findSuffix(stringArray, suffix) {

let result;
search_block: {
for (const str of stringArray) {
if (str.endsWith(suffix)) {
// Success:
result = str;
break search_block; // (A)
}
} // for
// Failure:
result = '(Untitled)';
} // search_block

return { suffix, result };

// Same as: {suffix: suffix, result: result}
}
assert.deepEqual(
findSuffix(['foo.txt', 'bar.html'], '.html'),
{ suffix: '.html', result: 'bar.html' }
);
assert.deepEqual(
findSuffix(['foo.txt', 'bar.html'], '.mjs'),
{ suffix: '.mjs', result: '(Untitled)' }
);

24.2.3 continue

continue only works inside while, do-while, for, for-of, for-await-of, and for-in.
It immediately leaves the current loop iteration and continues with the next one – for
example:

const lines = [
'Normal line',
'# Comment',
210 24 Control flow statements

'Another normal line',

];
for (const line of lines) {
if (line.startsWith('#')) continue;
console.log(line);
}
// Output:
// 'Normal line'
// 'Another normal line'

24.3 if statements
These are two simple if statements: one with just a “then” branch and one with both a
“then” branch and an “else” branch:

if (cond) {
// then branch
}

if (cond) {
// then branch
} else {
// else branch
}

Instead of the block, else can also be followed by another if statement:

if (cond1) {
// ···
} else if (cond2) {
// ···
}

if (cond1) {
// ···
} else if (cond2) {
// ···
} else {
// ···
}

You can continue this chain with more else ifs.

24.3.1 The syntax of if statements

The general syntax of if statements is:

if (cond) «then_statement»
else «else_statement»
24.4 switch statements 211

So far, the then_statement has always been a block, but we can use any statement. That
statement must be terminated with a semicolon:

if (true) console.log('Yes'); else console.log('No');

That means that else if is not its own construct; it’s simply an if statement whose
else_statement is another if statement.

24.4 switch statements

A switch statement looks as follows:

switch («switch_expression») {
«switch_body»
}

The body of switch consists of zero or more case clauses:

case «case_expression»:
«statements»

And, optionally, a default clause:

default:
«statements»

A switch is executed as follows:

• It evaluates the switch expression.

• It jumps to the first case clause whose expression has the same result as the switch
expression.
• Otherwise, if there is no such clause, it jumps to the default clause.
• Otherwise, if there is no default clause, it does nothing.

24.4.1 A first example of a switch statement

Let’s look at an example: The following function converts a number from 1–7 to the name
of a weekday.

function dayOfTheWeek(num) {
switch (num) {
case 1:
return 'Monday';
case 2:
return 'Tuesday';
case 3:
return 'Wednesday';
case 4:
return 'Thursday';
case 5:
return 'Friday';
case 6:
212 24 Control flow statements

return 'Saturday';
case 7:
return 'Sunday';
}
}
assert.equal(dayOfTheWeek(5), 'Friday');

24.4.2 Don’t forget to return or break!

At the end of a case clause, execution continues with the next case clause, unless you
return or break – for example:

function englishToFrench(english) {
let french;
switch (english) {
case 'hello':
french = 'bonjour';
case 'goodbye':
french = 'au revoir';
}
return french;
}
// The result should be 'bonjour'!
assert.equal(englishToFrench('hello'), 'au revoir');

That is, our implementation of dayOfTheWeek() only worked because we used return.
We can fix englishToFrench() by using break:

function englishToFrench(english) {
let french;
switch (english) {
case 'hello':
french = 'bonjour';
break;
case 'goodbye':
french = 'au revoir';
break;
}
return french;
}
assert.equal(englishToFrench('hello'), 'bonjour'); // ok

24.4.3 Empty case clauses

The statements of a case clause can be omitted, which effectively gives us multiple case
expressions per case clause:

function isWeekDay(name) {
switch (name) {
case 'Monday':
24.5 while loops 213

case 'Tuesday':
case 'Wednesday':
case 'Thursday':
case 'Friday':
return true;
case 'Saturday':
case 'Sunday':
return false;
}
}
assert.equal(isWeekDay('Wednesday'), true);
assert.equal(isWeekDay('Sunday'), false);

24.4.4 Checking for illegal values via a default clause

A default clause is jumped to if the switch expression has no other match. That makes
it useful for error checking:

function isWeekDay(name) {
switch (name) {
case 'Monday':
case 'Tuesday':
case 'Wednesday':
case 'Thursday':
case 'Friday':
return true;
case 'Saturday':
case 'Sunday':
return false;
default:
throw new Error('Illegal value: '+name);
}
}
assert.throws(
() => isWeekDay('January'),
{message: 'Illegal value: January'});

Exercises: switch
• exercises/control-flow/number_to_month_test.mjs
• Bonus: exercises/control-flow/is_object_via_switch_test.mjs

24.5 while loops

A while loop has the following syntax:

214 24 Control flow statements

while («condition») {
«statements»
}

Before each loop iteration, while evaluates condition:

• If the result is falsy, the loop is finished.
• If the result is truthy, the while body is executed one more time.

24.5.1 Examples of while loops

The following code uses a while loop. In each loop iteration, it removes the first element
of arr via .shift() and logs it.
const arr = ['a', 'b', 'c'];
while (arr.length > 0) {
const elem = arr.shift(); // remove first element
console.log(elem);
}
// Output:
// 'a'
// 'b'
// 'c'

If the condition always evaluates to true, then while is an infinite loop:

while (true) {
if (Math.random() === 0) break;
}

24.6 do-while loops

The do-while loop works much like while, but it checks its condition after each loop
iteration, not before.
let input;
do {
input = prompt('Enter text:');
console.log(input);
} while (input !== ':q');

prompt() is a global function that is available in web browsers. It prompts the user to
input text and returns it.

24.7 for loops

A for loop has the following syntax:
for («initialization»; «condition»; «post_iteration») {
«statements»
}
24.8 for-of loops 215

The first line is the head of the loop and controls how often the body (the remainder of the
loop) is executed. It has three parts and each of them is optional:
• initialization: sets up variables, etc. for the loop. Variables declared here via
let or const only exist inside the loop.
• condition: This condition is checked before each loop iteration. If it is falsy, the
loop stops.
• post_iteration: This code is executed after each loop iteration.
A for loop is therefore roughly equivalent to the following while loop:
«initialization»
while («condition») {
«statements»
«post_iteration»
}

24.7.1 Examples of for loops

As an example, this is how to count from zero to two via a for loop:
for (let i=0; i<3; i++) {
console.log(i);
}

// Output:
// 0
// 1
// 2

This is how to log the contents of an Array via a for loop:

const arr = ['a', 'b', 'c'];
for (let i=0; i<arr.length; i++) {
console.log(arr[i]);
}

// Output:
// 'a'
// 'b'
// 'c'

If you omit all three parts of the head, you get an infinite loop:
for (;;) {
if (Math.random() === 0) break;
}

24.8 for-of loops

A for-of loop iterates over an iterable – a data container that supports the iteration protocol.
Each iterated value is stored in a variable, as specified in the head:
216 24 Control flow statements

for («iteration_variable» of «iterable») {

«statements»
}

The iteration variable is usually created via a variable declaration:

const iterable = ['hello', 'world'];
for (const elem of iterable) {
console.log(elem);
}
// Output:
// 'hello'
// 'world'

But you can also use a (mutable) variable that already exists:
const iterable = ['hello', 'world'];
let elem;
for (elem of iterable) {
console.log(elem);
}

24.8.1 const: for-of vs. for

Note that in for-of loops you can use const. The iteration variable can still be different
for each iteration (it just can’t change during the iteration). Think of it as a new const
declaration being executed each time in a fresh scope.
In contrast, in for loops you must declare variables via let or var if their values change.

24.8.2 Iterating over iterables

As mentioned before, for-of works with any iterable object, not just with Arrays – for
example, with Sets:
const set = new Set(['hello', 'world']);
for (const elem of set) {
console.log(elem);
}

24.8.3 Iterating over [index, element] pairs of Arrays

Lastly, you can also use for-of to iterate over the [index, element] entries of Arrays:
const arr = ['a', 'b', 'c'];
for (const [index, elem] of arr.entries()) {
console.log(`${index} -> ${elem}`);
}
// Output:
// '0 -> a'
// '1 -> b'
// '2 -> c'
24.9 for-await-of loops 217

With [index, element], we are using destructuring to access Array elements.

Exercise: for-of
exercises/control-flow/array_to_string_test.mjs

24.9 for-await-of loops

for-await-of is like for-of, but it works with asynchronous iterables instead of syn-
chronous ones. And it can only be used inside async functions and async generators.
for await (const item of asyncIterable) {
// ···
}

for-await-of is described in detail in the chapter on asynchronous iteration.

24.10 for-in loops (avoid)

Recommendation: don’t use for-in loops

for-in has several pitfalls. Therefore, it is usually best to avoid it.

This is an example of using for-in properly, which involves boilerplate code (line A):
function getOwnPropertyNames(obj) {
const result = [];
for (const key in obj) {
if ({}.hasOwnProperty.call(obj, key)) { // (A)
result.push(key);
}
}
return result;
}
assert.deepEqual(
getOwnPropertyNames({ a: 1, b:2 }),
['a', 'b']);
assert.deepEqual(
getOwnPropertyNames(['a', 'b']),
['0', '1']); // strings!

We can implement the same functionality without for-in, which is almost always better:
function getOwnPropertyNames(obj) {
const result = [];
for (const key of Object.keys(obj)) {
result.push(key);
}
218 24 Control flow statements

return result;
}

Quiz
See quiz app.
Chapter 25

Exception handling

Contents
25.1 Motivation: throwing and catching exceptions . . . . . . . . . . . . 219
25.2 throw . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 220
25.2.1 Options for creating error objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 221
25.3 The try statement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 221
25.3.1 The try block . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 221
25.3.2 The catch clause . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 221
25.3.3 The finally clause . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 222
25.4 Error classes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 223
25.4.1 Properties of error objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 223

This chapter covers how JavaScript handles exceptions.

Why doesn’t JavaScript throw exceptions more often?

JavaScript didn’t support exceptions until ES3. That explains why they are used
sparingly by the language and its standard library.

25.1 Motivation: throwing and catching exceptions

Consider the following code. It reads profiles stored in files into an Array with instances
of class Profile:

function readProfiles(filePaths) {
const profiles = [];
for (const filePath of filePaths) {
try {
const profile = readOneProfile(filePath);
profiles.push(profile);

219
220 25 Exception handling

} catch (err) { // (A)

console.log('Error in: '+filePath, err);
}
}
}
function readOneProfile(filePath) {
const profile = new Profile();
const file = openFile(filePath);
// ··· (Read the data in `file` into `profile`)
return profile;
}
function openFile(filePath) {
if (!fs.existsSync(filePath)) {
throw new Error('Could not find file '+filePath); // (B)
}
// ··· (Open the file whose path is `filePath`)
}

Let’s examine what happens in line B: An error occurred, but the best place to handle
the problem is not the current location, it’s line A. There, we can skip the current file and
move on to the next one.

Therefore:

• In line B, we use a throw statement to indicate that there was a problem.

• In line A, we use a try-catch statement to handle the problem.

When we throw, the following constructs are active:

readProfiles(···)
for (const filePath of filePaths)
try
readOneProfile(···)
openFile(···)
if (!fs.existsSync(filePath))
throw

One by one, throw exits the nested constructs, until it encounters a try statement. Exe-
cution continues in the catch clause of that try statement.

25.2 throw

This is the syntax of the throw statement:

throw «value»;

Any value can be thrown, but it’s best to throw an instance of Error or its subclasses.

throw new Error('Problem!');

25.3 The try statement 221

25.2.1 Options for creating error objects

• Use class Error. That is less limiting in JavaScript than in a more static language
because you can add your own properties to instances:

const err = new Error('Could not find the file');

err.filePath = filePath;
throw err;

• Use one of JavaScript’s subclasses of Error (which are listed later).

• Subclass Error yourself.

class MyError extends Error {

}
function func() {
throw new MyError('Problem!');
}
assert.throws(
() => func(),
MyError);

25.3 The try statement

The maximal version of the try statement looks as follows:

try {
«try_statements»
} catch (error) {
«catch_statements»
} finally {
«finally_statements»
}

You can combine these clauses as follows:

• try-catch
• try-finally
• try-catch-finally

Since ECMAScript 2019, you can omit the catch parameter (error), if you are not inter-
ested in the value that was thrown.

25.3.1 The try block

The try block can be considered the body of the statement. This is where we execute the
regular code.

25.3.2 The catch clause

If an exception reaches the try block, then it is assigned to the parameter of the catch
clause and the code in that clause is executed. Next, execution normally continues after
222 25 Exception handling

the try statement. That may change if:

• There is a return, break, or throw inside the catch block.

• There is a finally clause (which is always executed before the try statement ends).

The following code demonstrates that the value that is thrown in line A is indeed caught
in line B.

const errorObject = new Error();

function func() {
throw errorObject; // (A)
}

try {
func();
} catch (err) { // (B)
assert.equal(err, errorObject);
}

25.3.3 The finally clause

The code inside the finally clause is always executed at the end of a try statement – no
matter what happens in the try block or the catch clause.

Let’s look at a common use case for finally: You have created a resource and want to
always destroy it when you are done with it, no matter what happens while working
with it. You’d implement that as follows:

const resource = createResource();

try {
// Work with `resource`. Errors may be thrown.
} finally {
resource.destroy();
}

25.3.3.1 finally is always executed

The finally clause is always executed, even if an error is thrown (line A):

let finallyWasExecuted = false;

assert.throws(
() => {
try {
throw new Error(); // (A)
} finally {
finallyWasExecuted = true;
}
},
Error
);
assert.equal(finallyWasExecuted, true);
25.4 Error classes 223

And even if there is a return statement (line A):

let finallyWasExecuted = false;
function func() {
try {
return; // (A)
} finally {
finallyWasExecuted = true;
}
}
func();
assert.equal(finallyWasExecuted, true);

25.4 Error classes

Error is the common superclass of all built-in error classes. It has the following sub-
classes (I’m quoting the ECMAScript specification):
• RangeError: Indicates a value that is not in the set or range of allowable values.
• ReferenceError: Indicate that an invalid reference value has been detected.
• SyntaxError: Indicates that a parsing error has occurred.
• TypeError: is used to indicate an unsuccessful operation when none of the other
NativeError objects are an appropriate indication of the failure cause.
• URIError: Indicates that one of the global URI handling functions was used in a
way that is incompatible with its definition.

25.4.1 Properties of error objects

Consider err, an instance of Error:
const err = new Error('Hello!');
assert.equal(String(err), 'Error: Hello!');

Two properties of err are especially useful:

• .message: contains just the error message.
assert.equal(err.message, 'Hello!');

• .stack: contains a stack trace. It is supported by all mainstream browsers.

assert.equal(
err.stack,
`
Error: Hello!
at ch_exception-handling.mjs:1:13
`.trim());

Exercise: Exception handling

224 25 Exception handling

exercises/exception-handling/call_function_test.mjs

Quiz
See quiz app.
Chapter 26

Callable values

Contents
26.1 Kinds of functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 225
26.2 Ordinary functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 226
26.2.1 Parts of a function declaration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 226
26.2.2 Roles played by ordinary functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 227
26.2.3 Names of ordinary functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 227
26.3 Specialized functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 228
26.3.1 Specialized functions are still functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . 228
26.3.2 Recommendation: prefer specialized functions . . . . . . . . . 229
26.3.3 Arrow functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 229
26.4 More kinds of functions and methods . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 231
26.5 Returning values from functions and methods . . . . . . . . . . . . 232
26.6 Parameter handling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 233
26.6.1 Terminology: parameters vs. arguments . . . . . . . . . . . . 233
26.6.2 Terminology: callback . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 233
26.6.3 Too many or not enough arguments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 234
26.6.4 Parameter default values . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 234
26.6.5 Rest parameters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 234
26.6.6 Named parameters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 235
26.6.7 Simulating named parameters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 236
26.6.8 Spreading (...) into function calls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 236
26.7 Dynamically evaluating code: eval(), new Function() (advanced) . 237
26.7.1 eval() . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 238
26.7.2 new Function() . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 238
26.7.3 Recommendations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 239

26.1 Kinds of functions

JavaScript has two categories of functions:

225
226 26 Callable values

• An ordinary function can play several roles:

– Real function
– Method
– Constructor function
• A specialized function can only play one of those roles – for example:
– An arrow function can only be a real function.
– A method can only be a method.
– A class can only be a constructor function.
The next two sections explain what all of those things mean.

26.2 Ordinary functions

The following code shows three ways of doing (roughly) the same thing: creating an
ordinary function.
// Function declaration (a statement)
function ordinary1(a, b, c) {
// ···
}

// const plus anonymous function expression

const ordinary2 = function (a, b, c) {
// ···
};

// const plus named function expression

const ordinary3 = function myName(a, b, c) {
// `myName` is only accessible in here
};

As we have seen in §12.8 “Declarations: scope and activation”, function declarations are
activated early, while variable declarations (e.g., via const) are not.
The syntax of function declarations and function expressions is very similar. The context
determines which is which. For more information on this kind of syntactic ambiguity,
consult §8.5 “Ambiguous syntax”.

26.2.1 Parts of a function declaration

Let’s examine the parts of a function declaration via an example:
function add(x, y) {
return x + y;
}

• add is the name of the function declaration.

• add(x, y) is the head of the function declaration.
• x and y are the parameters.
• The curly braces ({ and }) and everything between them are the body of the function
declaration.
26.2 Ordinary functions 227

• The return statement explicitly returns a value from the function.

26.2.2 Roles played by ordinary functions

Consider the following function declaration from the previous section:

function add(x, y) {
return x + y;
}

This function declaration creates an ordinary function whose name is add. As an ordinary
function, add() can play three roles:

• Real function: invoked via a function call.

assert.equal(add(2, 1), 3);

• Method: stored in property, invoked via a method call.

const obj = { addAsMethod: add };

assert.equal(obj.addAsMethod(2, 4), 6); // (A)

In line A, obj is called the receiver of the method call. It can be accessed via this
inside the method.

• Constructor function/class: invoked via new.

const inst = new add();

assert.equal(inst instanceof add, true);

(As an aside, the names of classes normally start with capital letters.)

Ordinary function vs. real function

In JavaScript, we distinguish:
• The entity ordinary function
• The role real function, as played by an ordinary function
In many other programming languages, the entity function only plays one role –
function. Therefore, the same name function can be used for both.

26.2.3 Names of ordinary functions

The name of a function expression is only accessible inside the function, where the func-
tion can use it to refer to itself (e.g., for self-recursion):

const func = function funcExpr() { return funcExpr };

assert.equal(func(), func);

// The name `funcExpr` only exists inside the function:

assert.throws(() => funcExpr(), ReferenceError);

In contrast, the name of a function declaration is accessible inside the current scope:
228 26 Callable values

function funcDecl() { return funcDecl }

// The name `funcDecl` exists in the current scope

assert.equal(funcDecl(), funcDecl);

26.3 Specialized functions

Specialized functions are single-purpose versions of ordinary functions. Each one of
them specializes in a single role:
• The purpose of an arrow function is to be a real function:
const arrow = () => { return 123 };
assert.equal(arrow(), 123);

• The purpose of a method is to be a method:

const obj = { method() { return 'abc' } };
assert.equal(obj.method(), 'abc');

• The purpose of a class is to be a constructor function:

class MyClass { /* ··· */ }
const inst = new MyClass();

Apart from nicer syntax, each kind of specialized function also supports new features,
making them better at their jobs than ordinary functions.
• Arrow functions are explained later in this chapter.
• Methods are explained in the chapter on single objects.
• Classes are explained in the chapter on classes.
Tbl. 26.1 lists the capabilities of ordinary and specialized functions.

Table 26.1: Capabilities of four kinds of functions. “Lexical this” means

that this is defined by the surroundings of an arrow function, not by
method calls.

Function call Method call Constructor call

Ordinary function (this === undefined) ✔ ✔
Arrow function ✔ (lexical this) ✘
Method (this === undefined) ✔ ✘
Class ✘ ✘ ✔

26.3.1 Specialized functions are still functions

It’s important to note that arrow functions, methods, and classes are still categorized as
functions:
> (() => {}) instanceof Function
true
> ({ method() {} }.method) instanceof Function
26.3 Specialized functions 229

true
> (class SomeClass {}) instanceof Function
true

26.3.2 Recommendation: prefer specialized functions

Normally, you should prefer specialized functions over ordinary functions, especially
classes and methods. The choice between an arrow function and an ordinary function is
less clear-cut, though:
• On one hand, an ordinary function has this as an implicit parameter. That param-
eter is set to undefined during function calls – which is not what you want. An
arrow function treats this like any other variable. For details, see §28.4.6 “Avoid-
ing the pitfalls of this”.
• On the other hand, I like the syntax of a function declaration (which produces an
ordinary function). If you don’t use this inside it, it is mostly equivalent to const
plus arrow function:
function funcDecl(x, y) {
return x * y;
}
const arrowFunc = (x, y) => {
return x * y;
};

26.3.3 Arrow functions

Arrow functions were added to JavaScript for two reasons:
1. To provide a more concise way for creating functions.
2. To make working with real functions easier: You can’t refer to the this of the
surrounding scope inside an ordinary function.
Next, we’ll first look at the syntax of arrow functions and then how they help with this.

26.3.3.1 The syntax of arrow functions

Let’s review the syntax of an anonymous function expression:

const f = function (x, y, z) { return 123 };

The (roughly) equivalent arrow function looks as follows. Arrow functions are expres-
sions.
const f = (x, y, z) => { return 123 };

Here, the body of the arrow function is a block. But it can also be an expression. The
following arrow function works exactly like the previous one.
const f = (x, y, z) => 123;

If an arrow function has only a single parameter and that parameter is an identifier (not
a destructuring pattern) then you can omit the parentheses around the parameter:
230 26 Callable values

const id = x => x;

That is convenient when passing arrow functions as parameters to other functions or

methods:

> [1,2,3].map(x => x+1)

[ 2, 3, 4 ]

This previous example demonstrates one benefit of arrow functions – conciseness. If we

perform the same task with a function expression, our code is more verbose:

[1,2,3].map(function (x) { return x+1 });

26.3.3.2 Arrow functions: lexical this

Ordinary functions can be both methods and real functions. Alas, the two roles are in
conflict:

• As each ordinary function can be a method, it has its own this.

• The own this makes it impossible to access the this of the surrounding scope
from inside an ordinary function. And that is inconvenient for real functions.

The following code demonstrates the issue:

const person = {
name: 'Jill',
someMethod() {
const ordinaryFunc = function () {
assert.throws(
() => this.name, // (A)
/^TypeError: Cannot read property 'name' of undefined$/);
};
const arrowFunc = () => {
assert.equal(this.name, 'Jill'); // (B)
};

ordinaryFunc();
arrowFunc();
},
}

In this code, we can observe two ways of handling this:

• Dynamic this: In line A, we try to access the this of .someMethod() from an ordi-
nary function. There, it is shadowed by the function’s own this, which is undefined
(as filled in by the function call). Given that ordinary functions receive their this
via (dynamic) function or method calls, their this is called dynamic.

• Lexical this: In line B, we again try to access the this of .someMethod(). This
time, we succeed because the arrow function does not have its own this. this
is resolved lexically, just like any other variable. That’s why the this of arrow
functions is called lexical.
26.4 More kinds of functions and methods 231

26.3.3.3 Syntax pitfall: returning an object literal from an arrow function

If you want the expression body of an arrow function to be an object literal, you must
put the literal in parentheses:
const func1 = () => ({a: 1});
assert.deepEqual(func1(), { a: 1 });

If you don’t, JavaScript thinks, the arrow function has a block body (that doesn’t return
anything):
const func2 = () => {a: 1};
assert.deepEqual(func2(), undefined);

{a: 1} is interpreted as a block with the label a: and the expression statement 1. Without
an explicit return statement, the block body returns undefined.
This pitfall is caused by syntactic ambiguity: object literals and code blocks have the
same syntax. We use the parentheses to tell JavaScript that the body is an expression (an
object literal) and not a statement (a block).
For more information on shadowing this, consult §28.4.5 “this pitfall: accidentally
shadowing this”.

26.4 More kinds of functions and methods

This section is a summary of upcoming content

This section mainly serves as a reference for the current and upcoming chapters.
Don’t worry if you don’t understand everything.

So far, all (real) functions and methods, that we have seen, were:
• Single-result
• Synchronous
Later chapters will cover other modes of programming:
• Iteration treats objects as containers of data (so-called iterables) and provides a stan-
dardized way for retrieving what is inside them. If a function or a method returns
an iterable, it returns multiple values.
• Asynchronous programming deals with handling a long-running computation. You
are notified when the computation is finished and can do something else in be-
tween. The standard pattern for asynchronously delivering single results is called
Promise.
These modes can be combined – for example, there are synchronous iterables and asyn-
chronous iterables.
Several new kinds of functions and methods help with some of the mode combinations:
• Async functions help implement functions that return Promises. There are also
async methods.
232 26 Callable values

• Synchronous generator functions help implement functions that return synchronous

iterables. There are also synchronous generator methods.
• Asynchronous generator functions help implement functions that return asyn-
chronous iterables. There are also asynchronous generator methods.
That leaves us with 4 kinds (2 × 2) of functions and methods:
• Synchronous vs. asynchronous
• Generator vs. single-result
Tbl. 26.2 gives an overview of the syntax for creating these 4 kinds of functions and meth-
ods.

Table 26.2: Syntax for creating functions and methods. The last column
specifies how many values are produced by an entity.

Result Values
Sync function Sync method
function f() {} { m() {} } value 1
f = function () {}
f = () => {}
Sync generator function Sync gen. method
function* f() {} { * m() {} } iterable 0+
f = function* () {}
Async function Async method
async function f() {} { async m() {} } Promise 1
f = async function () {}
f = async () => {}
Async generator function Async gen. method
async function* f() {} { async * m() {} } async iterable 0+
f = async function* () {}

26.5 Returning values from functions and methods

(Everything mentioned in this section applies to both functions and methods.)
The return statement explicitly returns a value from a function:

function func() {
return 123;
}
assert.equal(func(), 123);

Another example:
function boolToYesNo(bool) {
if (bool) {
return 'Yes';
} else {
return 'No';
26.6 Parameter handling 233

}
}
assert.equal(boolToYesNo(true), 'Yes');
assert.equal(boolToYesNo(false), 'No');

If, at the end of a function, you haven’t returned anything explicitly, JavaScript returns
undefined for you:

function noReturn() {
// No explicit return
}
assert.equal(noReturn(), undefined);

26.6 Parameter handling

Once again, I am only mentioning functions in this section, but everything also applies
to methods.

26.6.1 Terminology: parameters vs. arguments

The term parameter and the term argument basically mean the same thing. If you want to,
you can make the following distinction:
• Parameters are part of a function definition. They are also called formal parameters
and formal arguments.
• Arguments are part of a function call. They are also called actual parameters and
actual arguments.

26.6.2 Terminology: callback

A callback or callback function is a function that is an argument of a function or method
call.
The following is an example of a callback:
const myArray = ['a', 'b'];
const callback = (x) => console.log(x);
myArray.forEach(callback);

// Output:
// 'a'
// 'b'

JavaScript uses the term callback broadly

In other programming languages, the term callback often has a narrower meaning:
it refers to a pattern for delivering results asynchronously, via a function-valued
parameter. In this meaning, the callback (or continuation) is invoked after a function
234 26 Callable values

has completely finished its computation.

Callbacks as an asynchronous pattern, are described in the chapter on asyn-
chronous programming.

26.6.3 Too many or not enough arguments

JavaScript does not complain if a function call provides a different number of arguments
than expected by the function definition:

• Extra arguments are ignored.

• Missing parameters are set to undefined.

For example:

function foo(x, y) {
return [x, y];
}

// Too many arguments:

assert.deepEqual(foo('a', 'b', 'c'), ['a', 'b']);

// The expected number of arguments:

assert.deepEqual(foo('a', 'b'), ['a', 'b']);

// Not enough arguments:

assert.deepEqual(foo('a'), ['a', undefined]);

26.6.4 Parameter default values

Parameter default values specify the value to use if a parameter has not been provided –
for example:

function f(x, y=0) {

return [x, y];
}

assert.deepEqual(f(1), [1, 0]);

assert.deepEqual(f(), [undefined, 0]);

undefined also triggers the default value:

assert.deepEqual(
f(undefined, undefined),
[undefined, 0]);

26.6.5 Rest parameters

A rest parameter is declared by prefixing an identifier with three dots (...). During a
function or method call, it receives an Array with all remaining arguments. If there are
no extra arguments at the end, it is an empty Array – for example:
26.6 Parameter handling 235

function f(x, ...y) {

return [x, y];
}
assert.deepEqual(
f('a', 'b', 'c'),
['a', ['b', 'c']]);
assert.deepEqual(
f(),
[undefined, []]);

26.6.5.1 Enforcing a certain number of arguments via a rest parameter

You can use a rest parameter to enforce a certain number of arguments. Take, for example,
the following function:

function createPoint(x, y) {
return {x, y};
// same as {x: x, y: y}
}

This is how we force callers to always provide two arguments:

function createPoint(...args) {
if (args.length !== 2) {
throw new Error('Please provide exactly 2 arguments!');
}
const [x, y] = args; // (A)
return {x, y};
}

In line A, we access the elements of args via destructuring.

26.6.6 Named parameters

When someone calls a function, the arguments provided by the caller are assigned to the
parameters received by the callee. Two common ways of performing the mapping are:

1. Positional parameters: An argument is assigned to a parameter if they have the

same position. A function call with only positional arguments looks as follows.

selectEntries(3, 20, 2)

2. Named parameters: An argument is assigned to a parameter if they have the same

name. JavaScript doesn’t have named parameters, but you can simulate them. For
example, this is a function call with only (simulated) named arguments:

selectEntries({start: 3, end: 20, step: 2})

Named parameters have several benefits:

• They lead to more self-explanatory code because each argument has a descriptive
label. Just compare the two versions of selectEntries(): with the second one, it
is much easier to see what happens.
236 26 Callable values

• The order of the arguments doesn’t matter (as long as the names are correct).
• Handling more than one optional parameter is more convenient: callers can easily
provide any subset of all optional parameters and don’t have to be aware of the
ones they omit (with positional parameters, you have to fill in preceding optional
parameters, with undefined).

26.6.7 Simulating named parameters

JavaScript doesn’t have real named parameters. The official way of simulating them is
via object literals:
function selectEntries({start=0, end=-1, step=1}) {
return {start, end, step};
}

This function uses destructuring to access the properties of its single parameter. The pat-
tern it uses is an abbreviation for the following pattern:
{start: start=0, end: end=-1, step: step=1}

This destructuring pattern works for empty object literals:

> selectEntries({})
{ start: 0, end: -1, step: 1 }

But it does not work if you call the function without any parameters:
> selectEntries()
TypeError: Cannot destructure property `start` of 'undefined' or 'null'.

You can fix this by providing a default value for the whole pattern. This default value
works the same as default values for simpler parameter definitions: if the parameter is
missing, the default is used.
function selectEntries({start=0, end=-1, step=1} = {}) {
return {start, end, step};
}
assert.deepEqual(
selectEntries(),
{ start: 0, end: -1, step: 1 });

26.6.8 Spreading (...) into function calls

If you put three dots (...) in front of the argument of a function call, then you spread it.
That means that the argument must be an iterable object and the iterated values all become
arguments. In other words, a single argument is expanded into multiple arguments – for
example:
function func(x, y) {
console.log(x);
console.log(y);
}
const someIterable = ['a', 'b'];
26.7 Dynamically evaluating code: eval(), new Function() (advanced) 237

func(...someIterable);
// same as func('a', 'b')

// Output:
// 'a'
// 'b'

Spreading and rest parameters use the same syntax (...), but they serve opposite pur-
poses:
• Rest parameters are used when defining functions or methods. They collect argu-
ments into Arrays.
• Spread arguments are used when calling functions or methods. They turn iterable
objects into arguments.

26.6.8.1 Example: spreading into Math.max()

Math.max() returns the largest one of its zero or more arguments. Alas, it can’t be used
for Arrays, but spreading gives us a way out:
> Math.max(-1, 5, 11, 3)
11
> Math.max(...[-1, 5, 11, 3])
11
> Math.max(-1, ...[-5, 11], 3)
11

26.6.8.2 Example: spreading into Array.prototype.push()

Similarly, the Array method .push() destructively adds its zero or more parameters to
the end of its Array. JavaScript has no method for destructively appending an Array to
another one. Once again, we are saved by spreading:
const arr1 = ['a', 'b'];
const arr2 = ['c', 'd'];

arr1.push(...arr2);
assert.deepEqual(arr1, ['a', 'b', 'c', 'd']);

Exercises: Parameter handling

• Positional parameters: exercises/callables/positional_parameters_
test.mjs
• Named parameters: exercises/callables/named_parameters_test.mjs

26.7 Dynamically evaluating code: eval(), new Func-

tion() (advanced)
Next, we’ll look at two ways of evaluating code dynamically: eval() and new Func-
238 26 Callable values

tion().

26.7.1 eval()
Given a string str with JavaScript code, eval(str) evaluates that code and returns the
result:

> eval('2 ** 4')

16

There are two ways of invoking eval():

• Directly, via a function call. Then the code in its argument is evaluated inside the
current scope.
• Indirectly, not via a function call. Then it evaluates its code in global scope.

“Not via a function call” means “anything that looks different than eval(···)”:

• eval.call(undefined, '···')
• (0, eval)('···') (uses the comma operator)
• globalThis.eval('···')
• const e = eval; e('···')
• Etc.

The following code illustrates the difference:

globalThis.myVariable = 'global';
function func() {
const myVariable = 'local';

// Direct eval
assert.equal(eval('myVariable'), 'local');

// Indirect eval
assert.equal(eval.call(undefined, 'myVariable'), 'global');
}

Evaluating code in global context is safer because the code has access to fewer internals.

26.7.2 new Function()

new Function() creates a function object and is invoked as follows:

const func = new Function('«param_1»', ···, '«param_n»', '«func_body»');

The previous statement is equivalent to the next statement. Note that «param_1», etc.,
are not inside string literals, anymore.

const func = function («param_1», ···, «param_n») {

«func_body»
};

In the next example, we create the same function twice, first via new Function(), then
via a function expression:
26.7 Dynamically evaluating code: eval(), new Function() (advanced) 239

const times1 = new Function('a', 'b', 'return a * b');

const times2 = function (a, b) { return a * b };

new Function() creates non-strict mode functions

Functions created via new Function() are sloppy.

26.7.3 Recommendations
Avoid dynamic evaluation of code as much as you can:
• It’s a security risk because it may enable an attacker to execute arbitrary code with
the privileges of your code.
• It may be switched off – for example, in browsers, via a Content Security Policy.
Very often, JavaScript is dynamic enough so that you don’t need eval() or similar. In
the following example, what we are doing with eval() (line A) can be achieved just as
well without it (line B).
const obj = {a: 1, b: 2};
const propKey = 'b';

assert.equal(eval('obj.' + propKey), 2); // (A)

assert.equal(obj[propKey], 2); // (B)

If you have to dynamically evaluate code:

• Prefer new Function() over eval(): it always executes its code in global context
and a function provides a clean interface to the evaluated code.
• Prefer indirect eval over direct eval: evaluating code in global context is safer.

Quiz
See quiz app.
240 26 Callable values
 Part VI

Modularity

241
Chapter 27

Modules

Contents
27.1 Overview: syntax of ECMAScript modules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 244
27.1.1 Exporting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 244
27.1.2 Importing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 244
27.2 JavaScript source code formats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 245
27.2.1 Code before built-in modules was written in ECMAScript 5 . . 245
27.3 Before we had modules, we had scripts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 245
27.4 Module systems created prior to ES6 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 246
27.4.1 Server side: CommonJS modules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 247
27.4.2 Client side: AMD (Asynchronous Module Definition) modules 247
27.4.3 Characteristics of JavaScript modules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 248
27.5 ECMAScript modules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 248
27.5.1 ES modules: syntax, semantics, loader API . . . . . . . . . . . 249
27.6 Named exports and imports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 249
27.6.1 Named exports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 249
27.6.2 Named imports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 250
27.6.3 Namespace imports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 251
27.6.4 Named exporting styles: inline versus clause (advanced) . . . 251
27.7 Default exports and imports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 251
27.7.1 The two styles of default-exporting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 252
27.7.2 The default export as a named export (advanced) . . . . . . . 253
27.8 More details on exporting and importing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 254
27.8.1 Imports are read-only views on exports . . . . . . . . . . . . . 254
27.8.2 ESM’s transparent support for cyclic imports (advanced) . . . 255
27.9 npm packages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 255
27.9.1 Packages are installed inside a directory node_modules/ . . . . 256
27.9.2 Why can npm be used to install frontend libraries? . . . . . . . 257
27.10Naming modules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 257
27.11Module specifiers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 258

243
244 27 Modules

27.11.1 Categories of module specifiers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 258

27.11.2 ES module specifiers in browsers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 258
27.11.3 ES module specifiers on Node.js . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 259
27.12Loading modules dynamically via import() [ES2020] . . . . . . . . 260
27.12.1 Example: loading a module dynamically . . . . . . . . . . . . 260
27.12.2 Use cases for import() . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 261
27.13 import.meta.url . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 262
27.13.1 import.meta.url and class URL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 262
27.13.2 import.meta.url on Node.js . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 263
27.14Polyfills: emulating native web platform features (advanced) . . . . 264
27.14.1 Sources of this section . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 264

27.1 Overview: syntax of ECMAScript modules

27.1.1 Exporting
// Named exports
export function f() {}
export const one = 1;
export {foo, b as bar};

// Default exports
export default function f() {} // declaration with optional name
// Replacement for `const` (there must be exactly one value)
export default 123;

// Re-exporting from another module

export * from './some-module.mjs';
export {foo, b as bar} from './some-module.mjs';

27.1.2 Importing
// Named imports
import {foo, bar as b} from './some-module.mjs';
// Namespace import
import * as someModule from './some-module.mjs';
// Default import
import someModule from './some-module.mjs';

// Combinations:
import someModule, * as someModule from './some-module.mjs';
import someModule, {foo, bar as b} from './some-module.mjs';

// Empty import (for modules with side effects)

import './some-module.mjs';
27.3 Before we had modules, we had scripts 245

27.2 JavaScript source code formats

The current landscape of JavaScript modules is quite diverse: ES6 brought built-in mod-
ules, but the source code formats that came before them, are still around, too. Under-
standing the latter helps understand the former, so let’s investigate. The next sections
describe the following ways of delivering JavaScript source code:
• Scripts are code fragments that browsers run in global scope. They are precursors
of modules.
• CommonJS modules are a module format that is mainly used on servers (e.g., via
Node.js).
• AMD modules are a module format that is mainly used in browsers.
• ECMAScript modules are JavaScript’s built-in module format. It supersedes all pre-
vious formats.
Tbl. 27.1 gives an overview of these code formats. Note that for CommonJS modules
and ECMAScript modules, two filename extensions are commonly used. Which one is
appropriate depends on how you want to use a file. Details are given later in this chapter.

Table 27.1: Ways of delivering JavaScript source code.

Runs on Loaded Filename ext.

Script browsers async .js
CommonJS module servers sync .js .cjs
AMD module browsers async .js
ECMAScript module browsers and servers async .js .mjs

27.2.1 Code before built-in modules was written in ECMAScript 5

Before we get to built-in modules (which were introduced with ES6), all code that you’ll
see, will be written in ES5. Among other things:

• ES5 did not have const and let, only var.

• ES5 did not have arrow functions, only function expressions.

27.3 Before we had modules, we had scripts

Initially, browsers only had scripts – pieces of code that were executed in global scope.
As an example, consider an HTML file that loads script files via the following HTML:

<script src="other-module1.js"></script>
<script src="other-module2.js"></script>
<script src="my-module.js"></script>

The main file is my-module.js, where we simulate a module:

var myModule = (function () { // Open IIFE

// Imports (via global variables)
var importedFunc1 = otherModule1.importedFunc1;
246 27 Modules

var importedFunc2 = otherModule2.importedFunc2;

// Body
function internalFunc() {
// ···
}
function exportedFunc() {
importedFunc1();
importedFunc2();
internalFunc();
}

// Exports (assigned to global variable `myModule`)

return {
exportedFunc: exportedFunc,
};
})(); // Close IIFE

myModule is a global variable that is assigned the result of immediately invoking a func-
tion expression. The function expression starts in the first line. It is invoked in the last
line.

This way of wrapping a code fragment is called immediately invoked function expression
(IIFE, coined by Ben Alman). What do we gain from an IIFE? var is not block-scoped
(like const and let), it is function-scoped: the only way to create new scopes for var-
declared variables is via functions or methods (with const and let, you can use either
functions, methods, or blocks {}). Therefore, the IIFE in the example hides all of the
following variables from global scope and minimizes name clashes: importedFunc1, im-
portedFunc2, internalFunc, exportedFunc.

Note that we are using an IIFE in a particular manner: at the end, we pick what we
want to export and return it via an object literal. That is called the revealing module pattern
(coined by Christian Heilmann).

This way of simulating modules, has several issues:

• Libraries in script files export and import functionality via global variables, which
risks name clashes.
• Dependencies are not stated explicitly, and there is no built-in way for a script to
load the scripts it depends on. Therefore, the web page has to load not just the
scripts that are needed by the page but also the dependencies of those scripts, the
dependencies’ dependencies, etc. And it has to do so in the right order!

27.4 Module systems created prior to ES6

Prior to ECMAScript 6, JavaScript did not have built-in modules. Therefore, the flexi-
ble syntax of the language was used to implement custom module systems within the
language. Two popular ones are:

• CommonJS (targeting the server side)

27.4 Module systems created prior to ES6 247

• AMD (Asynchronous Module Definition, targeting the client side)

27.4.1 Server side: CommonJS modules

The original CommonJS standard for modules was created for server and desktop plat-
forms. It was the foundation of the original Node.js module system, where it achieved
enormous popularity. Contributing to that popularity were the npm package manager
for Node and tools that enabled using Node modules on the client side (browserify, web-
pack, and others).
From now on, CommonJS module means the Node.js version of this standard (which has
a few additional features). This is an example of a CommonJS module:
// Imports
var importedFunc1 = require('./other-module1.js').importedFunc1;
var importedFunc2 = require('./other-module2.js').importedFunc2;

// Body
function internalFunc() {
// ···
}
function exportedFunc() {
importedFunc1();
importedFunc2();
internalFunc();
}

// Exports
module.exports = {
exportedFunc: exportedFunc,
};

CommonJS can be characterized as follows:

• Designed for servers.
• Modules are meant to be loaded synchronously (the importer waits while the im-
ported module is loaded and executed).
• Compact syntax.

27.4.2 Client side: AMD (Asynchronous Module Definition) modules

The AMD module format was created to be easier to use in browsers than the CommonJS
format. Its most popular implementation is RequireJS. The following is an example of
an AMD module.
define(['./other-module1.js', './other-module2.js'],
function (otherModule1, otherModule2) {
var importedFunc1 = otherModule1.importedFunc1;
var importedFunc2 = otherModule2.importedFunc2;

function internalFunc() {
248 27 Modules

// ···
}
function exportedFunc() {
importedFunc1();
importedFunc2();
internalFunc();
}

return {
exportedFunc: exportedFunc,
};
});

AMD can be characterized as follows:

• Designed for browsers.
• Modules are meant to be loaded asynchronously. That’s a crucial requirement for
browsers, where code can’t wait until a module has finished downloading. It has
to be notified once the module is available.
• The syntax is slightly more complicated.
On the plus side, AMD modules can be executed directly. In contrast, CommonJS mod-
ules must either be compiled before deployment or custom source code must be gen-
erated and evaluated dynamically (think eval()). That isn’t always permitted on the
web.

27.4.3 Characteristics of JavaScript modules

Looking at CommonJS and AMD, similarities between JavaScript module systems
emerge:
• There is one module per file.
• Such a file is basically a piece of code that is executed:
– Local scope: The code is executed in a local “module scope”. Therefore, by
default, all of the variables, functions, and classes declared in it are internal
and not global.
– Exports: If you want any declared entity to be exported, you must explicitly
mark it as an export.
– Imports: Each module can import exported entities from other modules.
Those other modules are identified via module specifiers (usually paths,
occasionally full URLs).
• Modules are singletons: Even if a module is imported multiple times, only a single
“instance” of it exists.
• No global variables are used. Instead, module specifiers serve as global IDs.

27.5 ECMAScript modules

ECMAScript modules (ES modules or ESM) were introduced with ES6. They continue the
tradition of JavaScript modules and have all of their aforementioned characteristics. Ad-
ditionally:
27.6 Named exports and imports 249

• With CommonJS, ES modules share the compact syntax and support for cyclic de-
pendencies.
• With AMD, ES modules share being designed for asynchronous loading.
ES modules also have new benefits:
• The syntax is even more compact than CommonJS’s.
• Modules have static structures (which can’t be changed at runtime). That helps
with static checking, optimized access of imports, dead code elimination, and
more.
• Support for cyclic imports is completely transparent.
This is an example of ES module syntax:
import {importedFunc1} from './other-module1.mjs';
import {importedFunc2} from './other-module2.mjs';

function internalFunc() {
···
}

export function exportedFunc() {

importedFunc1();
importedFunc2();
internalFunc();
}

From now on, “module” means “ECMAScript module”.

27.5.1 ES modules: syntax, semantics, loader API

The full standard of ES modules comprises the following parts:
1. Syntax (how code is written): What is a module? How are imports and exports
declared? Etc.
2. Semantics (how code is executed): How are variable bindings exported? How are
imports connected with exports? Etc.
3. A programmatic loader API for configuring module loading.
Parts 1 and 2 were introduced with ES6. Work on part 3 is ongoing.

27.6 Named exports and imports

27.6.1 Named exports
Each module can have zero or more named exports.
As an example, consider the following two files:
lib/my-math.mjs
main.mjs

Module my-math.mjs has two named exports: square and LIGHTSPEED.

250 27 Modules

// Not exported, private to module

function times(a, b) {
return a * b;
}
export function square(x) {
return times(x, x);
}
export const LIGHTSPEED = 299792458;

To export something, we put the keyword export in front of a declaration. Entities that
are not exported are private to a module and can’t be accessed from outside.

27.6.2 Named imports

Module main.mjs has a single named import, square:

import {square} from './lib/my-math.mjs';

assert.equal(square(3), 9);

It can also rename its import:

import {square as sq} from './lib/my-math.mjs';

assert.equal(sq(3), 9);

27.6.2.1 Syntactic pitfall: named importing is not destructuring

Both named importing and destructuring look similar:

import {foo} from './bar.mjs'; // import

const {foo} = require('./bar.mjs'); // destructuring

But they are quite different:

• Imports remain connected with their exports.

• You can destructure again inside a destructuring pattern, but the {} in an import
statement can’t be nested.

• The syntax for renaming is different:

import {foo as f} from './bar.mjs'; // importing

const {foo: f} = require('./bar.mjs'); // destructuring

Rationale: Destructuring is reminiscent of an object literal (including nesting),

while importing evokes the idea of renaming.

Exercise: Named exports

exercises/modules/export_named_test.mjs
27.7 Default exports and imports 251

27.6.3 Namespace imports

Namespace imports are an alternative to named imports. If we namespace-import a mod-
ule, it becomes an object whose properties are the named exports. This is what main.mjs
looks like if we use a namespace import:

import * as myMath from './lib/my-math.mjs';

assert.equal(myMath.square(3), 9);

assert.deepEqual(
Object.keys(myMath), ['LIGHTSPEED', 'square']);

27.6.4 Named exporting styles: inline versus clause (advanced)

The named export style we have seen so far was inline: We exported entities by prefixing
them with the keyword export.

But we can also use separate export clauses. For example, this is what lib/my-math.mjs
looks like with an export clause:

function times(a, b) {
return a * b;
}
function square(x) {
return times(x, x);
}
const LIGHTSPEED = 299792458;

export { square, LIGHTSPEED }; // semicolon!

With an export clause, we can rename before exporting and use different names inter-
nally:

function times(a, b) {
return a * b;
}
function sq(x) {
return times(x, x);
}
const LS = 299792458;

export {
sq as square,
LS as LIGHTSPEED, // trailing comma is optional
};

27.7 Default exports and imports

Each module can have at most one default export. The idea is that the module is the default-
exported value.
252 27 Modules

Avoid mixing named exports and default exports

A module can have both named exports and a default export, but it’s usually better
to stick to one export style per module.

As an example for default exports, consider the following two files:

my-func.mjs
main.mjs

Module my-func.mjs has a default export:

const GREETING = 'Hello!';

export default function () {
return GREETING;
}

Module main.mjs default-imports the exported function:

import myFunc from './my-func.mjs';

assert.equal(myFunc(), 'Hello!');

Note the syntactic difference: the curly braces around named imports indicate that we
are reaching into the module, while a default import is the module.

What are use cases for default exports?

The most common use case for a default export is a module that contains a single
function or a single class.

27.7.1 The two styles of default-exporting

There are two styles of doing default exports.

First, you can label existing declarations with export default:

export default function foo() {} // no semicolon!

export default class Bar {} // no semicolon!

Second, you can directly default-export values. In that style, export default is itself
much like a declaration.

export default 'abc';

export default foo();
export default /^xyz$/;
export default 5 * 7;
export default { no: false, yes: true };
27.7 Default exports and imports 253

27.7.1.1 Why are there two default export styles?

The reason is that export default can’t be used to label const: const may define multi-
ple values, but export default needs exactly one value. Consider the following hypo-
thetical code:
// Not legal JavaScript!
export default const foo = 1, bar = 2, baz = 3;

With this code, you don’t know which one of the three values is the default export.

Exercise: Default exports

exercises/modules/export_default_test.mjs

27.7.2 The default export as a named export (advanced)

Internally, a default export is simply a named export whose name is default. As an
example, consider the previous module my-func.mjs with a default export:
const GREETING = 'Hello!';
export default function () {
return GREETING;
}

The following module my-func2.mjs is equivalent to that module:

const GREETING = 'Hello!';
function greet() {
return GREETING;
}

export {
greet as default,
};

For importing, we can use a normal default import:

import myFunc from './my-func2.mjs';
assert.equal(myFunc(), 'Hello!');

Or we can use a named import:

import {default as myFunc} from './my-func2.mjs';
assert.equal(myFunc(), 'Hello!');

The default export is also available via property .default of namespace imports:
import * as mf from './my-func2.mjs';
assert.equal(mf.default(), 'Hello!');
254 27 Modules

Isn’t default illegal as a variable name?

default can’t be a variable name, but it can be an export name and it can be a
property name:
const obj = {
default: 123,
};
assert.equal(obj.default, 123);

27.8 More details on exporting and importing

27.8.1 Imports are read-only views on exports
So far, we have used imports and exports intuitively, and everything seems to have
worked as expected. But now it is time to take a closer look at how imports and exports
are really related.

Consider the following two modules:

counter.mjs
main.mjs

counter.mjs exports a (mutable!) variable and a function:

export let counter = 3;

export function incCounter() {
counter++;
}

main.mjs name-imports both exports. When we use incCounter(), we discover that the
connection to counter is live – we can always access the live state of that variable:

import { counter, incCounter } from './counter.mjs';

// The imported value `counter` is live

assert.equal(counter, 3);
incCounter();
assert.equal(counter, 4);

Note that while the connection is live and we can read counter, we cannot change this
variable (e.g., via counter++).

There are two benefits to handling imports this way:

• It is easier to split modules because previously shared variables can become ex-
ports.
• This behavior is crucial for supporting transparent cyclic imports. Read on for
more information.
27.9 npm packages 255

27.8.2 ESM’s transparent support for cyclic imports (advanced)

ESM supports cyclic imports transparently. To understand how that is achieved, consider
the following example: fig. 27.1 shows a directed graph of modules importing other
modules. P importing M is the cycle in this case.

N O

P Q R S

Figure 27.1: A directed graph of modules importing modules: M imports N and O, N

imports P and Q, etc.

After parsing, these modules are set up in two phases:

• Instantiation: Every module is visited and its imports are connected to its exports.
Before a parent can be instantiated, all of its children must be instantiated.
• Evaluation: The bodies of the modules are executed. Once again, children are
evaluated before parents.

This approach handles cyclic imports correctly, due to two features of ES modules:

• Due to the static structure of ES modules, the exports are already known after
parsing. That makes it possible to instantiate P before its child M: P can already
look up M’s exports.

• When P is evaluated, M hasn’t been evaluated, yet. However, entities in P can

already mention imports from M. They just can’t use them, yet, because the im-
ported values are filled in later. For example, a function in P can access an import
from M. The only limitation is that we must wait until after the evaluation of M,
before calling that function.

Imports being filled in later is enabled by them being “live immutable views” on
exports.

27.9 npm packages

The npm software registry is the dominant way of distributing JavaScript libraries and apps
for Node.js and web browsers. It is managed via the npm package manager (short: npm).
Software is distributed as so-called packages. A package is a directory containing arbitrary
files and a file package.json at the top level that describes the package. For example,
when npm creates an empty package inside a directory foo/, you get this package.json:

{
"name": "foo",
"version": "1.0.0",
256 27 Modules

"description": "",
"main": "index.js",
"scripts": {
"test": "echo \"Error: no test specified\" && exit 1"
},
"keywords": [],
"author": "",
"license": "ISC"
}

Some of these properties contain simple metadata:

• name specifies the name of this package. Once it is uploaded to the npm registry, it
can be installed via npm install foo.
• version is used for version management and follows semantic versioning, with
three numbers:
– Major version: is incremented when incompatible API changes are made.
– Minor version: is incremented when functionality is added in a backward
compatible manner.
– Patch version: is incremented when backward compatible changes are made.
• description, keywords, author make it easier to find packages.
• license clarifies how you can use this package.

Other properties enable advanced configuration:

• main: specifies the module that “is” the package (explained later in this chapter).
• scripts: are commands that you can execute via npm run. For example, the script
test can be executed via npm run test.

For more information on package.json, consult the npm documentation.

27.9.1 Packages are installed inside a directory node_modules/

npm always installs packages inside a directory node_modules. There are usually many
of these directories. Which one npm uses, depends on the directory where one currently
is. For example, if we are inside a directory /tmp/a/b/, npm tries to find a node_modules
in the current directory, its parent directory, the parent directory of the parent, etc. In
other words, it searches the following chain of locations:

• /tmp/a/b/node_modules
• /tmp/a/node_modules
• /tmp/node_modules

When installing a package foo, npm uses the closest node_modules. If, for example, we
are inside /tmp/a/b/ and there is a node_modules in that directory, then npm puts the
package inside the directory:

/tmp/a/b/node_modules/foo/

When importing a module, we can use a special module specifier to tell Node.js that we
want to import it from an installed package. How exactly that works, is explained later.
For now, consider the following example:
27.10 Naming modules 257

// /home/jane/proj/main.mjs
import * as theModule from 'the-package/the-module.mjs';

To find the-module.mjs (Node.js prefers the filename extension .mjs for ES modules),
Node.js walks up the node_module chain and searches the following locations:
• /home/jane/proj/node_modules/the-package/the-module.mjs
• /home/jane/node_modules/the-package/the-module.mjs
• /home/node_modules/the-package/the-module.mjs

27.9.2 Why can npm be used to install frontend libraries?

Finding installed modules in node_modules directories is only supported on Node.js. So
why can we also use npm to install libraries for browsers?
That is enabled via bundling tools, such as webpack, that compile and optimize code
before it is deployed online. During this compilation process, the code in npm packages
is adapted so that it works in browsers.

27.10 Naming modules

There are no established best practices for naming module files and the variables they
are imported into.
In this chapter, I’m using the following naming style:
• The names of module files are dash-cased and start with lowercase letters:
./my-module.mjs
./some-func.mjs

• The names of namespace imports are lowercased and camel-cased:

import * as myModule from './my-module.mjs';

• The names of default imports are lowercased and camel-cased:

import someFunc from './some-func.mjs';

What are the rationales behind this style?

• npm doesn’t allow uppercase letters in package names (source). Thus, we avoid
camel case, so that “local” files have names that are consistent with those of npm
packages. Using only lowercase letters also minimizes conflicts between file sys-
tems that are case-sensitive and file systems that aren’t: the former distinguish files
whose names have the same letters, but with different cases; the latter don’t.
• There are clear rules for translating dash-cased file names to camel-cased
JavaScript variable names. Due to how we name namespace imports, these rules
work for both namespace imports and default imports.
I also like underscore-cased module file names because you can directly use these names
for namespace imports (without any translation):
import * as my_module from './my_module.mjs';
258 27 Modules

But that style does not work for default imports: I like underscore-casing for namespace
objects, but it is not a good choice for functions, etc.

27.11 Module specifiers

Module specifiers are the strings that identify modules. They work slightly differently in
browsers and Node.js. Before we can look at the differences, we need to learn about the
different categories of module specifiers.

27.11.1 Categories of module specifiers

In ES modules, we distinguish the following categories of specifiers. These categories
originated with CommonJS modules.

• Relative path: starts with a dot. Examples:

'./some/other/module.mjs'
'../../lib/counter.mjs'

• Absolute path: starts with a slash. Example:

'/home/jane/file-tools.mjs'

• URL: includes a protocol (technically, paths are URLs, too). Examples:

'https://example.com/some-module.mjs'
'file:///home/john/tmp/main.mjs'

• Bare path: does not start with a dot, a slash or a protocol, and consists of a single
filename without an extension. Examples:

'lodash'
'the-package'

• Deep import path: starts with a bare path and has at least one slash. Example:

'the-package/dist/the-module.mjs'

27.11.2 ES module specifiers in browsers

Browsers handle module specifiers as follows:

• Relative paths, absolute paths, and URLs work as expected. They all must point to
real files (in contrast to CommonJS, which lets you omit filename extensions and
more).
• The file name extensions of modules don’t matter, as long as they are served with
the content type text/javascript.
• How bare paths will end up being handled is not yet clear. You will probably
eventually be able to map them to other specifiers via lookup tables.

Note that bundling tools such as webpack, which combine modules into fewer files, are
often less strict with specifiers than browsers. That’s because they operate at build/-
compile time (not at runtime) and can search for files by traversing the file system.
27.11 Module specifiers 259

27.11.3 ES module specifiers on Node.js

Support for ES modules on Node.js is still new

You may have to switch it on via a command line flag. See the Node.js documenta-
tion for details.

Node.js handles module specifiers as follows:

• Relative paths are resolved as they are in web browsers – relative to the path of the
current module.

• Absolute paths are currently not supported. As a workaround, you can use URLs
that start with file:///. You can create such URLs via url.pathToFileURL().

• Only file: is supported as a protocol for URL specifiers.

• A bare path is interpreted as a package name and resolved relative to the closest
node_modules directory. What module should be loaded, is determined by looking
at property "main" of the package’s package.json (similarly to CommonJS).

• Deep import paths are also resolved relatively to the closest node_modules direc-
tory. They contain file names, so it is always clear which module is meant.

All specifiers, except bare paths, must refer to actual files. That is, ESM does not support
the following CommonJS features:

• CommonJS automatically adds missing filename extensions.

• CommonJS can import a directory foo if there is a foo/package.json with a "main"

property.

• CommonJS can import a directory foo if there is a module foo/index.js.

All built-in Node.js modules are available via bare paths and have named ESM exports
– for example:

import * as path from 'path';

import {strict as assert} from 'assert';

assert.equal(
path.join('a/b/c', '../d'), 'a/b/d');

27.11.3.1 Filename extensions on Node.js

Node.js supports the following default filename extensions:

• .mjs for ES modules

• .cjs for CommonJS modules

The filename extension .js stands for either ESM or CommonJS. Which one it is is config-
ured via the “closest” package.json (in the current directory, the parent directory, etc.).
Using package.json in this manner is independent of packages.
260 27 Modules

In that package.json, there is a property "type", which has two settings:

• "commonjs" (the default): files with the extension .js or without an extension are
interpreted as CommonJS modules.
• "module": files with the extension .js or without an extension are interpreted as
ESM modules.

27.11.3.2 Interpreting non-file source code as either CommonJS or ESM

Not all source code executed by Node.js comes from files. You can also send it code via
stdin, --eval, and --print. The command line option --input-type lets you specify
how such code is interpreted:
• As CommonJS (the default): --input-type=commonjs
• As ESM: --input-type=module

27.12 Loading modules dynamically via import() [ES2020]

So far, the only way to import a module has been via an import statement. That statement
has several limitations:
• You must use it at the top level of a module. That is, you can’t, for example, import
something when you are inside a block.
• The module specifier is always fixed. That is, you can’t change what you import
depending on a condition. And you can’t assemble a specifier dynamically.
The import() operator changes that. Let’s look at an example of it being used.

27.12.1 Example: loading a module dynamically

Consider the following files:
lib/my-math.mjs
main1.mjs
main2.mjs

We have already seen module my-math.mjs:

// Not exported, private to module
function times(a, b) {
return a * b;
}
export function square(x) {
return times(x, x);
}
export const LIGHTSPEED = 299792458;

This is what using import() looks like in main1.mjs:

const dir = './lib/';
const moduleSpecifier = dir + 'my-math.mjs';
27.12 Loading modules dynamically via import() [ES2020] 261

function loadConstant() {
return import(moduleSpecifier)
.then(myMath => {
const result = myMath.LIGHTSPEED;
assert.equal(result, 299792458);
return result;
});
}

Method .then() is part of Promises, a mechanism for handling asynchronous results,

which is covered later in this book.

Two things in this code weren’t possible before:

• We are importing inside a function (not at the top level).

• The module specifier comes from a variable.

Next, we’ll implement the exact same functionality in main2.mjs but via a so-called async
function, which provides nicer syntax for Promises.

const dir = './lib/';

const moduleSpecifier = dir + 'my-math.mjs';

async function loadConstant() {

const myMath = await import(moduleSpecifier);
const result = myMath.LIGHTSPEED;
assert.equal(result, 299792458);
return result;
}

Why is import() an operator and not a function?

Even though it works much like a function, import() is an operator: in order to
resolve module specifiers relatively to the current module, it needs to know from
which module it is invoked. A normal function cannot receive this information as
implicitly as an operator can. It would need, for example, a parameter.

27.12.2 Use cases for import()

27.12.2.1 Loading code on demand

Some functionality of web apps doesn’t have to be present when they start, it can be
loaded on demand. Then import() helps because you can put such functionality into
modules – for example:

button.addEventListener('click', event => {

import('./dialogBox.mjs')
.then(dialogBox => {
dialogBox.open();
})
.catch(error => {
262 27 Modules

/* Error handling */
})
});

27.12.2.2 Conditional loading of modules

We may want to load a module depending on whether a condition is true. For example,
a module with a polyfill that makes a new feature available on legacy platforms:

if (isLegacyPlatform()) {
import('./my-polyfill.mjs')
.then(···);
}

27.12.2.3 Computed module specifiers

For applications such as internationalization, it helps if you can dynamically compute

module specifiers:

import(`messages_${getLocale()}.mjs`)
.then(···);

27.13 import.meta.url
The object import.meta holds metadata for the current module. Its most important prop-
erty is import.meta.url, which contains a string with the URL of the current module file.
For example:

'https://example.com/code/main.mjs'

27.13.1 import.meta.url and class URL

Class URL is available via a global variable in browsers and on Node.js. You can look up its
full functionality in the Node.js documentation. When working with import.meta.url,
its constructor is especially useful:

new URL(input: string, base?: string|URL)

Parameter input contains the URL to be parsed. It can be relative if the second parameter,
base, is provided.

In other words, this constructor lets us resolve a relative path against a base URL:

> new URL('other.mjs', 'https://example.com/code/main.mjs').href

'https://example.com/code/other.mjs'
> new URL('../other.mjs', 'https://example.com/code/main.mjs').href
'https://example.com/other.mjs'

This is how we get a URL instance that points to a file data.txt that sits next to the current
module:

const urlOfData = new URL('data.txt', import.meta.url);

27.13 import.meta.url 263

27.13.2 import.meta.url on Node.js

On Node.js, import.meta.url is always a string with a file: URL – for example:

'file:///Users/rauschma/my-module.mjs'

27.13.2.1 Example: reading a sibling file of a module

Many Node.js file system operations accept either strings with paths or instances of URL.
That enables us to read a sibling file data.txt of the current module:

import * as fs from 'fs';

function readData() {
// data.txt sits next to current module
const urlOfData = new URL('data.txt', import.meta.url);
return fs.readFileSync(urlOfData, {encoding: 'UTF-8'});
}

27.13.2.2 Module fs and URLs

For most functions of the module fs, we can refer to files via:

• Paths – in strings or instances of Buffer.

• URLs – in instances of URL (with the protocol file:)

For more information on this topic, see the Node.js API documentation.

27.13.2.3 Converting between file: URLs and paths

The Node.js module url has two functions for converting between file: URLs and
paths:

• fileURLToPath(url: URL|string): string

Converts a file: URL to a path.
• pathToFileURL(path: string): URL
Converts a path to a file: URL.

If you need a path that can be used in the local file system, then property .pathname of
URL instances does not always work:

assert.equal(
new URL('file:///tmp/with%20space.txt').pathname,
'/tmp/with%20space.txt');

Therefore, it is better to use fileURLToPath():

import * as url from 'url';

assert.equal(
url.fileURLToPath('file:///tmp/with%20space.txt'),
'/tmp/with space.txt'); // result on Unix

Similarly, pathToFileURL() does more than just prepend 'file://' to an absolute path.
264 27 Modules

27.14 Polyfills: emulating native web platform features

(advanced)

Backends have polyfills, too

This section is about frontend development and web browsers, but similar ideas
apply to backend development.

Polyfills help with a conflict that we are facing when developing a web application in
JavaScript:
• On one hand, we want to use modern web platform features that make the app
better and/or development easier.
• On the other hand, the app should run on as many browsers as possible.
Given a web platform feature X:
• A polyfill for X is a piece of code. If it is executed on a platform that already has built-
in support for X, it does nothing. Otherwise, it makes the feature available on the
platform. In the latter case, the polyfilled feature is (mostly) indistinguishable from
a native implementation. In order to achieve that, the polyfill usually makes global
changes. For example, it may modify global data or configure a global module
loader. Polyfills are often packaged as modules.
– The term polyfill was coined by Remy Sharp.
• A speculative polyfill is a polyfill for a proposed web platform feature (that is not
standardized, yet).
– Alternative term: prollyfill
• A replica of X is a library that reproduces the API and functionality of X locally.
Such a library exists independently of a native (and global) implementation of X.
– Replica is a new term introduced in this section. Alternative term: ponyfill
• There is also the term shim, but it doesn’t have a universally agreed upon definition.
It often means roughly the same as polyfill.
Every time our web applications starts, it must first execute all polyfills for features that
may not be available everywhere. Afterwards, we can be sure that those features are
available natively.

27.14.1 Sources of this section

• “What is a Polyfill?” by Remy Sharp
• Inspiration for the term replica: The Eiffel Tower in Las Vegas
• Useful clarification of “polyfill” and related terms: “Polyfills and the evolution of
the Web”. Edited by Andrew Betts.

Quiz
See quiz app.
Chapter 28

Single objects

Contents
28.1 What is an object? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 267
28.1.1 Roles of objects: record vs. dictionary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 267
28.2 Objects as records . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 267
28.2.1 Object literals: properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 267
28.2.2 Object literals: property value shorthands . . . . . . . . . . . 268
28.2.3 Getting properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 268
28.2.4 Setting properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 268
28.2.5 Object literals: methods . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 269
28.2.6 Object literals: accessors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 269
28.3 Spreading into object literals (...) [ES2018] . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 270
28.3.1 Use case for spreading: copying objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . 271
28.3.2 Use case for spreading: default values for missing properties . 271
28.3.3 Use case for spreading: non-destructively changing properties 272
28.4 Methods . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 272
28.4.1 Methods are properties whose values are functions . . . . . . 272
28.4.2 .call(): specifying this via a parameter . . . . . . . . . . . . 273
28.4.3 .bind(): pre-filling this and parameters of functions . . . . . 274
28.4.4 this pitfall: extracting methods . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 275
28.4.5 this pitfall: accidentally shadowing this . . . . . . . . . . . . 276
28.4.6 Avoiding the pitfalls of this . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 278
28.4.7 The value of this in various contexts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 278
28.5 Optional chaining for property accesses and method calls (ad-
vanced) [ES2020] . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 279
28.5.1 Example: optional static property access . . . . . . . . . . . . 279
28.5.2 The operators in more detail (advanced) . . . . . . . . . . . . 280
28.5.3 Short-circuiting (advanced) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 281
28.5.4 Frequently asked questions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 281
28.6 Objects as dictionaries (advanced) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 282

265
266 28 Single objects

28.6.1 Arbitrary fixed strings as property keys . . . . . . . . . . . . . 282

28.6.2 Computed property keys . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 283
28.6.3 The in operator: is there a property with a given key? . . . . . 284
28.6.4 Deleting properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 284
28.6.5 Listing property keys . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 284
28.6.6 Listing property values via Object.values() . . . . . . . . . . 286
28.6.7 Listing property entries via Object.entries() . . . . . . . . . 286
28.6.8 Properties are listed deterministically . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 286
28.6.9 Assembling objects via Object.fromEntries() . . . . . . . . . 287
28.6.10 The pitfalls of using an object as a dictionary . . . . . . . . . . 289
28.7 Standard methods (advanced) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 290
28.7.1 .toString() . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 290
28.7.2 .valueOf() . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 290
28.8 Advanced topics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 290
28.8.1 Object.assign() [ES6] . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 290
28.8.2 Freezing objects [ES5] . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 291
28.8.3 Property attributes and property descriptors [ES5] . . . . . . . 291

In this book, JavaScript’s style of object-oriented programming (OOP) is introduced in

four steps. This chapter covers step 1; the next chapter covers steps 2–4. The steps are
(fig. 28.1):

1. Single objects (this chapter): How do objects, JavaScript’s basic OOP building
blocks, work in isolation?
2. Prototype chains (next chapter): Each object has a chain of zero or more prototype
objects. Prototypes are JavaScript’s core inheritance mechanism.
3. Classes (next chapter): JavaScript’s classes are factories for objects. The relation-
ship between a class and its instances is based on prototypal inheritance.
4. Subclassing (next chapter): The relationship between a subclass and its superclass
is also based on prototypal inheritance.

SuperClass
superData
superMthd
mthd ƒ
MyClass SubClass
mthd ƒ __proto__ data subData
data 4 data 4 mthd subMthd

1. Single objects 2. Prototype chains 3. Classes 4. Subclassing

Figure 28.1: This book introduces object-oriented programming in JavaScript in four

steps.
28.1 What is an object? 267

28.1 What is an object?

In JavaScript:
• An object is a set of properties (key-value entries).
• A property key can only be a string or a symbol.

28.1.1 Roles of objects: record vs. dictionary

Objects play two roles in JavaScript:
• Records: Objects-as-records have a fixed number of properties, whose keys are
known at development time. Their values can have different types.
• Dictionaries: Objects-as-dictionaries have a variable number of properties, whose
keys are not known at development time. All of their values have the same type.
These roles influence how objects are explained in this chapter:
• First, we’ll explore objects-as-records. Even though property keys are strings or
symbols under the hood, they will appear as fixed identifiers to us, in this part of
the chapter.
• Later, we’ll explore objects-as-dictionaries. Note that Maps are usually better dic-
tionaries than objects. However, some of the operations that we’ll encounter, can
also be useful for objects-as-records.

28.2 Objects as records

Let’s first explore the role record of objects.

28.2.1 Object literals: properties

Object literals are one way of creating objects-as-records. They are a stand-out feature of
JavaScript: you can directly create objects – no need for classes! This is an example:
const jane = {
first: 'Jane',
last: 'Doe', // optional trailing comma
};

In the example, we created an object via an object literal, which starts and ends with curly
braces {}. Inside it, we defined two properties (key-value entries):
• The first property has the key first and the value 'Jane'.
• The second property has the key last and the value 'Doe'.
We will later see other ways of specifying property keys, but with this way of specifying
them, they must follow the rules of JavaScript variable names. For example, you can
use first_name as a property key, but not first-name). However, reserved words are
allowed:
const obj = {
if: true,
268 28 Single objects

const: true,
};

In order to check the effects of various operations on objects, we’ll occasionally use Ob-
ject.keys() in this part of the chapter. It lists property keys:

> Object.keys({a:1, b:2})

[ 'a', 'b' ]

28.2.2 Object literals: property value shorthands

Whenever the value of a property is defined via a variable name and that name is the
same as the key, you can omit the key.

function createPoint(x, y) {
return {x, y};
}
assert.deepEqual(
createPoint(9, 2),
{ x: 9, y: 2 }
);

28.2.3 Getting properties

This is how you get (read) a property (line A):

const jane = {
first: 'Jane',
last: 'Doe',
};

// Get property .first

assert.equal(jane.first, 'Jane'); // (A)

Getting an unknown property produces undefined:

assert.equal(jane.unknownProperty, undefined);

28.2.4 Setting properties

This is how you set (write to) a property:

const obj = {
prop: 1,
};
assert.equal(obj.prop, 1);
obj.prop = 2; // (A)
assert.equal(obj.prop, 2);

We just changed an existing property via setting. If we set an unknown property, we

create a new entry:
28.2 Objects as records 269

const obj = {}; // empty object

assert.deepEqual(
Object.keys(obj), []);

obj.unknownProperty = 'abc';
assert.deepEqual(
Object.keys(obj), ['unknownProperty']);

28.2.5 Object literals: methods

The following code shows how to create the method .says() via an object literal:

const jane = {
first: 'Jane', // data property
says(text) { // method
return `${this.first} says “${text}”`; // (A)
}, // comma as separator (optional at end)
};
assert.equal(jane.says('hello'), 'Jane says “hello”');

During the method call jane.says('hello'), jane is called the receiver of the method
call and assigned to the special variable this. That enables method .says() to access
the sibling property .first in line A.

28.2.6 Object literals: accessors

There are two kinds of accessors in JavaScript:

• A getter is a method-like entity that is invoked by getting a property.

• A setter is a method-like entity that is invoked by setting a property.

28.2.6.1 Getters

A getter is created by prefixing a method definition with the modifier get:

const jane = {
first: 'Jane',
last: 'Doe',
get full() {
return `${this.first} ${this.last}`;
},
};

assert.equal(jane.full, 'Jane Doe');

jane.first = 'John';
assert.equal(jane.full, 'John Doe');

28.2.6.2 Setters

A setter is created by prefixing a method definition with the modifier set:

270 28 Single objects

const jane = {
first: 'Jane',
last: 'Doe',
set full(fullName) {
const parts = fullName.split(' ');
this.first = parts[0];
this.last = parts[1];
},
};

jane.full = 'Richard Roe';

assert.equal(jane.first, 'Richard');
assert.equal(jane.last, 'Roe');

Exercise: Creating an object via an object literal

exercises/single-objects/color_point_object_test.mjs

28.3 Spreading into object literals (...) [ES2018]

Inside a function call, spreading (...) turns the iterated values of an iterable object into
arguments.
Inside an object literal, a spread property adds the properties of another object to the current
one:
> const obj = {foo: 1, bar: 2};
> {...obj, baz: 3}
{ foo: 1, bar: 2, baz: 3 }

If property keys clash, the property that is mentioned last “wins”:

> const obj = {foo: 1, bar: 2, baz: 3};
> {...obj, foo: true}
{ foo: true, bar: 2, baz: 3 }
> {foo: true, ...obj}
{ foo: 1, bar: 2, baz: 3 }

All values are spreadable, even undefined and null:

> {...undefined}
{}
> {...null}
{}
> {...123}
{}
> {...'abc'}
{ '0': 'a', '1': 'b', '2': 'c' }
> {...['a', 'b']}
{ '0': 'a', '1': 'b' }
28.3 Spreading into object literals (...) [ES2018] 271

Property .length of strings and of Arrays is hidden from this kind of operation (it is
not enumerable; see §28.8.3 “Property attributes and property descriptors [ES5]” for more
information).

28.3.1 Use case for spreading: copying objects

You can use spreading to create a copy of an object original:

const copy = {...original};

Caveat – copying is shallow: copy is a fresh object with duplicates of all properties (key-
value entries) of original. But if property values are objects, then those are not copied
themselves; they are shared between original and copy. Let’s look at an example:

const original = { a: 1, b: {foo: true} };

const copy = {...original};

The first level of copy is really a copy: If you change any properties at that level, it does
not affect the original:

copy.a = 2;
assert.deepEqual(
original, { a: 1, b: {foo: true} }); // no change

However, deeper levels are not copied. For example, the value of .b is shared between
original and copy. Changing .b in the copy also changes it in the original.

copy.b.foo = false;
assert.deepEqual(
original, { a: 1, b: {foo: false} });

JavaScript doesn’t have built-in support for deep copying

Deep copies of objects (where all levels are copied) are notoriously difficult to do
generically. Therefore, JavaScript does not have a built-in operation for them (for
now). If you need such an operation, you have to implement it yourself.

28.3.2 Use case for spreading: default values for missing properties
If one of the inputs of your code is an object with data, you can make properties optional
by specifying default values that are used if those properties are missing. One technique
for doing so is via an object whose properties contain the default values. In the following
example, that object is DEFAULTS:

const DEFAULTS = {foo: 'a', bar: 'b'};

const providedData = {foo: 1};

const allData = {...DEFAULTS, ...providedData};

assert.deepEqual(allData, {foo: 1, bar: 'b'});

The result, the object allData, is created by copying DEFAULTS and overriding its proper-
ties with those of providedData.
272 28 Single objects

But you don’t need an object to specify the default values; you can also specify them
inside the object literal, individually:
const providedData = {foo: 1};

const allData = {foo: 'a', bar: 'b', ...providedData};

assert.deepEqual(allData, {foo: 1, bar: 'b'});

28.3.3 Use case for spreading: non-destructively changing properties

So far, we have encountered one way of changing a property .foo of an object: We set it
(line A) and mutate the object. That is, this way of changing a property is destructive.
const obj = {foo: 'a', bar: 'b'};
obj.foo = 1; // (A)
assert.deepEqual(obj, {foo: 1, bar: 'b'});

With spreading, we can change .foo non-destructively – we make a copy of obj where
.foo has a different value:

const obj = {foo: 'a', bar: 'b'};

const updatedObj = {...obj, foo: 1};
assert.deepEqual(updatedObj, {foo: 1, bar: 'b'});

Exercise: Non-destructively updating a property via spreading (fixed key)

exercises/single-objects/update_name_test.mjs

28.4 Methods
28.4.1 Methods are properties whose values are functions
Let’s revisit the example that was used to introduce methods:
const jane = {
first: 'Jane',
says(text) {
return `${this.first} says “${text}”`;
},
};

Somewhat surprisingly, methods are functions:

assert.equal(typeof jane.says, 'function');

Why is that? We learned in the chapter on callable values, that ordinary functions play
several roles. Method is one of those roles. Therefore, under the hood, jane roughly looks
as follows.
const jane = {
first: 'Jane',
says: function (text) {
28.4 Methods 273

return `${this.first} says “${text}”`;

},
};

28.4.2 .call(): specifying this via a parameter

Remember that each function someFunc is also an object and therefore has methods. One
such method is .call() – it lets you call a function while specifying this via a parameter:

someFunc.call(thisValue, arg1, arg2, arg3);

28.4.2.1 Methods and .call()

If you make a method call, this is an implicit parameter that is filled in via the receiver
of the call:

const obj = {
method(x) {
assert.equal(this, obj); // implicit parameter
assert.equal(x, 'a');
},
};

obj.method('a'); // receiver is `obj`

The method call in the last line sets up this as follows:

obj.method.call(obj, 'a');

As an aside, that means that there are actually two different dot operators:

1. One for accessing properties: obj.prop

2. One for making method calls: obj.prop()

They are different in that (2) is not just (1) followed by the function call operator ().
Instead, (2) additionally specifies a value for this.

28.4.2.2 Functions and .call()

If you function-call an ordinary function, its implicit parameter this is also provided –
it is implicitly set to undefined:

function func(x) {
assert.equal(this, undefined); // implicit parameter
assert.equal(x, 'a');
}

func('a');

The method call in the last line sets up this as follows:

func.call(undefined, 'a');
274 28 Single objects

this being set to undefined during a function call, indicates that it is a feature that is
only needed during a method call.

Next, we’ll examine the pitfalls of using this. Before we can do that, we need one more
tool: method .bind() of functions.

28.4.3 .bind(): pre-filling this and parameters of functions

.bind() is another method of function objects. This method is invoked as follows:

const boundFunc = someFunc.bind(thisValue, arg1, arg2);

.bind() returns a new function boundFunc(). Calling that function invokes someFunc()
with this set to thisValue and these parameters: arg1, arg2, followed by the parameters
of boundFunc().

That is, the following two function calls are equivalent:

boundFunc('a', 'b')
someFunc.call(thisValue, arg1, arg2, 'a', 'b')

28.4.3.1 An alternative to .bind()

Another way of pre-filling this and parameters is via an arrow function:

const boundFunc2 = (...args) =>

someFunc.call(thisValue, arg1, arg2, ...args);

28.4.3.2 An implementation of .bind()

Considering the previous section, .bind() can be implemented as a real function as fol-
lows:

function bind(func, thisValue, ...boundArgs) {

return (...args) =>
func.call(thisValue, ...boundArgs, ...args);
}

28.4.3.3 Example: binding a real function

Using .bind() for real functions is somewhat unintuitive because you have to provide
a value for this. Given that it is undefined during function calls, it is usually set to
undefined or null.

In the following example, we create add8(), a function that has one parameter, by binding
the first parameter of add() to 8.

function add(x, y) {
return x + y;
}

const add8 = add.bind(undefined, 8);

assert.equal(add8(1), 9);
28.4 Methods 275

28.4.3.4 Example: binding a method

In the following code, we turn method .says() into the stand-alone function func():
const jane = {
first: 'Jane',
says(text) {
return `${this.first} says “${text}”`; // (A)
},
};

const func = jane.says.bind(jane, 'hello');

assert.equal(func(), 'Jane says “hello”');

Setting this to jane via .bind() is crucial here. Otherwise, func() wouldn’t work prop-
erly because this is used in line A.

28.4.4 this pitfall: extracting methods

We now know quite a bit about functions and methods and are ready to take a look at the
biggest pitfall involving methods and this: function-calling a method extracted from an
object can fail if you are not careful.
In the following example, we fail when we extract method jane.says(), store it in the
variable func, and function-call func().
const jane = {
first: 'Jane',
says(text) {
return `${this.first} says “${text}”`;
},
};
const func = jane.says; // extract the method
assert.throws(
() => func('hello'), // (A)
{
name: 'TypeError',
message: "Cannot read property 'first' of undefined",
});

The function call in line A is equivalent to:

assert.throws(
() => jane.says.call(undefined, 'hello'), // `this` is undefined!
{
name: 'TypeError',
message: "Cannot read property 'first' of undefined",
});

So how do we fix this? We need to use .bind() to extract method .says():

const func2 = jane.says.bind(jane);
assert.equal(func2('hello'), 'Jane says “hello”');
276 28 Single objects

The .bind() ensures that this is always jane when we call func().

You can also use arrow functions to extract methods:

const func3 = text => jane.says(text);

assert.equal(func3('hello'), 'Jane says “hello”');

28.4.4.1 Example: extracting a method

The following is a simplified version of code that you may see in actual web develop-
ment:

class ClickHandler {
constructor(id, elem) {
this.id = id;
elem.addEventListener('click', this.handleClick); // (A)
}
handleClick(event) {
alert('Clicked ' + this.id);
}
}

In line A, we don’t extract the method .handleClick() properly. Instead, we should do:

elem.addEventListener('click', this.handleClick.bind(this));

Exercise: Extracting a method

exercises/single-objects/method_extraction_exrc.mjs

28.4.5 this pitfall: accidentally shadowing this

Accidentally shadowing this is only an issue with ordinary functions

Arrow functions don’t shadow this.

Consider the following problem: when you are inside an ordinary function, you can’t
access the this of the surrounding scope because the ordinary function has its own this.
In other words, a variable in an inner scope hides a variable in an outer scope. That is
called shadowing. The following code is an example:

const prefixer = {
prefix: '==> ',
prefixStringArray(stringArray) {
return stringArray.map(
function (x) {
return this.prefix + x; // (A)
});
},
28.4 Methods 277

};
assert.throws(
() => prefixer.prefixStringArray(['a', 'b']),
/^TypeError: Cannot read property 'prefix' of undefined$/);

In line A, we want to access the this of .prefixStringArray(). But we can’t since the
surrounding ordinary function has its own this that shadows (blocks access to) the this
of the method. The value of the former this is undefined due to the callback being
function-called. That explains the error message.

The simplest way to fix this problem is via an arrow function, which doesn’t have its own
this and therefore doesn’t shadow anything:

const prefixer = {
prefix: '==> ',
prefixStringArray(stringArray) {
return stringArray.map(
(x) => {
return this.prefix + x;
});
},
};
assert.deepEqual(
prefixer.prefixStringArray(['a', 'b']),
['==> a', '==> b']);

We can also store this in a different variable (line A), so that it doesn’t get shadowed:

prefixStringArray(stringArray) {
const that = this; // (A)
return stringArray.map(
function (x) {
return that.prefix + x;
});
},

Another option is to specify a fixed this for the callback via .bind() (line A):

prefixStringArray(stringArray) {
return stringArray.map(
function (x) {
return this.prefix + x;
}.bind(this)); // (A)
},

Lastly, .map() lets us specify a value for this (line A) that it uses when invoking the
callback:

prefixStringArray(stringArray) {
return stringArray.map(
function (x) {
return this.prefix + x;
278 28 Single objects

},
this); // (A)
},

28.4.6 Avoiding the pitfalls of this

We have seen two big this-related pitfalls:

1. Extracting methods
2. Accidentally shadowing this

One simple rule helps avoid the second pitfall:

“Avoid the keyword function”: Never use ordinary functions, only arrow
functions (for real functions) and method definitions.

Following this rule has two benefits:

• It prevents the second pitfall because ordinary functions are never used as real
functions.
• this becomes easier to understand because it will only appear inside methods
(never inside ordinary functions). That makes it clear that this is an OOP feature.

However, even though I don’t use (ordinary) function expressions anymore, I do like func-
tion declarations syntactically. You can use them safely if you don’t refer to this inside
them. The static checking tool ESLint can warn you during development when you do
this wrong via a built-in rule.

Alas, there is no simple way around the first pitfall: whenever you extract a method, you
have to be careful and do it properly – for example, by binding this.

28.4.7 The value of this in various contexts

What is the value of this in various contexts?

Inside a callable entity, the value of this depends on how the callable entity is invoked
and what kind of callable entity it is:

• Function call:
– Ordinary functions: this === undefined (in strict mode)
– Arrow functions: this is same as in surrounding scope (lexical this)
• Method call: this is receiver of call
• new: this refers to newly created instance

You can also access this in all common top-level scopes:

• <script> element: this === globalThis

• ECMAScript modules: this === undefined
• CommonJS modules: this === module.exports

However, I like to pretend that you can’t access this in top-level scopes because top-level
this is confusing and rarely useful.
28.5 Optional chaining for property accesses and method calls (advanced) [ES2020] 279

28.5 Optional chaining for property accesses and method

calls (advanced) [ES2020]
The following kinds of optional chaining operations exist:

obj?.prop // optional static property access

obj?.[«expr»] // optional dynamic property access
func?.(«arg0», «arg1») // optional function or method call

The rough idea is:

• If the value before the question mark is neither undefined nor null, then perform
the operation after the question mark.
• Otherwise, return undefined.

28.5.1 Example: optional static property access

Consider the following data:

const persons = [
{
surname: 'Zoe',
address: {
street: {
name: 'Sesame Street',
number: '123',
},
},
},
{
surname: 'Mariner',
},
{
surname: 'Carmen',
address: {
},
},
];

We can use optional chaining to safely extract street names:

const streetNames = persons.map(

p => p.address?.street?.name);
assert.deepEqual(
streetNames, ['Sesame Street', undefined, undefined]
);

28.5.1.1 Handling defaults via nullish coalescing

The nullish coalescing operator allows us to use the default value '(no street)' instead
of undefined:
280 28 Single objects

const streetNames = persons.map(

p => p.address?.street?.name ?? '(no name)');
assert.deepEqual(
streetNames, ['Sesame Street', '(no name)', '(no name)']
);

28.5.2 The operators in more detail (advanced)

28.5.2.1 Optional static property access

The following two expressions are equivalent:

o?.prop
(o !== undefined && o !== null) ? o.prop : undefined

Examples:

assert.equal(undefined?.prop, undefined);
assert.equal(null?.prop, undefined);
assert.equal({prop:1}?.prop, 1);

28.5.2.2 Optional dynamic property access

The following two expressions are equivalent:

o?.[«expr»]
(o !== undefined && o !== null) ? o[«expr»] : undefined

Examples:

const key = 'prop';

assert.equal(undefined?.[key], undefined);
assert.equal(null?.[key], undefined);
assert.equal({prop:1}?.[key], 1);

28.5.2.3 Optional function or method call

The following two expressions are equivalent:

f?.(arg0, arg1)
(f !== undefined && f !== null) ? f(arg0, arg1) : undefined

Examples:

assert.equal(undefined?.(123), undefined);
assert.equal(null?.(123), undefined);
assert.equal(String?.(123), '123');

Note that this operator produces an error if its left-hand side is not callable:

assert.throws(
() => true?.(123),
TypeError);
28.5 Optional chaining for property accesses and method calls (advanced) [ES2020] 281

Why? The idea is that the operator only tolerates deliberate omissions. An uncallable
value (other than undefined and null) is probably an error and should be reported,
rather than worked around.

28.5.3 Short-circuiting (advanced)

In a chain of property accesses and function/method invocations, evaluation stops once
the first optional operator encounters undefined or null at its left-hand side:

function isInvoked(obj) {
let invoked = false;
obj?.a.b.m(invoked = true);
return invoked;
}

assert.equal(
isInvoked({a: {b: {m() {}}}}), true);

// The left-hand side of ?. is undefined

// and the assignment is not executed
assert.equal(
isInvoked(undefined), false);

This behavior differs from a normal operator/function where JavaScript always evalu-
ates all operands/arguments before evaluating the operator/function. It is called short-
circuiting. Other short-circuiting operators:

• a && b
• a || b
• c ? t : e

28.5.4 Frequently asked questions

28.5.4.1 Why are there dots in o?.[x] and f?.()?

The syntaxes of the following two optional operator are not ideal:

obj?.[«expr»] // better: obj?[«expr»]

func?.(«arg0», «arg1») // better: func?(«arg0», «arg1»)

Alas, the less elegant syntax is necessary, because distinguishing the ideal syntax (first
expression) from the conditional operator (second expression) is too complicated:

obj?['a', 'b', 'c'].map(x => x+x)

obj ? ['a', 'b', 'c'].map(x => x+x) : []

28.5.4.2 Why does null?.prop evaluate to undefined and not null?

The operator ?. is mainly about its right-hand side: Does property .prop exist? If not,
stop early. Therefore, keeping information about its left-hand side is rarely useful. How-
ever, only having a single “early termination” value does simplify things.
282 28 Single objects

28.6 Objects as dictionaries (advanced)

Objects work best as records. But before ES6, JavaScript did not have a data structure for
dictionaries (ES6 brought Maps). Therefore, objects had to be used as dictionaries, which
imposed a signficant constraint: keys had to be strings (symbols were also introduced
with ES6).

We first look at features of objects that are related to dictionaries but also useful for objects-
as-records. This section concludes with tips for actually using objects as dictionaries
(spoiler: use Maps if you can).

28.6.1 Arbitrary fixed strings as property keys

So far, we have always used objects as records. Property keys were fixed tokens that had
to be valid identifiers and internally became strings:

const obj = {
mustBeAnIdentifier: 123,
};

// Get property
assert.equal(obj.mustBeAnIdentifier, 123);

// Set property
obj.mustBeAnIdentifier = 'abc';
assert.equal(obj.mustBeAnIdentifier, 'abc');

As a next step, we’ll go beyond this limitation for property keys: In this section, we’ll use
arbitrary fixed strings as keys. In the next subsection, we’ll dynamically compute keys.

Two techniques allow us to use arbitrary strings as property keys.

First, when creating property keys via object literals, we can quote property keys (with
single or double quotes):

const obj = {
'Can be any string!': 123,
};

Second, when getting or setting properties, we can use square brackets with strings in-
side them:

// Get property
assert.equal(obj['Can be any string!'], 123);

// Set property
obj['Can be any string!'] = 'abc';
assert.equal(obj['Can be any string!'], 'abc');

You can also use these techniques for methods:

const obj = {
'A nice method'() {
28.6 Objects as dictionaries (advanced) 283

return 'Yes!';
},
};

assert.equal(obj['A nice method'](), 'Yes!');

28.6.2 Computed property keys

So far, property keys were always fixed strings inside object literals. In this section we
learn how to dynamically compute property keys. That enables us to use either arbitrary
strings or symbols.
The syntax of dynamically computed property keys in object literals is inspired by dy-
namically accessing properties. That is, we can use square brackets to wrap expressions:
const obj = {
['Hello world!']: true,
['f'+'o'+'o']: 123,
[Symbol.toStringTag]: 'Goodbye', // (A)
};

assert.equal(obj['Hello world!'], true);

assert.equal(obj.foo, 123);
assert.equal(obj[Symbol.toStringTag], 'Goodbye');

The main use case for computed keys is having symbols as property keys (line A).
Note that the square brackets operator for getting and setting properties works with
arbitrary expressions:
assert.equal(obj['f'+'o'+'o'], 123);
assert.equal(obj['==> foo'.slice(-3)], 123);

Methods can have computed property keys, too:

const methodKey = Symbol();
const obj = {
[methodKey]() {
return 'Yes!';
},
};

assert.equal(obj[methodKey](), 'Yes!');

For the remainder of this chapter, we’ll mostly use fixed property keys again (because
they are syntactically more convenient). But all features are also available for arbitrary
strings and symbols.

Exercise: Non-destructively updating a property via spreading (computed

key)
284 28 Single objects

exercises/single-objects/update_property_test.mjs

28.6.3 The in operator: is there a property with a given key?

The in operator checks if an object has a property with a given key:
const obj = {
foo: 'abc',
bar: false,
};

assert.equal('foo' in obj, true);

assert.equal('unknownKey' in obj, false);

28.6.3.1 Checking if a property exists via truthiness

You can also use a truthiness check to determine if a property exists:

assert.equal(
obj.foo ? 'exists' : 'does not exist',
'exists');
assert.equal(
obj.unknownKey ? 'exists' : 'does not exist',
'does not exist');

The previous checks work because obj.foo is truthy and because reading a missing prop-
erty returns undefined (which is falsy).
There is, however, one important caveat: truthiness checks fail if the property exists, but
has a falsy value (undefined, null, false, 0, "", etc.):
assert.equal(
obj.bar ? 'exists' : 'does not exist',
'does not exist'); // should be: 'exists'

28.6.4 Deleting properties

You can delete properties via the delete operator:
const obj = {
foo: 123,
};
assert.deepEqual(Object.keys(obj), ['foo']);

delete obj.foo;

assert.deepEqual(Object.keys(obj), []);

28.6.5 Listing property keys

28.6 Objects as dictionaries (advanced) 285

Table 28.1: Standard library methods for listing own (non-inherited)

property keys. All of them return Arrays with strings and/or symbols.

enumerable non-e. string symbol

Object.keys() ✔ ✔
Object.getOwnPropertyNames() ✔ ✔ ✔
Object.getOwnPropertySymbols() ✔ ✔ ✔
Reflect.ownKeys() ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔

Each of the methods in tbl. 28.1 returns an Array with the own property keys of the
parameter. In the names of the methods, you can see that the following distinction is
made:

• A property key can be either a string or a symbol.

• A property name is a property key whose value is a string.
• A property symbol is a property key whose value is a symbol.

The next section describes the term enumerable and demonstrates each of the methods.

28.6.5.1 Enumerability

Enumerability is an attribute of a property. Non-enumerable properties are ignored by

some operations – for example, by Object.keys() (see tbl. 28.1) and by spread properties.
By default, most properties are enumerable. The next example shows how to change that.
It also demonstrates the various ways of listing property keys.

const enumerableSymbolKey = Symbol('enumerableSymbolKey');

const nonEnumSymbolKey = Symbol('nonEnumSymbolKey');

// We create enumerable properties via an object literal

const obj = {
enumerableStringKey: 1,
[enumerableSymbolKey]: 2,
}

// For non-enumerable properties, we need a more powerful tool

Object.defineProperties(obj, {
nonEnumStringKey: {
value: 3,
enumerable: false,
},
[nonEnumSymbolKey]: {
value: 4,
enumerable: false,
},
});

assert.deepEqual(
286 28 Single objects

Object.keys(obj),
[ 'enumerableStringKey' ]);
assert.deepEqual(
Object.getOwnPropertyNames(obj),
[ 'enumerableStringKey', 'nonEnumStringKey' ]);
assert.deepEqual(
Object.getOwnPropertySymbols(obj),
[ enumerableSymbolKey, nonEnumSymbolKey ]);
assert.deepEqual(
Reflect.ownKeys(obj),
[
'enumerableStringKey', 'nonEnumStringKey',
enumerableSymbolKey, nonEnumSymbolKey,
]);

Object.defineProperties() is explained later in this chapter.

28.6.6 Listing property values via Object.values()

Object.values() lists the values of all enumerable properties of an object:

const obj = {foo: 1, bar: 2};

assert.deepEqual(
Object.values(obj),
[1, 2]);

28.6.7 Listing property entries via Object.entries()

Object.entries() lists key-value pairs of enumerable properties. Each pair is encoded
as a two-element Array:
const obj = {foo: 1, bar: 2};
assert.deepEqual(
Object.entries(obj),
[
['foo', 1],
['bar', 2],
]);

Exercise: Object.entries()
exercises/single-objects/find_key_test.mjs

28.6.8 Properties are listed deterministically

Own (non-inherited) properties of objects are always listed in the following order:
1. Properties with string keys that contain integer indices (that includes Array in-
dices):
In ascending numeric order
28.6 Objects as dictionaries (advanced) 287

2. Remaining properties with string keys:

In the order in which they were added
3. Properties with symbol keys:
In the order in which they were added
The following example demonstrates how property keys are sorted according to these
rules:
> Object.keys({b:0,a:0, 10:0,2:0})
[ '2', '10', 'b', 'a' ]

The order of properties

The ECMAScript specification describes in more detail how properties are ordered.

28.6.9 Assembling objects via Object.fromEntries()

Given an iterable over [key, value] pairs, Object.fromEntries() creates an object:
assert.deepEqual(
Object.fromEntries([['foo',1], ['bar',2]]),
{
foo: 1,
bar: 2,
}
);

Object.fromEntries() does the opposite of Object.entries().

To demonstrate both, we’ll use them to implement two tool functions from the library
Underscore in the next subsubsections.

28.6.9.1 Example: pick(object, ...keys)

pick returns a copy of object that only has those properties whose keys are mentioned
as arguments:
const address = {
street: 'Evergreen Terrace',
number: '742',
city: 'Springfield',
state: 'NT',
zip: '49007',
};
assert.deepEqual(
pick(address, 'street', 'number'),
{
street: 'Evergreen Terrace',
number: '742',
}
);
288 28 Single objects

We can implement pick() as follows:

function pick(object, ...keys) {
const filteredEntries = Object.entries(object)
.filter(([key, _value]) => keys.includes(key));
return Object.fromEntries(filteredEntries);
}

28.6.9.2 Example: invert(object)

invert returns a copy of object where the keys and values of all properties are swapped:

assert.deepEqual(
invert({a: 1, b: 2, c: 3}),
{1: 'a', 2: 'b', 3: 'c'}
);

We can implement invert() like this:

function invert(object) {
const reversedEntries = Object.entries(object)
.map(([key, value]) => [value, key]);
return Object.fromEntries(reversedEntries);
}

28.6.9.3 A simple implementation of Object.fromEntries()

The following function is a simplified version of Object.fromEntries():

function fromEntries(iterable) {
const result = {};
for (const [key, value] of iterable) {
let coercedKey;
if (typeof key === 'string' || typeof key === 'symbol') {
coercedKey = key;
} else {
coercedKey = String(key);
}
result[coercedKey] = value;
}
return result;
}

28.6.9.4 A polyfill for Object.fromEntries()

The npm package object.fromentries is a polyfill for Object.entries(): it installs its

own implementation if that method doesn’t exist on the current platform.

Exercise: Object.entries() and Object.fromEntries()

28.6 Objects as dictionaries (advanced) 289

exercises/single-objects/omit_properties_test.mjs

28.6.10 The pitfalls of using an object as a dictionary

If you use plain objects (created via object literals) as dictionaries, you have to look out
for two pitfalls.

The first pitfall is that the in operator also finds inherited properties:

const dict = {};

assert.equal('toString' in dict, true);

We want dict to be treated as empty, but the in operator detects the properties it inherits
from its prototype, Object.prototype.

The second pitfall is that you can’t use the property key __proto__ because it has special
powers (it sets the prototype of the object):

const dict = {};

dict['__proto__'] = 123;
// No property was added to dict:
assert.deepEqual(Object.keys(dict), []);

So how do we avoid these pitfalls?

• Whenever you can, use Maps. They are the best solution for dictionaries.
• If you can’t, use a library for objects-as-dictionaries that does everything safely.
• If you can’t, use an object without a prototype.

The following code demonstrates using objects without prototypes as dictionaries:

const dict = Object.create(null); // no prototype

assert.equal('toString' in dict, false); // (A)

dict['__proto__'] = 123;
assert.deepEqual(Object.keys(dict), ['__proto__']);

We avoided both pitfalls: First, a property without a prototype does not inherit any
properties (line A). Second, in modern JavaScript, __proto__ is implemented via Ob-
ject.prototype. That means that it is switched off if Object.prototype is not in the
prototype chain.

Exercise: Using an object as a dictionary

exercises/single-objects/simple_dict_test.mjs
290 28 Single objects

28.7 Standard methods (advanced)

Object.prototype defines several standard methods that can be overridden to configure
how an object is treated by the language. Two important ones are:

• .toString()
• .valueOf()

28.7.1 .toString()
.toString() determines how objects are converted to strings:

> String({toString() { return 'Hello!' }})

'Hello!'
> String({})
'[object Object]'

28.7.2 .valueOf()
.valueOf() determines how objects are converted to numbers:

> Number({valueOf() { return 123 }})

123
> Number({})
NaN

28.8 Advanced topics

The following subsections give brief overviews of a few advanced topics.

28.8.1 Object.assign() [ES6]

Object.assign() is a tool method:

Object.assign(target, source_1, source_2, ···)

This expression assigns all properties of source_1 to target, then all properties of
source_2, etc. At the end, it returns target – for example:

const target = { foo: 1 };

const result = Object.assign(

target,
{bar: 2},
{baz: 3, bar: 4});

assert.deepEqual(
result, { foo: 1, bar: 4, baz: 3 });
// target was modified and returned:
assert.equal(result, target);
28.8 Advanced topics 291

The use cases for Object.assign() are similar to those for spread properties. In a way,
it spreads destructively.

28.8.2 Freezing objects [ES5]

Object.freeze(obj) makes obj completely immutable: You can’t change properties,
add properties, or change its prototype – for example:

const frozen = Object.freeze({ x: 2, y: 5 });

assert.throws(
() => { frozen.x = 7 },
{
name: 'TypeError',
message: /^Cannot assign to read only property 'x'/,
});

There is one caveat: Object.freeze(obj) freezes shallowly. That is, only the properties
of obj are frozen but not objects stored in properties.

More information
For more information on freezing and other ways of locking down objects, see Deep
JavaScript.

28.8.3 Property attributes and property descriptors [ES5]

Just as objects are composed of properties, properties are composed of attributes. The
value of a property is only one of several attributes. Others include:

• writable: Is it possible to change the value of the property?

• enumerable: Is the property considered by Object.keys(), spreading, etc.?

When you are using one of the operations for handling property attributes, attributes are
specified via property descriptors: objects where each property represents one attribute.
For example, this is how you read the attributes of a property obj.foo:

const obj = { foo: 123 };

assert.deepEqual(
Object.getOwnPropertyDescriptor(obj, 'foo'),
{
value: 123,
writable: true,
enumerable: true,
configurable: true,
});

And this is how you set the attributes of a property obj.bar:

const obj = {
foo: 1,
bar: 2,
292 28 Single objects

};

assert.deepEqual(Object.keys(obj), ['foo', 'bar']);

// Hide property `bar` from Object.keys()

Object.defineProperty(obj, 'bar', {
enumerable: false,
});

assert.deepEqual(Object.keys(obj), ['foo']);

Further reading:
• Enumerability is covered in greater detail earlier in this chapter.
• For more information on property attributes and property descriptors, see Deep
JavaScript.

Quiz
See quiz app.
Chapter 29

Prototype chains and classes

Contents
29.1 Prototype chains . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 294
29.1.1 JavaScript’s operations: all properties vs. own properties . . . 295
29.1.2 Pitfall: only the first member of a prototype chain is mutated . 295
29.1.3 Tips for working with prototypes (advanced) . . . . . . . . . . 296
29.1.4 Sharing data via prototypes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 297
29.2 Classes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 299
29.2.1 A class for persons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 299
29.2.2 Classes under the hood . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 300
29.2.3 Class definitions: prototype properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . 301
29.2.4 Class definitions: static properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 302
29.2.5 The instanceof operator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 302
29.2.6 Why I recommend classes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 303
29.3 Private data for classes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 303
29.3.1 Private data: naming convention . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 303
29.3.2 Private data: WeakMaps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 304
29.3.3 More techniques for private data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 305
29.4 Subclassing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 305
29.4.1 Subclasses under the hood (advanced) . . . . . . . . . . . . . 306
29.4.2 instanceof in more detail (advanced) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 307
29.4.3 Prototype chains of built-in objects (advanced) . . . . . . . . . 307
29.4.4 Dispatched vs. direct method calls (advanced) . . . . . . . . . 310
29.4.5 Mixin classes (advanced) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 311
29.5 FAQ: objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 313
29.5.1 Why do objects preserve the insertion order of properties? . . 313

In this book, JavaScript’s style of object-oriented programming (OOP) is introduced in

four steps. This chapter covers steps 2–4, the previous chapter covers step 1. The steps
are (fig. 29.1):

293
294 29 Prototype chains and classes

1. Single objects (previous chapter): How do objects, JavaScript’s basic OOP build-
ing blocks, work in isolation?
2. Prototype chains (this chapter): Each object has a chain of zero or more prototype
objects. Prototypes are JavaScript’s core inheritance mechanism.
3. Classes (this chapter): JavaScript’s classes are factories for objects. The relationship
between a class and its instances is based on prototypal inheritance.
4. Subclassing (this chapter): The relationship between a subclass and its superclass
is also based on prototypal inheritance.

SuperClass
superData
superMthd
mthd ƒ
MyClass SubClass
mthd ƒ __proto__ data subData
data 4 data 4 mthd subMthd

1. Single objects 2. Prototype chains 3. Classes 4. Subclassing

Figure 29.1: This book introduces object-oriented programming in JavaScript in four

steps.

29.1 Prototype chains

Prototypes are JavaScript’s only inheritance mechanism: each object has a prototype that
is either null or an object. In the latter case, the object inherits all of the prototype’s
properties.
In an object literal, you can set the prototype via the special property __proto__:
const proto = {
protoProp: 'a',
};
const obj = {
__proto__: proto,
objProp: 'b',
};

// obj inherits .protoProp:

assert.equal(obj.protoProp, 'a');
assert.equal('protoProp' in obj, true);

Given that a prototype object can have a prototype itself, we get a chain of objects – the
so-called prototype chain. That means that inheritance gives us the impression that we are
dealing with single objects, but we are actually dealing with chains of objects.
Fig. 29.2 shows what the prototype chain of obj looks like.
Non-inherited properties are called own properties. obj has one own property, .objProp.
29.1 Prototype chains 295

...

proto
__proto__
protoProp 'a'

obj
__proto__
objProp 'b'

Figure 29.2: obj starts a chain of objects that continues with proto and other objects.

29.1.1 JavaScript’s operations: all properties vs. own properties

Some operations consider all properties (own and inherited) – for example, getting prop-
erties:

> const obj = { foo: 1 };

> typeof obj.foo // own
'number'
> typeof obj.toString // inherited
'function'

Other operations only consider own properties – for example, Object.keys():

> Object.keys(obj)
[ 'foo' ]

Read on for another operation that also only considers own properties: setting proper-
ties.

29.1.2 Pitfall: only the first member of a prototype chain is mutated

One aspect of prototype chains that may be counter-intuitive is that setting any property
via an object – even an inherited one – only changes that very object – never one of the
prototypes.

Consider the following object obj:

const proto = {
protoProp: 'a',
};
const obj = {
__proto__: proto,
objProp: 'b',
};
296 29 Prototype chains and classes

In the next code snippet, we set the inherited property obj.protoProp (line A). That
“changes” it by creating an own property: When reading obj.protoProp, the own prop-
erty is found first and its value overrides the value of the inherited property.
// In the beginning, obj has one own property
assert.deepEqual(Object.keys(obj), ['objProp']);

obj.protoProp = 'x'; // (A)

// We created a new own property:

assert.deepEqual(Object.keys(obj), ['objProp', 'protoProp']);

// The inherited property itself is unchanged:

assert.equal(proto.protoProp, 'a');

// The own property overrides the inherited property:

assert.equal(obj.protoProp, 'x');

The prototype chain of obj is depicted in fig. 29.3.

...

proto
__proto__
protoProp 'a'

obj
__proto__
objProp 'b'
protoProp 'x'

Figure 29.3: The own property .protoProp of obj overrides the property inherited from
proto.

29.1.3 Tips for working with prototypes (advanced)

29.1.3.1 Best practice: avoid __proto__, except in object literals

I recommend to avoid the pseudo-property __proto__: As we will see later, not all ob-
jects have it.
However, __proto__ in object literals is different. There, it is a built-in feature and always
available.
The recommended ways of getting and setting prototypes are:
• The best way to get a prototype is via the following method:
29.1 Prototype chains 297

Object.getPrototypeOf(obj: Object) : Object

• The best way to set a prototype is when creating an object – via __proto__ in an
object literal or via:
Object.create(proto: Object) : Object

If you have to, you can use Object.setPrototypeOf() to change the prototype of
an existing object. But that may affect performance negatively.
This is how these features are used:
const proto1 = {};
const proto2 = {};

const obj = Object.create(proto1);

assert.equal(Object.getPrototypeOf(obj), proto1);

Object.setPrototypeOf(obj, proto2);
assert.equal(Object.getPrototypeOf(obj), proto2);

29.1.3.2 Check: is an object a prototype of another one?

So far, “p is a prototype of o” always meant “p is a direct prototype of o”. But it can also be
used more loosely and mean that p is in the prototype chain of o. That looser relationship
can be checked via:
p.isPrototypeOf(o)

For example:
const a = {};
const b = {__proto__: a};
const c = {__proto__: b};

assert.equal(a.isPrototypeOf(b), true);
assert.equal(a.isPrototypeOf(c), true);

assert.equal(a.isPrototypeOf(a), false);
assert.equal(c.isPrototypeOf(a), false);

29.1.4 Sharing data via prototypes

Consider the following code:
const jane = {
name: 'Jane',
describe() {
return 'Person named '+this.name;
},
};
const tarzan = {
name: 'Tarzan',
298 29 Prototype chains and classes

describe() {
return 'Person named '+this.name;
},
};

assert.equal(jane.describe(), 'Person named Jane');

assert.equal(tarzan.describe(), 'Person named Tarzan');

We have two objects that are very similar. Both have two properties whose names are
.name and .describe. Additionally, method .describe() is the same. How can we
avoid duplicating that method?
We can move it to an object PersonProto and make that object a prototype of both jane
and tarzan:
const PersonProto = {
describe() {
return 'Person named ' + this.name;
},
};
const jane = {
__proto__: PersonProto,
name: 'Jane',
};
const tarzan = {
__proto__: PersonProto,
name: 'Tarzan',
};

The name of the prototype reflects that both jane and tarzan are persons.

PersonProto
describe function() {···}

jane tarzan
__proto__ __proto__
name 'Jane' name 'Tarzan'

Figure 29.4: Objects jane and tarzan share method .describe(), via their common pro-
totype PersonProto.

Fig. 29.4 illustrates how the three objects are connected: The objects at the bottom now
contain the properties that are specific to jane and tarzan. The object at the top contains
the properties that are shared between them.
When you make the method call jane.describe(), this points to the receiver of that
method call, jane (in the bottom-left corner of the diagram). That’s why the method still
works. tarzan.describe() works similarly.
29.2 Classes 299

assert.equal(jane.describe(), 'Person named Jane');

assert.equal(tarzan.describe(), 'Person named Tarzan');

29.2 Classes
We are now ready to take on classes, which are basically a compact syntax for setting up
prototype chains. Under the hood, JavaScript’s classes are unconventional. But that is
something you rarely see when working with them. They should normally feel familiar
to people who have used other object-oriented programming languages.

29.2.1 A class for persons

We have previously worked with jane and tarzan, single objects representing persons.
Let’s use a class declaration to implement a factory for person objects:

class Person {
constructor(name) {
this.name = name;
}
describe() {
return 'Person named '+this.name;
}
}

jane and tarzan can now be created via new Person():

const jane = new Person('Jane');

assert.equal(jane.name, 'Jane');
assert.equal(jane.describe(), 'Person named Jane');

const tarzan = new Person('Tarzan');

assert.equal(tarzan.name, 'Tarzan');
assert.equal(tarzan.describe(), 'Person named Tarzan');

Class Person has two methods:

• The normal method .describe()

• The special method .constructor() which is called directly after a new instance
has been created and initializes that instance. It receives the arguments that are
passed to the new operator (after the class name). If you don’t need any arguments
to set up a new instance, you can omit the constructor.

29.2.1.1 Class expressions

There are two kinds of class definitions (ways of defining classes):

• Class declarations, which we have seen in the previous section.

• Class expressions, which we’ll see next.

Class expressions can be anonymous and named:

300 29 Prototype chains and classes

// Anonymous class expression

const Person = class { ··· };

// Named class expression

const Person = class MyClass { ··· };

The name of a named class expression works similarly to the name of a named function
expression.
This was a first look at classes. We’ll explore more features soon, but first we need to
learn the internals of classes.

29.2.2 Classes under the hood

There is a lot going on under the hood of classes. Let’s look at the diagram for jane
(fig. 29.5).

Person Person.prototype
prototype constructor
describe function() {...}

jane
__proto__
name 'Jane'

Figure 29.5: The class Person has the property .prototype that points to an object that
is the prototype of all instances of Person. jane is one such instance.

The main purpose of class Person is to set up the prototype chain on the right (jane,
followed by Person.prototype). It is interesting to note that both constructs inside class
Person (.constructor and .describe()) created properties for Person.prototype, not
for Person.
The reason for this slightly odd approach is backward compatibility: prior to classes,
constructor functions (ordinary functions, invoked via the new operator) were often used
as factories for objects. Classes are mostly better syntax for constructor functions and
therefore remain compatible with old code. That explains why classes are functions:
> typeof Person
'function'

In this book, I use the terms constructor (function) and class interchangeably.
It is easy to confuse .__proto__ and .prototype. Hopefully, fig. 29.5 makes it clear how
they differ:
29.2 Classes 301

• .__proto__ is a pseudo-property for accessing the prototype of an object.

• .prototype is a normal property that is only special due to how the new operator
uses it. The name is not ideal: Person.prototype does not point to the prototype
of Person, it points to the prototype of all instances of Person.

29.2.2.1 Person.prototype.constructor (advanced)

There is one detail in fig. 29.5 that we haven’t looked at, yet: Person.prototype.constructor
points back to Person:
> Person.prototype.constructor === Person
true

This setup also exists due to backward compatibility. But it has two additional benefits.
First, each instance of a class inherits property .constructor. Therefore, given an in-
stance, you can make “similar” objects using it:
const jane = new Person('Jane');

const cheeta = new jane.constructor('Cheeta');

// cheeta is also an instance of Person
// (the instanceof operator is explained later)
assert.equal(cheeta instanceof Person, true);

Second, you can get the name of the class that created a given instance:
const tarzan = new Person('Tarzan');

assert.equal(tarzan.constructor.name, 'Person');

29.2.3 Class definitions: prototype properties

All constructs in the body of the following class declaration create properties of
Foo.prototype.

class Foo {
constructor(prop) {
this.prop = prop;
}
protoMethod() {
return 'protoMethod';
}
get protoGetter() {
return 'protoGetter';
}
}

Let’s examine them in order:

• .constructor() is called after creating a new instance of Foo to set up that in-
stance.
• .protoMethod() is a normal method. It is stored in Foo.prototype.
302 29 Prototype chains and classes

• .protoGetter is a getter that is stored in Foo.prototype.

The following interaction uses class Foo:

> const foo = new Foo(123);

> foo.prop
123

> foo.protoMethod()
'protoMethod'
> foo.protoGetter
'protoGetter'

29.2.4 Class definitions: static properties

All constructs in the body of the following class declaration create so-called static prop-
erties – properties of Bar itself.

class Bar {
static staticMethod() {
return 'staticMethod';
}
static get staticGetter() {
return 'staticGetter';
}
}

The static method and the static getter are used as follows:

> Bar.staticMethod()
'staticMethod'
> Bar.staticGetter
'staticGetter'

29.2.5 The instanceof operator

The instanceof operator tells you if a value is an instance of a given class:

> new Person('Jane') instanceof Person

true
> ({}) instanceof Person
false
> ({}) instanceof Object
true
> [] instanceof Array
true

We’ll explore the instanceof operator in more detail later, after we have looked at sub-
classing.
29.3 Private data for classes 303

29.2.6 Why I recommend classes

I recommend using classes for the following reasons:
• Classes are a common standard for object creation and inheritance that is now
widely supported across frameworks (React, Angular, Ember, etc.). This is an im-
provement to how things were before, when almost every framework had its own
inheritance library.
• They help tools such as IDEs and type checkers with their work and enable new
features there.
• If you come from another language to JavaScript and are used to classes, then you
can get started more quickly.
• JavaScript engines optimize them. That is, code that uses classes is almost always
faster than code that uses a custom inheritance library.
• You can subclass built-in constructor functions such as Error.
That doesn’t mean that classes are perfect:
• There is a risk of overdoing inheritance.
• There is a risk of putting too much functionality in classes (when some of it is often
better put in functions).
• How they work superficially and under the hood is quite different. In other words,
there is a disconnect between syntax and semantics. Two examples are:
– A method definition inside a class C creates a method in the object
C.prototype.
– Classes are functions.
The motivation for the disconnect is backward compatibility. Thankfully, the dis-
connect causes few problems in practice; you are usually OK if you go along with
what classes pretend to be.

Exercise: Writing a class

exercises/proto-chains-classes/point_class_test.mjs

29.3 Private data for classes

This section describes techniques for hiding some of the data of an object from the outside.
We discuss them in the context of classes, but they also work for objects created directly,
e.g., via object literals.

29.3.1 Private data: naming convention

The first technique makes a property private by prefixing its name with an underscore.
This doesn’t protect the property in any way; it merely signals to the outside: “You don’t
need to know about this property.”
304 29 Prototype chains and classes

In the following code, the properties ._counter and ._action are private.
class Countdown {
constructor(counter, action) {
this._counter = counter;
this._action = action;
}
dec() {
this._counter--;
if (this._counter === 0) {
this._action();
}
}
}

// The two properties aren’t really private:

assert.deepEqual(
Object.keys(new Countdown()),
['_counter', '_action']);

With this technique, you don’t get any protection and private names can clash. On the
plus side, it is easy to use.

29.3.2 Private data: WeakMaps

Another technique is to use WeakMaps. How exactly that works is explained in the
chapter on WeakMaps. This is a preview:
const _counter = new WeakMap();
const _action = new WeakMap();

class Countdown {
constructor(counter, action) {
_counter.set(this, counter);
_action.set(this, action);
}
dec() {
let counter = _counter.get(this);
counter--;
_counter.set(this, counter);
if (counter === 0) {
_action.get(this)();
}
}
}

// The two pseudo-properties are truly private:

assert.deepEqual(
Object.keys(new Countdown()),
[]);
29.4 Subclassing 305

This technique offers you considerable protection from outside access and there can’t be
any name clashes. But it is also more complicated to use.

29.3.3 More techniques for private data

This book explains the most important techniques for private data in classes. There will
also probably soon be built-in support for it. Consult the ECMAScript proposal “Class
Public Instance Fields & Private Instance Fields” for details.

A few additional techniques are explained in Exploring ES6.

29.4 Subclassing
Classes can also subclass (“extend”) existing classes. As an example, the following class
Employee subclasses Person:

class Person {
constructor(name) {
this.name = name;
}
describe() {
return `Person named ${this.name}`;
}
static logNames(persons) {
for (const person of persons) {
console.log(person.name);
}
}
}

class Employee extends Person {

constructor(name, title) {
super(name);
this.title = title;
}
describe() {
return super.describe() +
` (${this.title})`;
}
}

const jane = new Employee('Jane', 'CTO');

assert.equal(
jane.describe(),
'Person named Jane (CTO)');

Two comments:

• Inside a .constructor() method, you must call the super-constructor via super()
306 29 Prototype chains and classes

before you can access this. That’s because this doesn’t exist before the super-
constructor is called (this phenomenon is specific to classes).

• Static methods are also inherited. For example, Employee inherits the static method
.logNames():

> 'logNames' in Employee

true

Exercise: Subclassing
exercises/proto-chains-classes/color_point_class_test.mjs

29.4.1 Subclasses under the hood (advanced)

Function.prototype Object.prototype

__proto__ __proto__
prototype
Person Person.prototype

__proto__ __proto__
prototype
Employee Employee.prototype

__proto__

jane

Figure 29.6: These are the objects that make up class Person and its subclass, Employee.
The left column is about classes. The right column is about the Employee instance jane
and its prototype chain.

The classes Person and Employee from the previous section are made up of several objects
(fig. 29.6). One key insight for understanding how these objects are related is that there
are two prototype chains:

• The instance prototype chain, on the right.

• The class prototype chain, on the left.

29.4.1.1 The instance prototype chain (right column)

The instance prototype chain starts with jane and continues with Employee.prototype
and Person.prototype. In principle, the prototype chain ends at this point, but we get
one more object: Object.prototype. This prototype provides services to virtually all
objects, which is why it is included here, too:
29.4 Subclassing 307

> Object.getPrototypeOf(Person.prototype) === Object.prototype

true

29.4.1.2 The class prototype chain (left column)

In the class prototype chain, Employee comes first, Person next. Afterward, the chain
continues with Function.prototype, which is only there because Person is a function
and functions need the services of Function.prototype.
> Object.getPrototypeOf(Person) === Function.prototype
true

29.4.2 instanceof in more detail (advanced)

We have not yet seen how instanceof really works. Given the expression:
x instanceof C

How does instanceof determine if x is an instance of C (or a subclass of C)? It does so by

checking if C.prototype is in the prototype chain of x. That is, the following expression
is equivalent:
C.prototype.isPrototypeOf(x)

If we go back to fig. 29.6, we can confirm that the prototype chain does lead us to the
following correct answers:
> jane instanceof Employee
true
> jane instanceof Person
true
> jane instanceof Object
true

29.4.3 Prototype chains of built-in objects (advanced)

Next, we’ll use our knowledge of subclassing to understand the prototype chains of a
few built-in objects. The following tool function p() helps us with our explorations.
const p = Object.getPrototypeOf.bind(Object);

We extracted method .getPrototypeOf() of Object and assigned it to p.

29.4.3.1 The prototype chain of {}

Let’s start by examining plain objects:

> p({}) === Object.prototype
true
> p(p({})) === null
true

Fig. 29.7 shows a diagram for this prototype chain. We can see that {} really is an instance
of Object – Object.prototype is in its prototype chain.
308 29 Prototype chains and classes

null

__proto__

Object.prototype

__proto__

{}

Figure 29.7: The prototype chain of an object created via an object literal starts with that
object, continues with Object.prototype, and ends with null.

29.4.3.2 The prototype chain of []

What does the prototype chain of an Array look like?

> p([]) === Array.prototype

true
> p(p([])) === Object.prototype
true
> p(p(p([]))) === null
true

null

__proto__

Object.prototype

__proto__

Array.prototype

__proto__

[]

Figure 29.8: The prototype chain of an Array has these members: the Array instance,
Array.prototype, Object.prototype, null.

This prototype chain (visualized in fig. 29.8) tells us that an Array object is an instance of
Array, which is a subclass of Object.
29.4 Subclassing 309

29.4.3.3 The prototype chain of function () {}

Lastly, the prototype chain of an ordinary function tells us that all functions are objects:
> p(function () {}) === Function.prototype
true
> p(p(function () {})) === Object.prototype
true

29.4.3.4 Objects that aren’t instances of Object

An object is only an instance of Object if Object.prototype is in its prototype chain.

Most objects created via various literals are instances of Object:
> ({}) instanceof Object
true
> (() => {}) instanceof Object
true
> /abc/ug instanceof Object
true

Objects that don’t have prototypes are not instances of Object:

> ({ __proto__: null }) instanceof Object
false

Object.prototype ends most prototype chains. Its prototype is null, which means it
isn’t an instance of Object either:
> Object.prototype instanceof Object
false

29.4.3.5 How exactly does the pseudo-property .__proto__ work?

The pseudo-property .__proto__ is implemented by class Object via a getter and a setter.
It could be implemented like this:
class Object {
get __proto__() {
return Object.getPrototypeOf(this);
}
set __proto__(other) {
Object.setPrototypeOf(this, other);
}
// ···
}

That means that you can switch .__proto__ off by creating an object that doesn’t have
Object.prototype in its prototype chain (see the previous section):

> '__proto__' in {}
true
> '__proto__' in { __proto__: null }
false
310 29 Prototype chains and classes

29.4.4 Dispatched vs. direct method calls (advanced)

Let’s examine how method calls work with classes. We are revisiting jane from earlier:

class Person {
constructor(name) {
this.name = name;
}
describe() {
return 'Person named '+this.name;
}
}
const jane = new Person('Jane');

Fig. 29.9 has a diagram with jane’s prototype chain.

...

Person.prototype
__proto__
describe function() {···}

jane
__proto__
name 'Jane'

Figure 29.9: The prototype chain of jane starts with jane and continues with Per-
son.prototype.

Normal method calls are dispatched – the method call jane.describe() happens in two
steps:

• Dispatch: In the prototype chain of jane, find the first property whose key is 'de-
scribe' and retrieve its value.

const func = jane.describe;

• Call: Call the value, while setting this to jane.

func.call(jane);

This way of dynamically looking for a method and invoking it is called dynamic dispatch.

You can make the same method call directly, without dispatching:

Person.prototype.describe.call(jane)

This time, we directly point to the method via Person.prototype.describe and don’t
search for it in the prototype chain. We also specify this differently via .call().
29.4 Subclassing 311

Note that this always points to the beginning of a prototype chain. That enables .de-
scribe() to access .name.

29.4.4.1 Borrowing methods

Direct method calls become useful when you are working with methods of Ob-
ject.prototype. For example, Object.prototype.hasOwnProperty(k) checks if this
has a non-inherited property whose key is k:

> const obj = { foo: 123 };

> obj.hasOwnProperty('foo')
true
> obj.hasOwnProperty('bar')
false

However, in the prototype chain of an object, there may be another property with the key
'hasOwnProperty' that overrides the method in Object.prototype. Then a dispatched
method call doesn’t work:

> const obj = { hasOwnProperty: true };

> obj.hasOwnProperty('bar')
TypeError: obj.hasOwnProperty is not a function

The workaround is to use a direct method call:

> Object.prototype.hasOwnProperty.call(obj, 'bar')

false
> Object.prototype.hasOwnProperty.call(obj, 'hasOwnProperty')
true

This kind of direct method call is often abbreviated as follows:

> ({}).hasOwnProperty.call(obj, 'bar')

false
> ({}).hasOwnProperty.call(obj, 'hasOwnProperty')
true

This pattern may seem inefficient, but most engines optimize this pattern, so perfor-
mance should not be an issue.

29.4.5 Mixin classes (advanced)

JavaScript’s class system only supports single inheritance. That is, each class can have
at most one superclass. One way around this limitation is via a technique called mixin
classes (short: mixins).

The idea is as follows: Let’s say we want a class C to inherit from two superclasses S1
and S2. That would be multiple inheritance, which JavaScript doesn’t support.

Our workaround is to turn S1 and S2 into mixins, factories for subclasses:

const S1 = (Sup) => class extends Sup { /*···*/ };

const S2 = (Sup) => class extends Sup { /*···*/ };
312 29 Prototype chains and classes

Each of these two functions returns a class that extends a given superclass Sup. We create
class C as follows:

class C extends S2(S1(Object)) {

/*···*/
}

We now have a class C that extends a class S2 that extends a class S1 that extends Object
(which most classes do implicitly).

29.4.5.1 Example: a mixin for brand management

We implement a mixin Branded that has helper methods for setting and getting the brand
of an object:

const Branded = (Sup) => class extends Sup {

setBrand(brand) {
this._brand = brand;
return this;
}
getBrand() {
return this._brand;
}
};

We use this mixin to implement brand management for a class Car:

class Car extends Branded(Object) {

constructor(model) {
super();
this._model = model;
}
toString() {
return `${this.getBrand()} ${this._model}`;
}
}

The following code confirms that the mixin worked: Car has method .setBrand() of
Branded.

const modelT = new Car('Model T').setBrand('Ford');

assert.equal(modelT.toString(), 'Ford Model T');

29.4.5.2 The benefits of mixins

Mixins free us from the constraints of single inheritance:

• The same class can extend a single superclass and zero or more mixins.
• The same mixin can be used by multiple classes.
29.5 FAQ: objects 313

29.5 FAQ: objects

29.5.1 Why do objects preserve the insertion order of properties?
In principle, objects are unordered. The main reason for ordering properties is so that
operations that list entries, keys, or values are deterministic. That helps, e.g., with testing.

Quiz
See quiz app.
314 29 Prototype chains and classes
 Part VII

Collections

315
Chapter 30

Synchronous iteration

Contents
30.1 What is synchronous iteration about? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 317
30.2 Core iteration constructs: iterables and iterators . . . . . . . . . . . 318
30.3 Iterating manually . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 319
30.3.1 Iterating over an iterable via while . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 319
30.4 Iteration in practice . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 320
30.4.1 Iterating over Arrays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 320
30.4.2 Iterating over Sets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 320
30.5 Quick reference: synchronous iteration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 321
30.5.1 Iterable data sources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 321
30.5.2 Iterating constructs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 321

30.1 What is synchronous iteration about?

Synchronous iteration is a protocol (interfaces plus rules for using them) that connects
two groups of entities in JavaScript:

• Data sources: On one hand, data comes in all shapes and sizes. In JavaScript’s
standard library, you have the linear data structure Array, the ordered collection
Set (elements are ordered by time of addition), the ordered dictionary Map (entries
are ordered by time of addition), and more. In libraries, you may find tree-shaped
data structures and more.

• Data consumers: On the other hand, you have a whole class of constructs and
algorithms that only need to access their input sequentially: one value at a time,
until all values were visited. Examples include the for-of loop and spreading
into function calls (via ...).

The iteration protocol connects these two groups via the interface Iterable: data sources
deliver their contents sequentially “through it”; data consumers get their input via it.

317
318 30 Synchronous iteration

Data consumers Interface Data sources

for-of loop Arrays

Iterable Maps

spreading Strings

Figure 30.1: Data consumers such as the for-of loop use the interface Iterable. Data
sources such as Arrays implement that interface.

Fig. 30.1 illustrates how iteration works: data consumers use the interface Iterable; data
sources implement it.

The JavaScript way of implementing interfaces

In JavaScript, an object implements an interface if it has all the methods that it de-
scribes. The interfaces mentioned in this chapter only exist in the ECMAScript spec-
ification.

Both sources and consumers of data profit from this arrangement:

• If you develop a new data structure, you only need to implement Iterable and a
raft of tools can immediately be applied to it.

• If you write code that uses iteration, it automatically works with many sources of
data.

30.2 Core iteration constructs: iterables and iterators

Two roles (described by interfaces) form the core of iteration (fig. 30.2):

• An iterable is an object whose contents can be traversed sequentially.

• An iterator is the pointer used for the traversal.

Iterable: Iterator:
traversable data structure pointer for traversing iterable

··· returns next()

[Symbol.iterator]()

Figure 30.2: Iteration has two main interfaces: Iterable and Iterator. The former has
a method that returns the latter.

These are type definitions (in TypeScript’s notation) for the interfaces of the iteration
protocol:

interface Iterable<T> {
30.3 Iterating manually 319

[Symbol.iterator]() : Iterator<T>;
}

interface Iterator<T> {
next() : IteratorResult<T>;
}

interface IteratorResult<T> {
value: T;
done: boolean;
}

The interfaces are used as follows:

• You ask an Iterable for an iterator via the method whose key is Symbol.iterator.
• The Iterator returns the iterated values via its method .next().
• The values are not returned directly, but wrapped in objects with two properties:
– .value is the iterated value.
– .done indicates if the end of the iteration has been reached yet. It is true after
the last iterated value and false beforehand.

30.3 Iterating manually

This is an example of using the iteration protocol:

const iterable = ['a', 'b'];

// The iterable is a factory for iterators:

const iterator = iterable[Symbol.iterator]();

// Call .next() until .done is true:

assert.deepEqual(
iterator.next(), { value: 'a', done: false });
assert.deepEqual(
iterator.next(), { value: 'b', done: false });
assert.deepEqual(
iterator.next(), { value: undefined, done: true });

30.3.1 Iterating over an iterable via while

The following code demonstrates how to use a while loop to iterate over an iterable:

function logAll(iterable) {
const iterator = iterable[Symbol.iterator]();
while (true) {
const {value, done} = iterator.next();
if (done) break;
console.log(value);
}
320 30 Synchronous iteration

logAll(['a', 'b']);
// Output:
// 'a'
// 'b'

Exercise: Using sync iteration manually

exercises/sync-iteration-use/sync_iteration_manually_exrc.mjs

30.4 Iteration in practice

We have seen how to use the iteration protocol manually, and it is relatively cumbersome.
But the protocol is not meant to be used directly – it is meant to be used via higher-level
language constructs built on top of it. This section shows what that looks like.

30.4.1 Iterating over Arrays

JavaScript’s Arrays are iterable. That enables us to use the for-of loop:

const myArray = ['a', 'b', 'c'];

for (const x of myArray) {

console.log(x);
}
// Output:
// 'a'
// 'b'
// 'c'

Destructuring via Array patterns (explained later) also uses iteration under the hood:

const [first, second] = myArray;

assert.equal(first, 'a');
assert.equal(second, 'b');

30.4.2 Iterating over Sets

JavaScript’s Set data structure is iterable. That means for-of works:

const mySet = new Set().add('a').add('b').add('c');

for (const x of mySet) {

console.log(x);
}
// Output:
// 'a'
30.5 Quick reference: synchronous iteration 321

// 'b'
// 'c'

As does Array-destructuring:

const [first, second] = mySet;

assert.equal(first, 'a');
assert.equal(second, 'b');

30.5 Quick reference: synchronous iteration

30.5.1 Iterable data sources
The following built-in data sources are iterable:

• Arrays
• Strings
• Maps
• Sets
• (Browsers: DOM data structures)

To iterate over the properties of objects, you need helpers such as Object.keys() and
Object.entries(). That is necessary because properties exist at a different level that is
independent of the level of data structures.

30.5.2 Iterating constructs

The following constructs are based on iteration:

• Destructuring via an Array pattern:

const [x,y] = iterable;

• The for-of loop:

for (const x of iterable) { /*···*/ }

• Array.from():

const arr = Array.from(iterable);

• Spreading (via ...) into function calls and Array literals:

func(...iterable);
const arr = [...iterable];

• new Map() and new Set():

const m = new Map(iterableOverKeyValuePairs);

const s = new Set(iterableOverElements);

• Promise.all() and Promise.race():

const promise1 = Promise.all(iterableOverPromises);

const promise2 = Promise.race(iterableOverPromises);
322 30 Synchronous iteration

• yield*:
function* generatorFunction() {
yield* iterable;
}

Quiz
See quiz app.
Chapter 31

Arrays (Array)

Contents
31.1 The two roles of Arrays in JavaScript . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 324
31.2 Basic Array operations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 324
31.2.1 Creating, reading, writing Arrays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 324
31.2.2 The .length of an Array . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 325
31.2.3 Clearing an Array . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 325
31.2.4 Spreading into Array literals [ES6] . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 326
31.2.5 Arrays: listing indices and entries [ES6] . . . . . . . . . . . . . 326
31.2.6 Is a value an Array? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 327
31.3 for-of and Arrays [ES6] . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 327
31.3.1 for-of: iterating over elements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 327
31.3.2 for-of: iterating over [index, element] pairs . . . . . . . . . . 328
31.4 Array-like objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 328
31.5 Converting iterable and Array-like values to Arrays . . . . . . . . . 329
31.5.1 Converting iterables to Arrays via spreading (...) . . . . . . . 329
31.5.2 Converting iterables and Array-like objects to Arrays via Ar-
ray.from() (advanced) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 329
31.6 Creating and filling Arrays with arbitrary lengths . . . . . . . . . . 330
31.6.1 Do you need to create an empty Array that you’ll fill completely
later on? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 330
31.6.2 Do you need to create an Array filled with a primitive value? . 330
31.6.3 Do you need to create an Array filled with objects? . . . . . . . 331
31.6.4 Do you need to create a range of integers? . . . . . . . . . . . 331
31.6.5 Use a Typed Array if the elements are all integers or all floats . 331
31.7 Multidimensional Arrays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 331
31.8 More Array features (advanced) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 332
31.8.1 Array indices are (slightly special) property keys . . . . . . . . 332
31.8.2 Arrays are dictionaries and can have holes . . . . . . . . . . . 333
31.9 Adding and removing elements (destructively and non-destructively) 335

323
324 31 Arrays (Array)

31.9.1 Prepending elements and Arrays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 335

31.9.2 Appending elements and Arrays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 336
31.9.3 Removing elements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 336
31.10Methods: iteration and transformation (.find(), .map(), .filter(),
etc.) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 337
31.10.1 Callbacks for iteration and transformation methods . . . . . . 337
31.10.2 Searching elements: .find(), .findIndex() . . . . . . . . . . 338
31.10.3 .map(): copy while giving elements new values . . . . . . . . 338
31.10.4 .flatMap(): mapping to zero or more values . . . . . . . . . . 339
31.10.5 .filter(): only keep some of the elements . . . . . . . . . . . 341
31.10.6 .reduce(): deriving a value from an Array (advanced) . . . . 341
31.11 .sort(): sorting Arrays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 344
31.11.1 Customizing the sort order . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 345
31.11.2 Sorting numbers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 345
31.11.3 Sorting objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 346
31.12Quick reference: Array<T> . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 346
31.12.1 new Array() . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 346
31.12.2 Static methods of Array . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 346
31.12.3 Methods of Array<T>.prototype . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 347
31.12.4 Sources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 354

31.1 The two roles of Arrays in JavaScript

Arrays play two roles in JavaScript:
• Tuples: Arrays-as-tuples have a fixed number of indexed elements. Each of those
elements can have a different type.
• Sequences: Arrays-as-sequences have a variable number of indexed elements.
Each of those elements has the same type.
In practice, these two roles are often mixed.
Notably, Arrays-as-sequences are so flexible that you can use them as (traditional) arrays,
stacks, and queues (see exercise later in this chapter).

31.2 Basic Array operations

31.2.1 Creating, reading, writing Arrays
The best way to create an Array is via an Array literal:
const arr = ['a', 'b', 'c'];

The Array literal starts and ends with square brackets []. It creates an Array with three
elements: 'a', 'b', and 'c'.
To read an Array element, you put an index in square brackets (indices start at zero):
assert.equal(arr[0], 'a');
31.2 Basic Array operations 325

To change an Array element, you assign to an Array with an index:

arr[0] = 'x';
assert.deepEqual(arr, ['x', 'b', 'c']);

The range of Array indices is 32 bits (excluding the maximum length): [0, 232 −1)

31.2.2 The .length of an Array

Every Array has a property .length that can be used to both read and change(!) the
number of elements in an Array.
The length of an Array is always the highest index plus one:
> const arr = ['a', 'b'];
> arr.length
2

If you write to the Array at the index of the length, you append an element:
> arr[arr.length] = 'c';
> arr
[ 'a', 'b', 'c' ]
> arr.length
3

Another way of (destructively) appending an element is via the Array method .push():
> arr.push('d');
> arr
[ 'a', 'b', 'c', 'd' ]

If you set .length, you are pruning the Array by removing elements:
> arr.length = 1;
> arr
[ 'a' ]

31.2.3 Clearing an Array

To clear (empty) an Array, you can either set its .length to zero:
const arr = ['a', 'b', 'c'];
arr.length = 0;
assert.deepEqual(arr, []);

or you can assign a new empty Array to the variable storing the Array:
let arr = ['a', 'b', 'c'];
arr = [];
assert.deepEqual(arr, []);

The latter approach has the advantage of not affecting other locations that point to the
same Array. If, however, you do want to reset a shared Array for everyone, then you
need the former approach.
326 31 Arrays (Array)

Exercise: Removing empty lines via .push()

exercises/arrays/remove_empty_lines_push_test.mjs

31.2.4 Spreading into Array literals [ES6]

Inside an Array literal, a spread element consists of three dots (...) followed by an expres-
sion. It results in the expression being evaluated and then iterated over. Each iterated
value becomes an additional Array element – for example:

> const iterable = ['b', 'c'];

> ['a', ...iterable, 'd']
[ 'a', 'b', 'c', 'd' ]

That means that we can use spreading to create a copy of an Array:

const original = ['a', 'b', 'c'];

const copy = [...original];

Spreading is also convenient for concatenating Arrays (and other iterables) into Arrays:

const arr1 = ['a', 'b'];

const arr2 = ['c', 'd'];

const concatenated = [...arr1, ...arr2, 'e'];

assert.deepEqual(
concatenated,
['a', 'b', 'c', 'd', 'e']);

Due to spreading using iteration, it only works if the value is iterable:

> [...'abc'] // strings are iterable

[ 'a', 'b', 'c' ]
> [...123]
TypeError: number 123 is not iterable
> [...undefined]
TypeError: undefined is not iterable

Spreading into Array literals is shallow

Similar to spreading into object literals, spreading into Array literals creates shallow
copies. That is, nested Arrays are not copied.

31.2.5 Arrays: listing indices and entries [ES6]

Method .keys() lists the indices of an Array:

const arr = ['a', 'b'];

assert.deepEqual(
31.3 for-of and Arrays [ES6] 327

[...arr.keys()], // (A)
[0, 1]);

.keys() returns an iterable. In line A, we spread to obtain an Array.

Listing Array indices is different from listing properties. The former produces numbers;
the latter produces stringified numbers (in addition to non-index property keys):

const arr = ['a', 'b'];

arr.prop = true;

assert.deepEqual(
Object.keys(arr),
['0', '1', 'prop']);

Method .entries() lists the contents of an Array as [index, element] pairs:

const arr = ['a', 'b'];

assert.deepEqual(
[...arr.entries()],
[[0, 'a'], [1, 'b']]);

31.2.6 Is a value an Array?

Following are two ways of checking if a value is an Array:

> [] instanceof Array

true
> Array.isArray([])
true

instanceof is usually fine. You need Array.isArray() if a value may come from an-
other realm. Roughly, a realm is an instance of JavaScript’s global scope. Some realms
are isolated from each other (e.g., Web Workers in browsers), but there are also realms
between which you can move data – for example, same-origin iframes in browsers. x
instanceof Array checks the prototype chain of x and therefore returns false if x is an
Array from another realm.

typeof categorizes Arrays as objects:

> typeof []
'object'

31.3 for-of and Arrays [ES6]

We have already encountered the for-of loop. This section briefly recaps how to use it
for Arrays.

31.3.1 for-of: iterating over elements

The following for-of loop iterates over the elements of an Array.

328 31 Arrays (Array)

for (const element of ['a', 'b']) {

console.log(element);
}
// Output:
// 'a'
// 'b'

31.3.2 for-of: iterating over [index, element] pairs

The following for-of loop iterates over [index, element] pairs. Destructuring (described
later), gives us convenient syntax for setting up index and element in the head of for-of.
for (const [index, element] of ['a', 'b'].entries()) {
console.log(index, element);
}
// Output:
// 0, 'a'
// 1, 'b'

31.4 Array-like objects

Some operations that work with Arrays require only the bare minimum: values must
only be Array-like. An Array-like value is an object with the following properties:
• .length: holds the length of the Array-like object.
• [0]: holds the element at index 0 (etc.). Note that if you use numbers as property
names, they are always coerced to strings. Therefore, [0] retrieves the value of the
property whose key is '0'.
For example, Array.from() accepts Array-like objects and converts them to Arrays:
// If you omit .length, it is interpreted as 0
assert.deepEqual(
Array.from({}),
[]);

assert.deepEqual(
Array.from({length:2, 0:'a', 1:'b'}),
[ 'a', 'b' ]);

The TypeScript interface for Array-like objects is:

interface ArrayLike<T> {
length: number;
[n: number]: T;
}

Array-like objects are relatively rare in modern JavaScript

31.5 Converting iterable and Array-like values to Arrays 329

Array-like objects used to be common before ES6; now you don’t see them very
often.

31.5 Converting iterable and Array-like values to Arrays

There are two common ways of converting iterable and Array-like values to Arrays:
spreading and Array.from().

31.5.1 Converting iterables to Arrays via spreading (...)

Inside an Array literal, spreading via ... converts any iterable object into a series of
Array elements. For example:

// Get an Array-like collection from a web browser’s DOM

const domCollection = document.querySelectorAll('a');

// Alas, the collection is missing many Array methods

assert.equal('map' in domCollection, false);

// Solution: convert it to an Array

const arr = [...domCollection];
assert.deepEqual(
arr.map(x => x.href),
['https://2ality.com', 'https://exploringjs.com']);

The conversion works because the DOM collection is iterable.

31.5.2 Converting iterables and Array-like objects to Arrays via Ar-

ray.from() (advanced)

Array.from() can be used in two modes.

31.5.2.1 Mode 1 of Array.from(): converting

The first mode has the following type signature:

.from<T>(iterable: Iterable<T> | ArrayLike<T>): T[]

Interface Iterable is shown in the chapter on synchronous iteration. Interface ArrayLike

appeared earlier in this chapter.

With a single parameter, Array.from() converts anything iterable or Array-like to an

Array:

> Array.from(new Set(['a', 'b']))

[ 'a', 'b' ]
> Array.from({length: 2, 0:'a', 1:'b'})
[ 'a', 'b' ]
330 31 Arrays (Array)

31.5.2.2 Mode 2 of Array.from(): converting and mapping

The second mode of Array.from() involves two parameters:

.from<T, U>(
iterable: Iterable<T> | ArrayLike<T>,
mapFunc: (v: T, i: number) => U,
thisArg?: any)
: U[]

In this mode, Array.from() does several things:

• It iterates over iterable.

• It calls mapFunc with each iterated value. The optional parameter thisArg specifies
a this for mapFunc.
• It applies mapFunc to each iterated value.
• It collects the results in a new Array and returns it.

In other words: we are going from an iterable with elements of type T to an Array with
elements of type U.

This is an example:

> Array.from(new Set(['a', 'b']), x => x + x)

[ 'aa', 'bb' ]

31.6 Creating and filling Arrays with arbitrary lengths

The best way of creating an Array is via an Array literal. However, you can’t always use
one: The Array may be too large, you may not know its length during development, or
you may want to keep its length flexible. Then I recommend the following techniques
for creating, and possibly filling, Arrays.

31.6.1 Do you need to create an empty Array that you’ll fill completely
later on?
> new Array(3)
[ , , ,]

Note that the result has three holes (empty slots) – the last comma in an Array literal is
always ignored.

31.6.2 Do you need to create an Array filled with a primitive value?

> new Array(3).fill(0)
[0, 0, 0]

Caveat: If you use .fill() with an object, then each Array element will refer to this
object (sharing it).

const arr = new Array(3).fill({});

arr[0].prop = true;
31.7 Multidimensional Arrays 331

assert.deepEqual(
arr, [
{prop: true},
{prop: true},
{prop: true},
]);

The next subsection explains how to fix this.

31.6.3 Do you need to create an Array filled with objects?

> Array.from({length: 3}, () => ({}))
[{}, {}, {}]

31.6.4 Do you need to create a range of integers?

function createRange(start, end) {
return Array.from({length: end-start}, (_, i) => i+start);
}
assert.deepEqual(
createRange(2, 5),
[2, 3, 4]);

Here is an alternative, slightly hacky technique for creating integer ranges that start at
zero:

/** Returns an iterable */

function createRange(end) {
return new Array(end).keys();
}
assert.deepEqual(
[...createRange(4)],
[0, 1, 2, 3]);

This works because .keys() treats holes like undefined elements and lists their indices.

31.6.5 Use a Typed Array if the elements are all integers or all floats
If you are dealing with Arrays of integers or floats, consider Typed Arrays, which were
created for this purpose.

31.7 Multidimensional Arrays

JavaScript does not have real multidimensional Arrays; you need to resort to Arrays
whose elements are Arrays:

function initMultiArray(...dimensions) {
function initMultiArrayRec(dimIndex) {
if (dimIndex >= dimensions.length) {
return 0;
332 31 Arrays (Array)

} else {
const dim = dimensions[dimIndex];
const arr = [];
for (let i=0; i<dim; i++) {
arr.push(initMultiArrayRec(dimIndex+1));
}
return arr;
}
}
return initMultiArrayRec(0);
}

const arr = initMultiArray(4, 3, 2);

arr[3][2][1] = 'X'; // last in each dimension
assert.deepEqual(arr, [
[ [ 0, 0 ], [ 0, 0 ], [ 0, 0 ] ],
[ [ 0, 0 ], [ 0, 0 ], [ 0, 0 ] ],
[ [ 0, 0 ], [ 0, 0 ], [ 0, 0 ] ],
[ [ 0, 0 ], [ 0, 0 ], [ 0, 'X' ] ],
]);

31.8 More Array features (advanced)

In this section, we look at phenomena you don’t encounter often when working with
Arrays.

31.8.1 Array indices are (slightly special) property keys

You’d think that Array elements are special because you are accessing them via numbers.
But the square brackets operator [] for doing so is the same operator that is used for
accessing properties. It coerces any value (that is not a symbol) to a string. Therefore,
Array elements are (almost) normal properties (line A) and it doesn’t matter if you use
numbers or strings as indices (lines B and C):

const arr = ['a', 'b'];

arr.prop = 123;
assert.deepEqual(
Object.keys(arr),
['0', '1', 'prop']); // (A)

assert.equal(arr[0], 'a'); // (B)

assert.equal(arr['0'], 'a'); // (C)

To make matters even more confusing, this is only how the language specification defines
things (the theory of JavaScript, if you will). Most JavaScript engines optimize under the
hood and do use actual integers to access Array elements (the practice of JavaScript, if
you will).

Property keys (strings!) that are used for Array elements are called indices. A string str
31.8 More Array features (advanced) 333

is an index if converting it to a 32-bit unsigned integer and back results in the original
value. Written as a formula:

ToString(ToUint32(str)) === str

31.8.1.1 Listing indices

When listing property keys, indices are treated specially – they always come first and are
sorted like numbers ('2' comes before '10'):

const arr = [];

arr.prop = true;
arr[1] = 'b';
arr[0] = 'a';

assert.deepEqual(
Object.keys(arr),
['0', '1', 'prop']);

Note that .length, .entries() and .keys() treat Array indices as numbers and ignore
non-index properties:

assert.equal(arr.length, 2);
assert.deepEqual(
[...arr.keys()], [0, 1]);
assert.deepEqual(
[...arr.entries()], [[0, 'a'], [1, 'b']]);

We used a spread element (...) to convert the iterables returned by .keys() and .en-
tries() to Arrays.

31.8.2 Arrays are dictionaries and can have holes

We distinguish two kinds of Arrays in JavaScript:

• An Array arr is dense if all indices i, with 0 ≤ i < arr.length, exist. That is, the
indices form a contiguous range.
• An Array is sparse if the range of indices has holes in it. That is, some indices are
missing.

Arrays can be sparse in JavaScript because Arrays are actually dictionaries from indices
to values.

Recommendation: avoid holes

So far, we have only seen dense Arrays and it’s indeed recommended to avoid holes:
They make your code more complicated and are not handled consistently by Array
methods. Additionally, JavaScript engines optimize dense Arrays, making them
faster.
334 31 Arrays (Array)

31.8.2.1 Creating holes

You can create holes by skipping indices when assigning elements:

const arr = [];

arr[0] = 'a';
arr[2] = 'c';

assert.deepEqual(Object.keys(arr), ['0', '2']); // (A)

assert.equal(0 in arr, true); // element

assert.equal(1 in arr, false); // hole

In line A, we are using Object.keys() because arr.keys() treats holes as if they were
undefined elements and does not reveal them.

Another way of creating holes is to skip elements in Array literals:

const arr = ['a', , 'c'];

assert.deepEqual(Object.keys(arr), ['0', '2']);

You can also delete Array elements:

const arr = ['a', 'b', 'c'];

assert.deepEqual(Object.keys(arr), ['0', '1', '2']);
delete arr[1];
assert.deepEqual(Object.keys(arr), ['0', '2']);

31.8.2.2 How do Array operations treat holes?

Alas, there are many different ways in which Array operations treat holes.

Some Array operations remove holes:

> ['a',,'b'].filter(x => true)

[ 'a', 'b' ]

Some Array operations ignore holes:

> ['a', ,'a'].every(x => x === 'a')

true

Some Array operations ignore but preserve holes:

> ['a',,'b'].map(x => 'c')

[ 'c', , 'c' ]

Some Array operations treat holes as undefined elements:

> Array.from(['a',,'b'], x => x)

[ 'a', undefined, 'b' ]
> [...['a',,'b'].entries()]
[[0, 'a'], [1, undefined], [2, 'b']]
31.9 Adding and removing elements (destructively and non-destructively) 335

Object.keys() works differently than .keys() (strings vs. numbers, holes don’t have
keys):

> [...['a',,'b'].keys()]
[ 0, 1, 2 ]
> Object.keys(['a',,'b'])
[ '0', '2' ]

There is no rule to remember here. If it ever matters how an Array operation treats holes,
the best approach is to do a quick test in a console.

31.9 Adding and removing elements (destructively and

non-destructively)
JavaScript’s Array is quite flexible and more like a combination of array, stack, and queue.
This section explores ways of adding and removing Array elements. Most operations can
be performed both destructively (modifying the Array) and non-destructively (producing
a modified copy).

31.9.1 Prepending elements and Arrays

In the following code, we destructively prepend single elements to arr1 and an Array to
arr2:

const arr1 = ['a', 'b'];

arr1.unshift('x', 'y'); // prepend single elements
assert.deepEqual(arr1, ['x', 'y', 'a', 'b']);

const arr2 = ['a', 'b'];

arr2.unshift(...['x', 'y']); // prepend Array
assert.deepEqual(arr2, ['x', 'y', 'a', 'b']);

Spreading lets us unshift an Array into arr2.

Non-destructive prepending is done via spread elements:

const arr1 = ['a', 'b'];

assert.deepEqual(
['x', 'y', ...arr1], // prepend single elements
['x', 'y', 'a', 'b']);
assert.deepEqual(arr1, ['a', 'b']); // unchanged!

const arr2 = ['a', 'b'];

assert.deepEqual(
[...['x', 'y'], ...arr2], // prepend Array
['x', 'y', 'a', 'b']);
assert.deepEqual(arr2, ['a', 'b']); // unchanged!
336 31 Arrays (Array)

31.9.2 Appending elements and Arrays

In the following code, we destructively append single elements to arr1 and an Array to
arr2:

const arr1 = ['a', 'b'];

arr1.push('x', 'y'); // append single elements
assert.deepEqual(arr1, ['a', 'b', 'x', 'y']);

const arr2 = ['a', 'b'];

arr2.push(...['x', 'y']); // append Array
assert.deepEqual(arr2, ['a', 'b', 'x', 'y']);

Spreading lets us push an Array into arr2.

Non-destructive appending is done via spread elements:

const arr1 = ['a', 'b'];

assert.deepEqual(
[...arr1, 'x', 'y'], // append single elements
['a', 'b', 'x', 'y']);
assert.deepEqual(arr1, ['a', 'b']); // unchanged!

const arr2 = ['a', 'b'];

assert.deepEqual(
[...arr2, ...['x', 'y']], // append Array
['a', 'b', 'x', 'y']);
assert.deepEqual(arr2, ['a', 'b']); // unchanged!

31.9.3 Removing elements

These are three destructive ways of removing Array elements:

// Destructively remove first element:

const arr1 = ['a', 'b', 'c'];
assert.equal(arr1.shift(), 'a');
assert.deepEqual(arr1, ['b', 'c']);

// Destructively remove last element:

const arr2 = ['a', 'b', 'c'];
assert.equal(arr2.pop(), 'c');
assert.deepEqual(arr2, ['a', 'b']);

// Remove one or more elements anywhere:

const arr3 = ['a', 'b', 'c', 'd'];
assert.deepEqual(arr3.splice(1, 2), ['b', 'c']);
assert.deepEqual(arr3, ['a', 'd']);

.splice() is covered in more detail in the quick reference at the end of this chapter.

Destructuring via a rest element lets you non-destructively remove elements from the
beginning of an Array (destructuring is covered later).
31.10 Methods: iteration and transformation (.find(), .map(), .filter(), etc.) 337

const arr1 = ['a', 'b', 'c'];

// Ignore first element, extract remaining elements
const [, ...arr2] = arr1;

assert.deepEqual(arr2, ['b', 'c']);

assert.deepEqual(arr1, ['a', 'b', 'c']); // unchanged!

Alas, a rest element must come last in an Array. Therefore, you can only use it to extract
suffixes.

Exercise: Implementing a queue via an Array

exercises/arrays/queue_via_array_test.mjs

31.10 Methods: iteration and transformation (.find(),

.map(), .filter(), etc.)
In this section, we take a look at Array methods for iterating over Arrays and for trans-
forming Arrays.

31.10.1 Callbacks for iteration and transformation methods

All iteration and transformation methods use callbacks. The former feed all iterated val-
ues to their callbacks; the latter ask their callbacks how to transform Arrays.

These callbacks have type signatures that look as follows:

callback: (value: T, index: number, array: Array<T>) => boolean

That is, the callback gets three parameters (it is free to ignore any of them):

• value is the most important one. This parameter holds the iterated value that is
currently being processed.
• index can additionally tell the callback what the index of the iterated value is.
• array points to the current Array (the receiver of the method call). Some algo-
rithms need to refer to the whole Array – e.g., to search it for answers. This param-
eter lets you write reusable callbacks for such algorithms.

What the callback is expected to return depends on the method it is passed to. Possibili-
ties include:

• .map() fills its result with the values returned by its callback:

> ['a', 'b', 'c'].map(x => x + x)

[ 'aa', 'bb', 'cc' ]

• .find() returns the first Array element for which its callback returns true:

> ['a', 'bb', 'ccc'].find(str => str.length >= 2)

'bb'

Both of these methods are described in more detail later.

338 31 Arrays (Array)

31.10.2 Searching elements: .find(), .findIndex()

.find() returns the first element for which its callback returns a truthy value (and un-
defined if it can’t find anything):

> [6, -5, 8].find(x => x < 0)

-5
> [6, 5, 8].find(x => x < 0)
undefined

.findIndex() returns the index of the first element for which its callback returns a truthy
value (and -1 if it can’t find anything):

> [6, -5, 8].findIndex(x => x < 0)

1
> [6, 5, 8].findIndex(x => x < 0)
-1

.findIndex() can be implemented as follows:

function findIndex(arr, callback) {

for (const [i, x] of arr.entries()) {
if (callback(x, i, arr)) {
return i;
}
}
return -1;
}

31.10.3 .map(): copy while giving elements new values

.map() returns a modified copy of the receiver. The elements of the copy are the results
of applying map’s callback to the elements of the receiver.

All of this is easier to understand via examples:

> [1, 2, 3].map(x => x * 3)

[ 3, 6, 9 ]
> ['how', 'are', 'you'].map(str => str.toUpperCase())
[ 'HOW', 'ARE', 'YOU' ]
> [true, true, true].map((_x, index) => index)
[ 0, 1, 2 ]

.map() can be implemented as follows:

function map(arr, mapFunc) {

const result = [];
for (const [i, x] of arr.entries()) {
result.push(mapFunc(x, i, arr));
}
return result;
}
31.10 Methods: iteration and transformation (.find(), .map(), .filter(), etc.) 339

Exercise: Numbering lines via .map()

exercises/arrays/number_lines_test.mjs

31.10.4 .flatMap(): mapping to zero or more values

The type signature of Array<T>.prototype.flatMap() is:

.flatMap<U>(
callback: (value: T, index: number, array: T[]) => U|Array<U>,
thisValue?: any
): U[]

Both .map() and .flatMap() take a function callback as a parameter that controls how
an input Array is translated to an output Array:

• With .map(), each input Array element is translated to exactly one output element.
That is, callback returns a single value.
• With .flatMap(), each input Array element is translated to zero or more output
elements. That is, callback returns an Array of values (it can also return non-
Array values, but that is rare).

This is .flatMap() in action:

> ['a', 'b', 'c'].flatMap(x => [x,x])

[ 'a', 'a', 'b', 'b', 'c', 'c' ]
> ['a', 'b', 'c'].flatMap(x => [x])
[ 'a', 'b', 'c' ]
> ['a', 'b', 'c'].flatMap(x => [])
[]

31.10.4.1 A simple implementation

You could implement .flatMap() as follows. Note: This implementation is simpler than
the built-in version, which, for example, performs more checks.

function flatMap(arr, mapFunc) {

const result = [];
for (const [index, elem] of arr.entries()) {
const x = mapFunc(elem, index, arr);
// We allow mapFunc() to return non-Arrays
if (Array.isArray(x)) {
result.push(...x);
} else {
result.push(x);
}
}
return result;
}

What is .flatMap() good for? Let’s look at use cases!

340 31 Arrays (Array)

31.10.4.2 Use case: filtering and mapping at the same time

The result of the Array method .map() always has the same length as the Array it is
invoked on. That is, its callback can’t skip Array elements it isn’t interested in. The
ability of .flatMap() to do so is useful in the next example.

We will use the following function processArray() to create an Array that we’ll then
filter and map via .flatMap():

function processArray(arr, callback) {

return arr.map(x => {
try {
return { value: callback(x) };
} catch (e) {
return { error: e };
}
});
}

Next, we create an Array results via processArray():

const results = processArray([1, -5, 6], throwIfNegative);

assert.deepEqual(results, [
{ value: 1 },
{ error: new Error('Illegal value: -5') },
{ value: 6 },
]);

function throwIfNegative(value) {
if (value < 0) {
throw new Error('Illegal value: '+value);
}
return value;
}

We can now use .flatMap() to extract just the values or just the errors from results:

const values = results.flatMap(

result => result.value ? [result.value] : []);
assert.deepEqual(values, [1, 6]);

const errors = results.flatMap(

result => result.error ? [result.error] : []);
assert.deepEqual(errors, [new Error('Illegal value: -5')]);

31.10.4.3 Use case: mapping to multiple values

The Array method .map() maps each input Array element to one output element. But
what if we want to map it to multiple output elements?

That becomes necessary in the following example:

31.10 Methods: iteration and transformation (.find(), .map(), .filter(), etc.) 341

> stringsToCodePoints(['many', 'a', 'moon'])

['m', 'a', 'n', 'y', 'a', 'm', 'o', 'o', 'n']

We want to convert an Array of strings to an Array of Unicode characters (code points).

The following function achieves that via .flatMap():

function stringsToCodePoints(strs) {
return strs.flatMap(str => [...str]);
}

Exercises: .flatMap()
• exercises/arrays/convert_to_numbers_test.mjs
• exercises/arrays/replace_objects_test.mjs

31.10.5 .filter(): only keep some of the elements

The Array method .filter() returns an Array collecting all elements for which the call-
back returns a truthy value.

For example:

> [-1, 2, 5, -7, 6].filter(x => x >= 0)

[ 2, 5, 6 ]
> ['a', 'b', 'c', 'd'].filter((_x,i) => (i%2)===0)
[ 'a', 'c' ]

.filter() can be implemented as follows:

function filter(arr, filterFunc) {

const result = [];
for (const [i, x] of arr.entries()) {
if (filterFunc(x, i, arr)) {
result.push(x);
}
}
return result;
}

Exercise: Removing empty lines via .filter()

exercises/arrays/remove_empty_lines_filter_test.mjs

31.10.6 .reduce(): deriving a value from an Array (advanced)

Method .reduce() is a powerful tool for computing a “summary” of an Array arr. A

summary can be any kind of value:

• A number. For example, the sum of all elements of arr.

342 31 Arrays (Array)

• An Array. For example, a copy of arr, where each element is twice the original
element.
• Etc.

reduce is also known as foldl (“fold left”) in functional programming and popular there.
One caveat is that it can make code difficult to understand.

.reduce() has the following type signature (inside an Array<T>):

.reduce<U>(
callback: (accumulator: U, element: T, index: number, array: T[]) => U,
init?: U)
: U

T is the type of the Array elements, U is the type of the summary. The two may or may
not be different. accumulator is just another name for “summary”.

To compute the summary of an Array arr, .reduce() feeds all Array elements to its
callback one at a time:

const accumulator_0 = callback(init, arr[0]);

const accumulator_1 = callback(accumulator_0, arr[1]);
const accumulator_2 = callback(accumulator_1, arr[2]);
// Etc.

callback combines the previously computed summary (stored in its parameter accu-
mulator) with the current Array element and returns the next accumulator. The result
of .reduce() is the final accumulator – the last result of callback after it has visited all
elements.

In other words: callback does most of the work; .reduce() just invokes it in a useful
manner.

You could say that the callback folds Array elements into the accumulator. That’s why
this operation is called “fold” in functional programming.

31.10.6.1 A first example

Let’s look at an example of .reduce() in action: function addAll() computes the sum of
all numbers in an Array arr.

function addAll(arr) {
const startSum = 0;
const callback = (sum, element) => sum + element;
return arr.reduce(callback, startSum);
}
assert.equal(addAll([1, 2, 3]), 6); // (A)
assert.equal(addAll([7, -4, 2]), 5);

In this case, the accumulator holds the sum of all Array elements that callback has al-
ready visited.

How was the result 6 derived from the Array in line A? Via the following invocations of
callback:
31.10 Methods: iteration and transformation (.find(), .map(), .filter(), etc.) 343

callback(0, 1) --> 1
callback(1, 2) --> 3
callback(3, 3) --> 6

Notes:

• The first parameters are the current accumulators (starting with parameter init of
.reduce()).
• The second parameters are the current Array elements.
• The results are the next accumulators.
• The last result of callback is also the result of .reduce().

Alternatively, we could have implemented addAll() via a for-of loop:

function addAll(arr) {
let sum = 0;
for (const element of arr) {
sum = sum + element;
}
return sum;
}

It’s hard to say which of the two implementations is “better”: the one based on .reduce()
is a little more concise, while the one based on for-of may be a little easier to understand
– especially if you are not familiar with functional programming.

31.10.6.2 Example: finding indices via .reduce()

The following function is an implementation of the Array method .indexOf(). It returns

the first index at which the given searchValue appears inside the Array arr:

const NOT_FOUND = -1;

function indexOf(arr, searchValue) {
return arr.reduce(
(result, elem, index) => {
if (result !== NOT_FOUND) {
// We have already found something: don’t change anything
return result;
} else if (elem === searchValue) {
return index;
} else {
return NOT_FOUND;
}
},
NOT_FOUND);
}
assert.equal(indexOf(['a', 'b', 'c'], 'b'), 1);
assert.equal(indexOf(['a', 'b', 'c'], 'x'), -1);

One limitation of .reduce() is that you can’t finish early (in a for-of loop, you can
break). Here, we always immediately return the result once we have found it.
344 31 Arrays (Array)

31.10.6.3 Example: doubling Array elements

Function double(arr) returns a copy of inArr whose elements are all multiplied by 2:

function double(inArr) {
return inArr.reduce(
(outArr, element) => {
outArr.push(element * 2);
return outArr;
},
[]);
}
assert.deepEqual(
double([1, 2, 3]),
[2, 4, 6]);

We modify the initial value [] by pushing into it. A non-destructive, more functional
version of double() looks as follows:

function double(inArr) {
return inArr.reduce(
// Don’t change `outArr`, return a fresh Array
(outArr, element) => [...outArr, element * 2],
[]);
}
assert.deepEqual(
double([1, 2, 3]),
[2, 4, 6]);

This version is more elegant but also slower and uses more memory.

Exercises: .reduce()
• map() via .reduce(): exercises/arrays/map_via_reduce_test.mjs
• filter() via .reduce(): exercises/arrays/filter_via_reduce_test.mjs
• countMatches() via .reduce(): exercises/arrays/count_matches_via_
reduce_test.mjs

31.11 .sort(): sorting Arrays

.sort() has the following type definition:

sort(compareFunc?: (a: T, b: T) => number): this

By default, .sort() sorts string representations of the elements. These representations

are compared via <. This operator compares lexicographically (the first characters are most
significant). You can see that when sorting numbers:

> [200, 3, 10].sort()

[ 10, 200, 3 ]
31.11 .sort(): sorting Arrays 345

When sorting human-language strings, you need to be aware that they are compared
according to their code unit values (char codes):

> ['pie', 'cookie', 'éclair', 'Pie', 'Cookie', 'Éclair'].sort()

[ 'Cookie', 'Pie', 'cookie', 'pie', 'Éclair', 'éclair' ]

As you can see, all unaccented uppercase letters come before all unaccented lowercase
letters, which come before all accented letters. Use Intl, the JavaScript internationaliza-
tion API, if you want proper sorting for human languages.

Note that .sort() sorts in place; it changes and returns its receiver:

> const arr = ['a', 'c', 'b'];

> arr.sort() === arr
true
> arr
[ 'a', 'b', 'c' ]

31.11.1 Customizing the sort order

You can customize the sort order via the parameter compareFunc, which must return a
number that is:

• negative if a < b
• zero if a === b
• positive if a > b

Tip for remembering these rules

A negative number is less than zero (etc.).

31.11.2 Sorting numbers

You can use this helper function to sort numbers:

function compareNumbers(a, b) {
if (a < b) {
return -1;
} else if (a === b) {
return 0;
} else {
return 1;
}
}
assert.deepEqual(
[200, 3, 10].sort(compareNumbers),
[3, 10, 200]);

The following is a quick and dirty alternative.

346 31 Arrays (Array)

> [200, 3, 10].sort((a,b) => a - b)

[ 3, 10, 200 ]

The downsides of this approach are:

• It is cryptic.
• There is a risk of numeric overflow or underflow, if a-b becomes a large positive
or negative number.

31.11.3 Sorting objects

You also need to use a compare function if you want to sort objects. As an example, the
following code shows how to sort objects by age.

const arr = [ {age: 200}, {age: 3}, {age: 10} ];

assert.deepEqual(
arr.sort((obj1, obj2) => obj1.age - obj2.age),
[{ age: 3 }, { age: 10 }, { age: 200 }] );

Exercise: Sorting objects by name

exercises/arrays/sort_objects_test.mjs

31.12 Quick reference: Array<T>

Legend:

• R: method does not change the Array (non-destructive).

• W: method changes the Array (destructive).

31.12.1 new Array()

new Array(n) creates an Array of length n that contains n holes:

// Trailing commas are always ignored.

// Therefore: number of commas = number of holes
assert.deepEqual(new Array(3), [,,,]);

new Array() creates an empty Array. However, I recommend to always use [] instead.

31.12.2 Static methods of Array

• Array.from<T>(iterable: Iterable<T> | ArrayLike<T>): T[] [ES6]

• Array.from<T,U>(iterable: Iterable<T> | ArrayLike<T>, mapFunc: (v: T,

k: number) => U, thisArg?: any): U[] [ES6]

Converts an iterable or an Array-like object to an Array. Optionally, the input

values can be translated via mapFunc before they are added to the output Array.

Examples:
31.12 Quick reference: Array<T> 347

> Array.from(new Set(['a', 'b'])) // iterable

[ 'a', 'b' ]
> Array.from({length: 2, 0:'a', 1:'b'}) // Array-like object
[ 'a', 'b' ]

• Array.of<T>(...items: T[]): T[] [ES6]

This static method is mainly useful for subclasses of Array, where it serves as a
custom Array literal:

class MyArray extends Array {}

assert.equal(
MyArray.of('a', 'b') instanceof MyArray, true);

31.12.3 Methods of Array<T>.prototype

• .concat(...items: Array<T[] | T>): T[] [R, ES3]

Returns a new Array that is the concatenation of the receiver and all items. Non-
Array parameters (such as 'b' in the following example) are treated as if they were
Arrays with single elements.

> ['a'].concat('b', ['c', 'd'])

[ 'a', 'b', 'c', 'd' ]

• .copyWithin(target: number, start: number, end=this.length): this [W, ES6]

Copies the elements whose indices range from (including) start to (excluding)
end to indices starting with target. Overlapping is handled correctly.

> ['a', 'b', 'c', 'd'].copyWithin(0, 2, 4)

[ 'c', 'd', 'c', 'd' ]

If start or end is negative, then .length is added to it.

• .entries(): Iterable<[number, T]> [R, ES6]

Returns an iterable over [index, element] pairs.

> Array.from(['a', 'b'].entries())

[ [ 0, 'a' ], [ 1, 'b' ] ]

• .every(callback: (value: T, index: number, array: Array<T>) => boolean,

thisArg?: any): boolean [R, ES5]

Returns true if callback returns a truthy value for every element. Otherwise, it
returns false. It stops as soon as it receives a falsy value. This method corresponds
to universal quantification (“for all”, ∀) in mathematics.

> [1, 2, 3].every(x => x > 0)

true
> [1, -2, 3].every(x => x > 0)
false

Related method: .some() (“exists”).

348 31 Arrays (Array)

• .fill(value: T, start=0, end=this.length): this [W, ES6]

Assigns value to every index between (including) start and (excluding) end.

> [0, 1, 2].fill('a')

[ 'a', 'a', 'a' ]

Caveat: Don’t use this method to fill an Array with an object obj; then each element
will refer to obj (sharing it). In this case, it’s better to use Array.from().

• .filter(callback: (value: T, index: number, array: Array<T>) => any,

thisArg?: any): T[] [R, ES5]

Returns an Array with only those elements for which callback returns a truthy
value.

> [1, -2, 3].filter(x => x > 0)

[ 1, 3 ]

• .find(predicate: (value: T, index: number, obj: T[]) => boolean, this-

Arg?: any): T | undefined [R, ES6]

The result is the first element for which predicate returns a truthy value. If there
is no such element, the result is undefined.

> [1, -2, 3].find(x => x < 0)

-2
> [1, 2, 3].find(x => x < 0)
undefined

• .findIndex(predicate: (value: T, index: number, obj: T[]) => boolean,

thisArg?: any): number [R, ES6]

The result is the index of the first element for which predicate returns a truthy
value. If there is no such element, the result is -1.

> [1, -2, 3].findIndex(x => x < 0)

1
> [1, 2, 3].findIndex(x => x < 0)
-1

• .flat(depth = 1): any[] [R, ES2019]

“Flattens” an Array: It descends into the Arrays that are nested inside the input
Array and creates a copy where all values it finds at level depth or lower are moved
to the top level.

> [ 1,2, [3,4], [[5,6]] ].flat(0) // no change

[ 1, 2, [3,4], [[5,6]] ]

> [ 1,2, [3,4], [[5,6]] ].flat(1)

[1, 2, 3, 4, [5,6]]

> [ 1,2, [3,4], [[5,6]] ].flat(2)

[1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6]
31.12 Quick reference: Array<T> 349

• .flatMap<U>(callback: (value: T, index: number, array: T[]) =>

U|Array<U>, thisValue?: any): U[] [R, ES2019]

The result is produced by invoking callback() for each element of the original
Array and concatenating the Arrays it returns.

> ['a', 'b', 'c'].flatMap(x => [x,x])

[ 'a', 'a', 'b', 'b', 'c', 'c' ]
> ['a', 'b', 'c'].flatMap(x => [x])
[ 'a', 'b', 'c' ]
> ['a', 'b', 'c'].flatMap(x => [])
[]

• .forEach(callback: (value: T, index: number, array: Array<T>) => void,

thisArg?: any): void [R, ES5]

Calls callback for each element.

['a', 'b'].forEach((x, i) => console.log(x, i))

// Output:
// 'a', 0
// 'b', 1

A for-of loop is usually a better choice: it’s faster, supports break and can iterate
over arbitrary iterables.

• .includes(searchElement: T, fromIndex=0): boolean [R, ES2016]

Returns true if the receiver has an element whose value is searchElement and
false, otherwise. Searching starts at index fromIndex.

> [0, 1, 2].includes(1)

true
> [0, 1, 2].includes(5)
false

• .indexOf(searchElement: T, fromIndex=0): number [R, ES5]

Returns the index of the first element that is strictly equal to searchElement. Re-
turns -1 if there is no such element. Starts searching at index fromIndex, visiting
higher indices next.

> ['a', 'b', 'a'].indexOf('a')

0
> ['a', 'b', 'a'].indexOf('a', 1)
2
> ['a', 'b', 'a'].indexOf('c')
-1

• .join(separator = ','): string [R, ES1]

Creates a string by concatenating string representations of all elements, separating

them with separator.
350 31 Arrays (Array)

> ['a', 'b', 'c'].join('##')

'a##b##c'
> ['a', 'b', 'c'].join()
'a,b,c'

• .keys(): Iterable<number> [R, ES6]

Returns an iterable over the keys of the receiver.

> [...['a', 'b'].keys()]

[ 0, 1 ]

• .lastIndexOf(searchElement: T, fromIndex=this.length-1): number [R, ES5]

Returns the index of the last element that is strictly equal to searchElement. Re-
turns -1 if there is no such element. Starts searching at index fromIndex, visiting
lower indices next.

> ['a', 'b', 'a'].lastIndexOf('a')

2
> ['a', 'b', 'a'].lastIndexOf('a', 1)
0
> ['a', 'b', 'a'].lastIndexOf('c')
-1

• .map<U>(mapFunc: (value: T, index: number, array: Array<T>) => U, this-

Arg?: any): U[] [R, ES5]

Returns a new Array, in which every element is the result of mapFunc being applied
to the corresponding element of the receiver.

> [1, 2, 3].map(x => x * 2)

[ 2, 4, 6 ]
> ['a', 'b', 'c'].map((x, i) => i)
[ 0, 1, 2 ]

• .pop(): T | undefined [W, ES3]

Removes and returns the last element of the receiver. That is, it treats the end of
the receiver as a stack. The opposite of .push().

> const arr = ['a', 'b', 'c'];

> arr.pop()
'c'
> arr
[ 'a', 'b' ]

• .push(...items: T[]): number [W, ES3]

Adds zero or more items to the end of the receiver. That is, it treats the end of the
receiver as a stack. The return value is the length of the receiver after the change.
The opposite of .pop().

> const arr = ['a', 'b'];

> arr.push('c', 'd')
31.12 Quick reference: Array<T> 351

4
> arr
[ 'a', 'b', 'c', 'd' ]

• .reduce<U>(callback: (accumulator: U, element: T, index: number, array:

T[]) => U, init?: U): U [R, ES5]

This method produces a summary of the receiver: it feeds all Array elements to
callback, which combines a current summary (in parameter accumulator) with
the current Array element and returns the next accumulator:

const accumulator_0 = callback(init, arr[0]);

const accumulator_1 = callback(accumulator_0, arr[1]);
const accumulator_2 = callback(accumulator_1, arr[2]);
// Etc.

The result of .reduce() is the last result of callback after it has visited all Array
elements.

> [1, 2, 3].reduce((accu, x) => accu + x, 0)

6
> [1, 2, 3].reduce((accu, x) => accu + String(x), '')
'123'

If no init is provided, the Array element at index 0 is used and the element at
index 1 is visited first. Therefore, the Array must have at least length 1.

• .reduceRight<U>(callback: (accumulator: U, element: T, index: number,

array: T[]) => U, init?: U): U [R, ES5]

Works like .reduce(), but visits the Array elements backward, starting with the
last element.

> [1, 2, 3].reduceRight((accu, x) => accu + String(x), '')

'321'

• .reverse(): this [W, ES1]

Rearranges the elements of the receiver so that they are in reverse order and then
returns the receiver.

> const arr = ['a', 'b', 'c'];

> arr.reverse()
[ 'c', 'b', 'a' ]
> arr
[ 'c', 'b', 'a' ]

• .shift(): T | undefined [W, ES3]

Removes and returns the first element of the receiver. The opposite of .unshift().

> const arr = ['a', 'b', 'c'];

> arr.shift()
'a'
352 31 Arrays (Array)

> arr
[ 'b', 'c' ]

• .slice(start=0, end=this.length): T[] [R, ES3]

Returns a new Array containing the elements of the receiver whose indices are
between (including) start and (excluding) end.
> ['a', 'b', 'c', 'd'].slice(1, 3)
[ 'b', 'c' ]
> ['a', 'b'].slice() // shallow copy
[ 'a', 'b' ]

Negative indices are allowed and added to .length:

> ['a', 'b', 'c'].slice(-2)
[ 'b', 'c' ]

• .some(callback: (value: T, index: number, array: Array<T>) => boolean,

thisArg?: any): boolean [R, ES5]

Returns true if callback returns a truthy value for at least one element. Other-
wise, it returns false. It stops as soon as it receives a truthy value. This method
corresponds to existential quantification (“exists”, ∃) in mathematics.
> [1, 2, 3].some(x => x < 0)
false
> [1, -2, 3].some(x => x < 0)
true

Related method: .every() (“for all”).

• .sort(compareFunc?: (a: T, b: T) => number): this [W, ES1]
Sorts the receiver and returns it. By default, it sorts string representations of the
elements. It does so lexicographically and according to the code unit values (char
codes) of the characters:
> ['pie', 'cookie', 'éclair', 'Pie', 'Cookie', 'Éclair'].sort()
[ 'Cookie', 'Pie', 'cookie', 'pie', 'Éclair', 'éclair' ]
> [200, 3, 10].sort()
[ 10, 200, 3 ]

You can customize the sort order via compareFunc, which returns a number that is:
– negative if a < b
– zero if a === b
– positive if a > b
Trick for sorting numbers (with a risk of numeric overflow or underflow):
> [200, 3, 10].sort((a, b) => a - b)
[ 3, 10, 200 ]
31.12 Quick reference: Array<T> 353

.sort() is stable

Since ECMAScript 2019, sorting is guaranteed to be stable: if elements are

considered equal by sorting, then sorting does not change the order of those
elements (relative to each other).

• .splice(start: number, deleteCount=this.length-start, ...items: T[]):

T[] [W, ES3]

At index start, it removes deleteCount elements and inserts the items. It returns
the deleted elements.

> const arr = ['a', 'b', 'c', 'd'];

> arr.splice(1, 2, 'x', 'y')
[ 'b', 'c' ]
> arr
[ 'a', 'x', 'y', 'd' ]

start can be negative and is added to .length if it is:

> ['a', 'b', 'c'].splice(-2, 2)

[ 'b', 'c' ]

• .toString(): string [R, ES1]

Converts all elements to strings via String(), concatenates them while separating
them with commas, and returns the result.

> [1, 2, 3].toString()

'1,2,3'
> ['1', '2', '3'].toString()
'1,2,3'
> [].toString()
''

• .unshift(...items: T[]): number [W, ES3]

Inserts the items at the beginning of the receiver and returns its length after this
modification.

> const arr = ['c', 'd'];

> arr.unshift('e', 'f')
4
> arr
[ 'e', 'f', 'c', 'd' ]

• .values(): Iterable<T> [R, ES6]

Returns an iterable over the values of the receiver.

> [...['a', 'b'].values()]

[ 'a', 'b' ]
354 31 Arrays (Array)

31.12.4 Sources
• TypeScript’s built-in typings
• MDN web docs for JavaScript
• ECMAScript language specification

Quiz
See quiz app.
Chapter 32

Typed Arrays: handling binary

data (Advanced)

Contents
32.1 The basics of the API . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 356
32.1.1 Use cases for Typed Arrays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 356
32.1.2 The core classes: ArrayBuffer, Typed Arrays, DataView . . . . 356
32.1.3 Using Typed Arrays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 357
32.1.4 Using DataViews . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 358
32.2 Element types . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 358
32.2.1 Handling overflow and underflow . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 359
32.2.2 Endianness . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 360
32.3 More information on Typed Arrays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 361
32.3.1 The static method «ElementType»Array.from() . . . . . . . . 361
32.3.2 Typed Arrays are iterable . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 362
32.3.3 Typed Arrays vs. normal Arrays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 363
32.3.4 Converting Typed Arrays to and from normal Arrays . . . . . 363
32.3.5 Concatenating Typed Arrays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 364
32.4 Quick references: indices vs. offsets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 364
32.5 Quick reference: ArrayBuffers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 365
32.5.1 new ArrayBuffer() . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 365
32.5.2 Static methods of ArrayBuffer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 365
32.5.3 Properties of ArrayBuffer.prototype . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 366
32.6 Quick reference: Typed Arrays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 366
32.6.1 Static methods of TypedArray<T> . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 366
32.6.2 Properties of TypedArray<T>.prototype . . . . . . . . . . . . 367
32.6.3 new «ElementType»Array() . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 368
32.6.4 Static properties of «ElementType»Array . . . . . . . . . . . . 369
32.6.5 Properties of «ElementType»Array.prototype . . . . . . . . . 369
32.7 Quick reference: DataViews . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 369

355
356 32 Typed Arrays: handling binary data (Advanced)

32.7.1 new DataView() . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 369

32.7.2 Properties of DataView.prototype . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 370

32.1 The basics of the API

Much data on the web is text: JSON files, HTML files, CSS files, JavaScript code, etc.
JavaScript handles such data well via its built-in strings.

However, before 2011, it did not handle binary data well. The Typed Array Specification
1.0 was introduced on February 8, 2011 and provides tools for working with binary data.
With ECMAScript 6, Typed Arrays were added to the core language and gained methods
that were previously only available for normal Arrays (.map(), .filter(), etc.).

32.1.1 Use cases for Typed Arrays

The main uses cases for Typed Arrays, are:

• Processing binary data: managing image data, manipulating binary files, handling
binary network protocols, etc.
• Interacting with native APIs: Native APIs often receive and return data in a binary
format, which you could neither store nor manipulate well in pre-ES6 JavaScript.
That meant that whenever you were communicating with such an API, data had to
be converted from JavaScript to binary and back for every call. Typed Arrays elim-
inate this bottleneck. One example of communicating with native APIs is WebGL,
for which Typed Arrays were initially created. Section “History of Typed Arrays”
of the article “Typed Arrays: Binary Data in the Browser” (by Ilmari Heikkinen for
HTML5 Rocks) has more information.

32.1.2 The core classes: ArrayBuffer, Typed Arrays, DataView

The Typed Array API stores binary data in instances of ArrayBuffer:

const buf = new ArrayBuffer(4); // length in bytes

// buf is initialized with zeros

An ArrayBuffer itself is a black box: if you want to access its data, you must wrap it in
another object – a view object. Two kinds of view objects are available:

• Typed Arrays: let you access the data as an indexed sequence of elements that all
have the same type. Examples include:
– Uint8Array: Elements are unsigned 8-bit integers. Unsigned means that their
ranges start at zero.
– Int16Array: Elements are signed 16-bit integers. Signed means that they have
a sign and can be negative, zero, or positive.
– Float32Array: Elements are 32-bit floating point numbers.
• DataViews: let you interpret the data as various types (Uint8, Int16, Float32, etc.)
that you can read and write at any byte offset.

Fig. 32.1 shows a class diagram of the API.

32.1 The basics of the API 357

Figure 32.1: The classes of the Typed Array API.

32.1.3 Using Typed Arrays

Typed Arrays are used much like normal Arrays with a few notable differences:

• Typed Arrays store their data in ArrayBuffers.

• All elements are initialized with zeros.
• All elements have the same type. Writing values to a Typed Array coerces them to
that type. Reading values produces normal numbers or bigints.
• The length of a Typed Array is immutable; it can’t be changed.
• Typed Arrays can’t have holes.

32.1.3.1 Creating Typed Arrays

The following code shows three different ways of creating the same Typed Array:

// Argument: Typed Array or Array-like object

const ta1 = new Uint8Array([0, 1, 2]);

const ta2 = Uint8Array.of(0, 1, 2);

const ta3 = new Uint8Array(3); // length of Typed Array

ta3[0] = 0;
ta3[1] = 1;
ta3[2] = 2;

assert.deepEqual(ta1, ta2);
assert.deepEqual(ta1, ta3);
358 32 Typed Arrays: handling binary data (Advanced)

32.1.3.2 The wrapped ArrayBuffer

const typedArray = new Int16Array(2); // 2 elements

assert.equal(typedArray.length, 2);

assert.deepEqual(
typedArray.buffer, new ArrayBuffer(4)); // 4 bytes

32.1.3.3 Getting and setting elements

const typedArray = new Int16Array(2);

assert.equal(typedArray[1], 0); // initialized with 0

typedArray[1] = 72;
assert.equal(typedArray[1], 72);

32.1.4 Using DataViews

This is how DataViews are used:
const dataView = new DataView(new ArrayBuffer(4));
assert.equal(dataView.getInt16(0), 0);
assert.equal(dataView.getUint8(0), 0);
dataView.setUint8(0, 5);

32.2 Element types

Table 32.1: Element types supported by the Typed Array API.

Element Typed Array Bytes Description

Int8 Int8Array 1 8-bit signed integer ES6
Uint8 Uint8Array 1 8-bit unsigned integer ES6
Uint8C Uint8ClampedArray 1 8-bit unsigned integer ES6
(clamped conversion) ES6
Int16 Int16Array 2 16-bit signed integer ES6
Uint16 Uint16Array 2 16-bit unsigned integer ES6
Int32 Int32Array 4 32-bit signed integer ES6
Uint32 Uint32Array 4 32-bit unsigned integer ES6
BigInt64 BigInt64Array 8 64-bit signed integer ES2020
BigUint64 BigUint64Array 8 64-bit unsigned integer ES2020
Float32 Float32Array 4 32-bit floating point ES6
Float64 Float64Array 8 64-bit floating point ES6

Tbl. 32.1 lists the available element types. These types (e.g., Int32) show up in two loca-
tions:

• In Typed Arrays, they specify the types of the elements. For example, all elements
32.2 Element types 359

of a Int32Array have the type Int32. The element type is the only aspect of Typed
Arrays that differs.

• In DataViews, they are the lenses through which they access their ArrayBuffers
when you use methods such as .getInt32() and .setInt32().

The element type Uint8C is special: it is not supported by DataView and only exists to
enable Uint8ClampedArray. This Typed Array is used by the canvas element (where
it replaces CanvasPixelArray) and should otherwise be avoided. The only difference
between Uint8C and Uint8 is how overflow and underflow are handled (as explained in
the next subsection).

Typed Arrays and Array Buffers use numbers and bigints to import and export values:

• The types BigInt64 and BigUint64 are handled via bigints. For example, setters
accept bigints and getters return bigints.

• All other element types are handled via numbers.

32.2.1 Handling overflow and underflow

Normally, when a value is out of the range of the element type, modulo arithmetic is
used to convert it to a value within range. For signed and unsigned integers that means
that:

• The highest value plus one is converted to the lowest value (0 for unsigned inte-
gers).
• The lowest value minus one is converted to the highest value.

The following function helps illustrate how conversion works:

function setAndGet(typedArray, value) {

typedArray[0] = value;
return typedArray[0];
}

Modulo conversion for unsigned 8-bit integers:

const uint8 = new Uint8Array(1);

// Highest value of range

assert.equal(setAndGet(uint8, 255), 255);
// Overflow
assert.equal(setAndGet(uint8, 256), 0);

// Lowest value of range

assert.equal(setAndGet(uint8, 0), 0);
// Underflow
assert.equal(setAndGet(uint8, -1), 255);

Modulo conversion for signed 8-bit integers:

const int8 = new Int8Array(1);

360 32 Typed Arrays: handling binary data (Advanced)

// Highest value of range

assert.equal(setAndGet(int8, 127), 127);
// Overflow
assert.equal(setAndGet(int8, 128), -128);

// Lowest value of range

assert.equal(setAndGet(int8, -128), -128);
// Underflow
assert.equal(setAndGet(int8, -129), 127);

Clamped conversion is different:

• All underflowing values are converted to the lowest value.

• All overflowing values are converted to the highest value.

const uint8c = new Uint8ClampedArray(1);

// Highest value of range

assert.equal(setAndGet(uint8c, 255), 255);
// Overflow
assert.equal(setAndGet(uint8c, 256), 255);

// Lowest value of range

assert.equal(setAndGet(uint8c, 0), 0);
// Underflow
assert.equal(setAndGet(uint8c, -1), 0);

32.2.2 Endianness
Whenever a type (such as Uint16) is stored as a sequence of multiple bytes, endianness
matters:

• Big endian: the most significant byte comes first. For example, the Uint16 value
0x4321 is stored as two bytes – first 0x43, then 0x21.
• Little endian: the least significant byte comes first. For example, the Uint16 value
0x4321 is stored as two bytes – first 0x21, then 0x43.

Endianness tends to be fixed per CPU architecture and consistent across native APIs.
Typed Arrays are used to communicate with those APIs, which is why their endianness
follows the endianness of the platform and can’t be changed.

On the other hand, the endianness of protocols and binary files varies, but is fixed per
format, across platforms. Therefore, we must be able to access data with either endian-
ness. DataViews serve this use case and let you specify endianness when you get or set
a value.

Quoting Wikipedia on Endianness:

• Big-endian representation is the most common convention in data networking;

fields in the protocols of the Internet protocol suite, such as IPv4, IPv6, TCP, and
UDP, are transmitted in big-endian order. For this reason, big-endian byte order
is also referred to as network byte order.
32.3 More information on Typed Arrays 361

• Little-endian storage is popular for microprocessors in part due to significant his-

torical influence on microprocessor designs by Intel Corporation.
Other orderings are also possible. Those are generically called middle-endian or mixed-
endian.

32.3 More information on Typed Arrays

In this section, «ElementType»Array stands for Int8Array, Uint8Array, etc. ElementType
is Int8, Uint8, etc.

32.3.1 The static method «ElementType»Array.from()

This method has the type signature:
.from<S>(
source: Iterable<S>|ArrayLike<S>,
mapfn?: S => ElementType, thisArg?: any)
: «ElementType»Array

.from() converts source into an instance of this (a Typed Array).

For example, normal Arrays are iterable and can be converted with this method:
assert.deepEqual(
Uint16Array.from([0, 1, 2]),
Uint16Array.of(0, 1, 2));

Typed Arrays are also iterable:

assert.deepEqual(
Uint16Array.from(Uint8Array.of(0, 1, 2)),
Uint16Array.of(0, 1, 2));

source can also be an Array-like object:

assert.deepEqual(
Uint16Array.from({0:0, 1:1, 2:2, length: 3}),
Uint16Array.of(0, 1, 2));

The optional mapfn lets you transform the elements of source before they become ele-
ments of the result. Why perform the two steps mapping and conversion in one go? Com-
pared to mapping separately via .map(), there are two advantages:
1. No intermediate Array or Typed Array is needed.
2. When converting between Typed Arrays with different precisions, less can go
wrong.
Read on for an explanation of the second advantage.

32.3.1.1 Pitfall: mapping while converting between Typed Array types

The static method .from() can optionally both map and convert between Typed Array
types. Less can go wrong if you use that method.
362 32 Typed Arrays: handling binary data (Advanced)

To see why that is, let us first convert a Typed Array to a Typed Array with a higher
precision. If we use .from() to map, the result is automatically correct. Otherwise, you
must first convert and then map.

const typedArray = Int8Array.of(127, 126, 125);

assert.deepEqual(
Int16Array.from(typedArray, x => x * 2),
Int16Array.of(254, 252, 250));

assert.deepEqual(
Int16Array.from(typedArray).map(x => x * 2),
Int16Array.of(254, 252, 250)); // OK
assert.deepEqual(
Int16Array.from(typedArray.map(x => x * 2)),
Int16Array.of(-2, -4, -6)); // wrong

If we go from a Typed Array to a Typed Array with a lower precision, mapping via
.from() produces the correct result. Otherwise, we must first map and then convert.

assert.deepEqual(
Int8Array.from(Int16Array.of(254, 252, 250), x => x / 2),
Int8Array.of(127, 126, 125));

assert.deepEqual(
Int8Array.from(Int16Array.of(254, 252, 250).map(x => x / 2)),
Int8Array.of(127, 126, 125)); // OK
assert.deepEqual(
Int8Array.from(Int16Array.of(254, 252, 250)).map(x => x / 2),
Int8Array.of(-1, -2, -3)); // wrong

The problem is that if we map via .map(), then input type and output type are the same.
In contrast, .from() goes from an arbitrary input type to an output type that you specify
via its receiver.

32.3.2 Typed Arrays are iterable

Typed Arrays are iterable. That means that you can use the for-of loop and other
iteration-based mechanisms:

const ui8 = Uint8Array.of(0, 1, 2);

for (const byte of ui8) {
console.log(byte);
}
// Output:
// 0
// 1
// 2

ArrayBuffers and DataViews are not iterable.

32.3 More information on Typed Arrays 363

32.3.3 Typed Arrays vs. normal Arrays

Typed Arrays are much like normal Arrays: they have a .length, elements can be ac-
cessed via the bracket operator [], and they have most of the standard Array methods.
They differ from normal Arrays in the following ways:

• Typed Arrays have buffers. The elements of a Typed Array ta are not stored in ta,
they are stored in an associated ArrayBuffer that can be accessed via ta.buffer:

const ta = new Uint16Array(2); // 2 elements

assert.deepEqual(
ta.buffer, new ArrayBuffer(4)); // 4 bytes

• Typed Arrays are initialized with zeros:

– new Array(4) creates a normal Array without any elements. It only has four
holes (indices less than the .length that have no associated elements).
– new Uint8Array(4) creates a Typed Array whose four elements are all 0.

assert.deepEqual(new Uint8Array(4), Uint8Array.of(0, 0, 0, 0));

• All of the elements of a Typed Array have the same type:

– Setting elements converts values to that type.

const ta = new Uint8Array(1);

ta[0] = 257;
assert.equal(ta[0], 1); // 257 % 256 (overflow)

ta[0] = '2';
assert.equal(ta[0], 2);

– Getting elements returns numbers or bigints.

const ta = new Uint8Array(1);

assert.equal(ta[0], 0);
assert.equal(typeof ta[0], 'number');

• The .length of a Typed Array is derived from its ArrayBuffer and never changes
(unless you switch to a different ArrayBuffer).

• Normal Arrays can have holes; Typed Arrays can’t.

32.3.4 Converting Typed Arrays to and from normal Arrays

To convert a normal Array to a Typed Array, you pass it to a Typed Array constructor
(which accepts Array-like objects and Typed Arrays) or to «ElementType»Array.from()
(which accepts iterables and Array-like objects). For example:

const ta1 = new Uint8Array([0, 1, 2]);

const ta2 = Uint8Array.from([0, 1, 2]);
assert.deepEqual(ta1, ta2);
364 32 Typed Arrays: handling binary data (Advanced)

To convert a Typed Array to a normal Array, you can use spreading or Array.from()
(because Typed Arrays are iterable):

assert.deepEqual(
[...Uint8Array.of(0, 1, 2)], [0, 1, 2] );
assert.deepEqual(
Array.from(Uint8Array.of(0, 1, 2)), [0, 1, 2] );

32.3.5 Concatenating Typed Arrays

Typed Arrays don’t have a method .concat(), like normal Arrays do. The workaround
is to use their overloaded method .set():

.set(typedArray: TypedArray, offset=0): void

.set(arrayLike: ArrayLike<number>, offset=0): void

It copies the existing typedArray or arrayLike into the receiver, at index offset. Type-
dArray is a fictitious abstract superclass of all concrete Typed Array classes.

The following function uses that method to copy zero or more Typed Arrays (or Array-
like objects) into an instance of resultConstructor:

function concatenate(resultConstructor, ...arrays) {

let totalLength = 0;
for (const arr of arrays) {
totalLength += arr.length;
}
const result = new resultConstructor(totalLength);
let offset = 0;
for (const arr of arrays) {
result.set(arr, offset);
offset += arr.length;
}
return result;
}
assert.deepEqual(
concatenate(Uint8Array, Uint8Array.of(1, 2), [3, 4]),
Uint8Array.of(1, 2, 3, 4));

32.4 Quick references: indices vs. offsets

In preparation for the quick references on ArrayBuffers, Typed Arrays, and DataViews,
we need learn the differences between indices and offsets:

• Indices for the bracket operator [ ]: You can only use non-negative indices (start-
ing at 0).

In normal Arrays, writing to negative indices creates properties:

const arr = [6, 7];

arr[-1] = 5;
32.5 Quick reference: ArrayBuffers 365

assert.deepEqual(
Object.keys(arr), ['0', '1', '-1']);

In Typed Arrays, writing to negative indices is ignored:

const tarr = Uint8Array.of(6, 7);

tarr[-1] = 5;
assert.deepEqual(
Object.keys(tarr), ['0', '1']);

• Indices for methods of ArrayBuffers, Typed Arrays, and DataViews: Every index
can be negative. If it is, it is added to the length of the entity to produce the actual
index. Therefore, -1 refers to the last element, -2 to the second-last, etc. Methods
of normal Arrays work the same way.

const ui8 = Uint8Array.of(0, 1, 2);

assert.deepEqual(ui8.slice(-1), Uint8Array.of(2));

• Offsets passed to methods of Typed Arrays and DataViews: must be non-negative

– for example:

const dataView = new DataView(new ArrayBuffer(4));

assert.throws(
() => dataView.getUint8(-1),
{
name: 'RangeError',
message: 'Offset is outside the bounds of the DataView',
});

Whether a parameter is an index or an offset can only be determined by looking at doc-

umentation; there is no simple rule.

32.5 Quick reference: ArrayBuffers

ArrayBuffers store binary data, which is meant to be accessed via Typed Arrays and
DataViews.

32.5.1 new ArrayBuffer()

The type signature of the constructor is:

new ArrayBuffer(length: number)

Invoking this constructor via new creates an instance whose capacity is length bytes.
Each of those bytes is initially 0.

You can’t change the length of an ArrayBuffer; you can only create a new one with a
different length.

32.5.2 Static methods of ArrayBuffer

• ArrayBuffer.isView(arg: any)
366 32 Typed Arrays: handling binary data (Advanced)

Returns true if arg is an object and a view for an ArrayBuffer (i.e., if it is a Typed
Array or a DataView).

32.5.3 Properties of ArrayBuffer.prototype

• get .byteLength(): number

Returns the capacity of this ArrayBuffer in bytes.

• .slice(startIndex: number, endIndex=this.byteLength)

Creates a new ArrayBuffer that contains the bytes of this ArrayBuffer whose in-
dices are greater than or equal to startIndex and less than endIndex. start and
endIndex can be negative (see §32.4 “Quick references: indices vs. offsets”).

32.6 Quick reference: Typed Arrays

The properties of the various Typed Array objects are introduced in two steps:

1. TypedArray: First, we look at the abstract superclass of all Typed Array classes
(which was shown in the class diagram at the beginning of this chapter). I’m call-
ing that superclass TypedArray, but it is not directly accessible from JavaScript.
TypedArray.prototype houses all methods of Typed Arrays.
2. «ElementType»Array: The concrete Typed Array classes are called Uint8Array,
Int16Array, Float32Array, etc. These are the classes that you use via new, .of,
and .from().

32.6.1 Static methods of TypedArray<T>

Both static TypedArray methods are inherited by its subclasses (Uint8Array, etc.). Type-
dArray is abstract. Therefore, you always use these methods via the subclasses, which
are concrete and can have direct instances.

• .from<S>(source: Iterable<S>|ArrayLike<S>, mapfn?: S => T, thisArg?:

any) : instanceof this

Converts an iterable (including Arrays and Typed Arrays) or an Array-like object

to an instance of this (instanceof this is my invention to express that fact).

assert.deepEqual(
Uint16Array.from([0, 1, 2]),
Uint16Array.of(0, 1, 2));

The optional mapfn lets you transform the elements of source before they become
elements of the result.

assert.deepEqual(
Int16Array.from(Int8Array.of(127, 126, 125), x => x * 2),
Int16Array.of(254, 252, 250));

• .of(...items: bigint[]): instanceof this (BigInt64Array, BigUint64Array)

32.6 Quick reference: Typed Arrays 367

• .of(...items: number[]): instanceof this (all other Typed Arrays)

Creates a new instance of this whose elements are items (coerced to the element
type).

assert.deepEqual(
Int16Array.of(-1234, 5, 67),
new Int16Array([-1234, 5, 67]) );

32.6.2 Properties of TypedArray<T>.prototype

Indices accepted by Typed Array methods can be negative (they work like traditional
Array methods that way). Offsets must be non-negative. For details, see §32.4 “Quick
references: indices vs. offsets”.

32.6.2.1 Properties specific to Typed Arrays

The following properties are specific to Typed Arrays; normal Arrays don’t have them:

• get .buffer(): ArrayBuffer

Returns the buffer backing this Typed Array.

• get .length(): number

Returns the length in elements of this Typed Array’s buffer.

• get .byteLength(): number

Returns the size in bytes of this Typed Array’s buffer.

• get .byteOffset(): number

Returns the offset where this Typed Array “starts” inside its ArrayBuffer.

• .set(typedArray: TypedArray, offset=0): void

• .set(arrayLike: ArrayLike<bigint>, offset=0): void (BigInt64Array, BigU-

int64Array)

• .set(arrayLike: ArrayLike<number>, offset=0): void (all other Typed Ar-

rays)

Copies all elements of the first parameter to this Typed Array. The element at index
0 of the parameter is written to index offset of this Typed Array (etc.). For more
information on Array-like objects, consult §31.4 “Array-like objects”.

• .subarray(startIndex=0, endIndex=this.length): TypedArray<T>

Returns a new Typed Array that has the same buffer as this Typed Array, but a
(generally) smaller range. If startIndex is non-negative then the first element of
the resulting Typed Array is this[startIndex], the second this[startIndex+1]
(etc.). If startIndex in negative, it is converted appropriately.
368 32 Typed Arrays: handling binary data (Advanced)

32.6.2.2 Array methods

The following methods are basically the same as the methods of normal Arrays:
• .copyWithin(target: number, start: number, end=this.length): this [W, ES6]
• .entries(): Iterable<[number, T]> [R, ES6]
• .every(callback: (value: T, index: number, array: TypedArray<T>) =>
boolean, thisArg?: any): boolean [R, ES6]
• .fill(value: T, start=0, end=this.length): this [W, ES6]
• .filter(callback: (value: T, index: number, array: TypedArray<T>) =>
any, thisArg?: any): T[] [R, ES6]
• .find(predicate: (value: T, index: number, obj: T[]) => boolean, this-
Arg?: any): T | undefined [R, ES6]
• .findIndex(predicate: (value: T, index: number, obj: T[]) => boolean,
thisArg?: any): number [R, ES6]
• .forEach(callback: (value: T, index: number, array: TypedArray<T>) =>
void, thisArg?: any): void [R, ES6]
• .includes(searchElement: T, fromIndex=0): boolean [R, ES2016]
• .indexOf(searchElement: T, fromIndex=0): number [R, ES6]
• .join(separator = ','): string [R, ES6]
• .keys(): Iterable<number> [R, ES6]
• .lastIndexOf(searchElement: T, fromIndex=this.length-1): number [R, ES6]
• .map<U>(mapFunc: (value: T, index: number, array: TypedArray<T>) => U,
thisArg?: any): U[] [R, ES6]
• .reduce<U>(callback: (accumulator: U, element: T, index: number, array:
T[]) => U, init?: U): U [R, ES6]
• .reduceRight<U>(callback: (accumulator: U, element: T, index: number,
array: T[]) => U, init?: U): U [R, ES6]
• .reverse(): this [W, ES6]
• .slice(start=0, end=this.length): T[] [R, ES6]
• .some(callback: (value: T, index: number, array: TypedArray<T>) =>
boolean, thisArg?: any): boolean [R, ES6]
• .sort(compareFunc?: (a: T, b: T) => number): this [W, ES6]
• .toString(): string [R, ES6]
• .values(): Iterable<T> [R, ES6]
For details on how these methods work, please consult §31.12.3 “Methods of Ar-
ray<T>.prototype”.

32.6.3 new «ElementType»Array()

Each Typed Array constructor has a name that follows the pattern «ElementType»Array,
where «ElementType» is one of the element types in the table at the beginning. That
means that there are 11 constructors for Typed Arrays:
• Float32Array, Float64Array
• Int8Array, Int16Array, Int32Array, BigInt64Array
• Uint8Array, Uint8ClampedArray, Uint16Array, Uint32Array, BigUint64Array
Each constructor has four overloaded versions – it behaves differently depending on how
many arguments it receives and what their types are:
32.7 Quick reference: DataViews 369

• new «ElementType»Array(buffer: ArrayBuffer, byteOffset=0, length=0)

Creates a new «ElementType»Array whose buffer is buffer. It starts accessing the

buffer at the given byteOffset and will have the given length. Note that length
counts elements of the Typed Array (with 1–8 bytes each), not bytes.

• new «ElementType»Array(length=0)

Creates a new «ElementType»Array with the given length and the appropriate
buffer. The buffer’s size in bytes is:

length * «ElementType»Array.BYTES_PER_ELEMENT

• new «ElementType»Array(source: TypedArray)

Creates a new instance of «ElementType»Array whose elements have the same

values as the elements of source, but coerced to ElementType.

• new «ElementType»Array(source: ArrayLike<bigint>) (BigInt64Array, BigU-

int64Array)

• new «ElementType»Array(source: ArrayLike<number>) (all other Typed Arrays)

Creates a new instance of «ElementType»Array whose elements have the same val-
ues as the elements of source, but coerced to ElementType. For more information
on Array-like objects, consult §31.4 “Array-like objects”.

32.6.4 Static properties of «ElementType»Array

• «ElementType»Array.BYTES_PER_ELEMENT: number

Counts how many bytes are needed to store a single element:

> Uint8Array.BYTES_PER_ELEMENT
1
> Int16Array.BYTES_PER_ELEMENT
2
> Float64Array.BYTES_PER_ELEMENT
8

32.6.5 Properties of «ElementType»Array.prototype

• .BYTES_PER_ELEMENT: number

The same as «ElementType»Array.BYTES_PER_ELEMENT.

32.7 Quick reference: DataViews

32.7.1 new DataView()

• new DataView(buffer: ArrayBuffer, byteOffset=0, byteLength=buffer.byteLength-

byteOffset)
370 32 Typed Arrays: handling binary data (Advanced)

Creates a new DataView whose data is stored in the ArrayBuffer buffer. By de-
fault, the new DataView can access all of buffer. The last two parameters allow
you to change that.

32.7.2 Properties of DataView.prototype

In the remainder of this section, «ElementType» refers to either:
• Int8, Int16, Int32, BigInt64
• Uint8, Uint16, Uint32, BigUint64
• Float32, Float64
These are the properties of DataView.prototype:
• get .buffer(): ArrayBuffer
Returns the ArrayBuffer of this DataView.
• get .byteLength(): number
Returns how many bytes can be accessed by this DataView.
• get .byteOffset(): number
Returns at which offset this DataView starts accessing the bytes in its buffer.
• .get«ElementType»(byteOffset: number, littleEndian=false): bigint
(BigInt64, BigUint64)
• .get«ElementType»(byteOffset: number, littleEndian=false): number (all
other element types)
Reads a value from the buffer of this DataView.
• .set«ElementType»(byteOffset: number, value: bigint, littleEn-
dian=false): void (BigInt64, BigUint64)

• .set«ElementType»(byteOffset: number, value: number, littleEn-

dian=false): void (all other element types)

Writes value to the buffer of this DataView.

Chapter 33

Maps (Map)

Contents
33.1 Using Maps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 372
33.1.1 Creating Maps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 372
33.1.2 Copying Maps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 372
33.1.3 Working with single entries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 372
33.1.4 Determining the size of a Map and clearing it . . . . . . . . . . 373
33.1.5 Getting the keys and values of a Map . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 373
33.1.6 Getting the entries of a Map . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 373
33.1.7 Listed in insertion order: entries, keys, values . . . . . . . . . 374
33.1.8 Converting between Maps and Objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . 374
33.2 Example: Counting characters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 375
33.3 A few more details about the keys of Maps (advanced) . . . . . . . . 375
33.3.1 What keys are considered equal? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 376
33.4 Missing Map operations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 376
33.4.1 Mapping and filtering Maps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 376
33.4.2 Combining Maps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 377
33.5 Quick reference: Map<K,V> . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 378
33.5.1 Constructor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 378
33.5.2 Map<K,V>.prototype: handling single entries . . . . . . . . . . 378
33.5.3 Map<K,V>.prototype: handling all entries . . . . . . . . . . . 379
33.5.4 Map<K,V>.prototype: iterating and looping . . . . . . . . . . 379
33.5.5 Sources of this section . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 380
33.6 FAQ: Maps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 381
33.6.1 When should I use a Map, and when should I use an object? . 381
33.6.2 When would I use an object as a key in a Map? . . . . . . . . . 381
33.6.3 Why do Maps preserve the insertion order of entries? . . . . . 381
33.6.4 Why do Maps have a .size, while Arrays have a .length? . . 381

Before ES6, JavaScript didn’t have a data structure for dictionaries and (ab)used objects
as dictionaries from strings to arbitrary values. ES6 brought Maps, which are dictionaries
from arbitrary values to arbitrary values.

371
372 33 Maps (Map)

33.1 Using Maps

An instance of Map maps keys to values. A single key-value mapping is called an entry.

33.1.1 Creating Maps

There are three common ways of creating Maps.

First, you can use the constructor without any parameters to create an empty Map:

const emptyMap = new Map();

assert.equal(emptyMap.size, 0);

Second, you can pass an iterable (e.g., an Array) over key-value “pairs” (Arrays with two
elements) to the constructor:

const map = new Map([

[1, 'one'],
[2, 'two'],
[3, 'three'], // trailing comma is ignored
]);

Third, the .set() method adds entries to a Map and is chainable:

const map = new Map()

.set(1, 'one')
.set(2, 'two')
.set(3, 'three');

33.1.2 Copying Maps

As we’ll see later, Maps are also iterables over key-value pairs. Therefore, you can use
the constructor to create a copy of a Map. That copy is shallow: keys and values are the
same; they are not duplicated.

const original = new Map()

.set(false, 'no')
.set(true, 'yes');

const copy = new Map(original);

assert.deepEqual(original, copy);

33.1.3 Working with single entries

.set() and .get() are for writing and reading values (given keys).

const map = new Map();

map.set('foo', 123);

assert.equal(map.get('foo'), 123);
// Unknown key:
33.1 Using Maps 373

assert.equal(map.get('bar'), undefined);
// Use the default value '' if an entry is missing:
assert.equal(map.get('bar') ?? '', '');

.has() checks if a Map has an entry with a given key. .delete() removes entries.

const map = new Map([['foo', 123]]);

assert.equal(map.has('foo'), true);
assert.equal(map.delete('foo'), true)
assert.equal(map.has('foo'), false)

33.1.4 Determining the size of a Map and clearing it

.size contains the number of entries in a Map. .clear() removes all entries of a Map.

const map = new Map()

.set('foo', true)
.set('bar', false)
;

assert.equal(map.size, 2)
map.clear();
assert.equal(map.size, 0)

33.1.5 Getting the keys and values of a Map

.keys() returns an iterable over the keys of a Map:

const map = new Map()

.set(false, 'no')
.set(true, 'yes')
;

for (const key of map.keys()) {

console.log(key);
}
// Output:
// false
// true

We can use spreading (...) to convert the iterable returned by .keys() to an Array:
assert.deepEqual(
[...map.keys()],
[false, true]);

.values() works like .keys(), but for values instead of keys.

33.1.6 Getting the entries of a Map

.entries() returns an iterable over the entries of a Map:
374 33 Maps (Map)

const map = new Map()

.set(false, 'no')
.set(true, 'yes')
;

for (const entry of map.entries()) {

console.log(entry);
}
// Output:
// [false, 'no']
// [true, 'yes']

Spreading (...) converts the iterable returned by .entries() to an Array:

assert.deepEqual(
[...map.entries()],
[[false, 'no'], [true, 'yes']]);

Map instances are also iterables over entries. In the following code, we use destructuring
to access the keys and values of map:
for (const [key, value] of map) {
console.log(key, value);
}
// Output:
// false, 'no'
// true, 'yes'

33.1.7 Listed in insertion order: entries, keys, values

Maps record in which order entries were created and honor that order when listing en-
tries, keys, or values:
const map1 = new Map([
['a', 1],
['b', 2],
]);
assert.deepEqual(
[...map1.keys()], ['a', 'b']);

const map2 = new Map([

['b', 2],
['a', 1],
]);
assert.deepEqual(
[...map2.keys()], ['b', 'a']);

33.1.8 Converting between Maps and Objects

As long as a Map only uses strings and symbols as keys, you can convert it to an object
(via Object.fromEntries()):
33.2 Example: Counting characters 375

const map = new Map([

['a', 1],
['b', 2],
]);
const obj = Object.fromEntries(map);
assert.deepEqual(
obj, {a: 1, b: 2});

You can also convert an object to a Map with string or symbol keys (via Ob-
ject.entries()):

const obj = {
a: 1,
b: 2,
};
const map = new Map(Object.entries(obj));
assert.deepEqual(
map, new Map([['a', 1], ['b', 2]]));

33.2 Example: Counting characters

countChars() returns a Map that maps characters to numbers of occurrences.

function countChars(chars) {
const charCounts = new Map();
for (let ch of chars) {
ch = ch.toLowerCase();
const prevCount = charCounts.get(ch) ?? 0;
charCounts.set(ch, prevCount+1);
}
return charCounts;
}

const result = countChars('AaBccc');

assert.deepEqual(
[...result],
[
['a', 2],
['b', 1],
['c', 3],
]
);

33.3 A few more details about the keys of Maps (ad-

vanced)
Any value can be a key, even an object:
376 33 Maps (Map)

const map = new Map();

const KEY1 = {};

const KEY2 = {};

map.set(KEY1, 'hello');
map.set(KEY2, 'world');

assert.equal(map.get(KEY1), 'hello');
assert.equal(map.get(KEY2), 'world');

33.3.1 What keys are considered equal?

Most Map operations need to check whether a value is equal to one of the keys. They do
so via the internal operation SameValueZero, which works like === but considers NaN to
be equal to itself.

As a consequence, you can use NaN as a key in Maps, just like any other value:

> const map = new Map();

> map.set(NaN, 123);

> map.get(NaN)
123

Different objects are always considered to be different. That is something that can’t be
changed (yet – configuring key equality is on TC39’s long-term roadmap).

> new Map().set({}, 1).set({}, 2).size

2

33.4 Missing Map operations

33.4.1 Mapping and filtering Maps
You can .map() and .filter() an Array, but there are no such operations for a Map. The
solution is:

1. Convert the Map into an Array of [key, value] pairs.

2. Map or filter the Array.
3. Convert the result back to a Map.

I’ll use the following Map to demonstrate how that works.

const originalMap = new Map()

.set(1, 'a')
.set(2, 'b')
.set(3, 'c');

Mapping originalMap:
33.4 Missing Map operations 377

const mappedMap = new Map( // step 3

[...originalMap] // step 1
.map(([k, v]) => [k * 2, '_' + v]) // step 2
);
assert.deepEqual([...mappedMap],
[[2,'_a'], [4,'_b'], [6,'_c']]);

Filtering originalMap:
const filteredMap = new Map( // step 3
[...originalMap] // step 1
.filter(([k, v]) => k < 3) // step 2
);
assert.deepEqual([...filteredMap],
[[1,'a'], [2,'b']]);

Step 1 is performed by spreading (...) in the Array literal.

33.4.2 Combining Maps

There are no methods for combining Maps, which is why we must use a workaround
that is similar to the one from the previous section.
Let’s combine the following two Maps:
const map1 = new Map()
.set(1, '1a')
.set(2, '1b')
.set(3, '1c')
;

const map2 = new Map()

.set(2, '2b')
.set(3, '2c')
.set(4, '2d')
;

To combine map1 and map2, we turn them into Arrays via spreading (...) and concatenate
those Arrays. Afterward, we convert the result back to a Map. All of that is done in line
A.
const combinedMap = new Map([...map1, ...map2]); // (A)
assert.deepEqual(
[...combinedMap], // convert to Array for comparison
[ [ 1, '1a' ],
[ 2, '2b' ],
[ 3, '2c' ],
[ 4, '2d' ] ]
);
378 33 Maps (Map)

Exercise: Combining two Maps

exercises/maps/combine_maps_test.mjs

33.5 Quick reference: Map<K,V>

Note: For the sake of conciseness, I’m pretending that all keys have the same type K and
that all values have the same type V.

33.5.1 Constructor
• new Map<K, V>(entries?: Iterable<[K, V]>) [ES6]

If you don’t provide the parameter entries, then an empty Map is created. If you
do provide an iterable over [key, value] pairs, then those pairs are added as entries
to the Map. For example:

const map = new Map([

[ 1, 'one' ],
[ 2, 'two' ],
[ 3, 'three' ], // trailing comma is ignored
]);

33.5.2 Map<K,V>.prototype: handling single entries

• .get(key: K): V [ES6]

Returns the value that key is mapped to in this Map. If there is no key key in this
Map, undefined is returned.

const map = new Map([[1, 'one'], [2, 'two']]);

assert.equal(map.get(1), 'one');
assert.equal(map.get(5), undefined);

• .set(key: K, value: V): this [ES6]

Maps the given key to the given value. If there is already an entry whose key is
key, it is updated. Otherwise, a new entry is created. This method returns this,
which means that you can chain it.

const map = new Map([[1, 'one'], [2, 'two']]);

map.set(1, 'ONE!')
.set(3, 'THREE!');
assert.deepEqual(
[...map.entries()],
[[1, 'ONE!'], [2, 'two'], [3, 'THREE!']]);

• .has(key: K): boolean [ES6]

Returns whether the given key exists in this Map.

33.5 Quick reference: Map<K,V> 379

const map = new Map([[1, 'one'], [2, 'two']]);

assert.equal(map.has(1), true); // key exists
assert.equal(map.has(5), false); // key does not exist

• .delete(key: K): boolean [ES6]

If there is an entry whose key is key, it is removed and true is returned. Otherwise,
nothing happens and false is returned.

const map = new Map([[1, 'one'], [2, 'two']]);

assert.equal(map.delete(1), true);
assert.equal(map.delete(5), false); // nothing happens
assert.deepEqual(
[...map.entries()],
[[2, 'two']]);

33.5.3 Map<K,V>.prototype: handling all entries

• get .size: number [ES6]

Returns how many entries this Map has.

const map = new Map([[1, 'one'], [2, 'two']]);

assert.equal(map.size, 2);

• .clear(): void [ES6]

Removes all entries from this Map.

const map = new Map([[1, 'one'], [2, 'two']]);

assert.equal(map.size, 2);
map.clear();
assert.equal(map.size, 0);

33.5.4 Map<K,V>.prototype: iterating and looping

Both iterating and looping happen in the order in which entries were added to a Map.

• .entries(): Iterable<[K,V]> [ES6]

Returns an iterable with one [key, value] pair for each entry in this Map. The pairs
are Arrays of length 2.

const map = new Map([[1, 'one'], [2, 'two']]);

for (const entry of map.entries()) {
console.log(entry);
}
// Output:
// [1, 'one']
// [2, 'two']

• .forEach(callback: (value: V, key: K, theMap: Map<K,V>) => void, this-

Arg?: any): void [ES6]
380 33 Maps (Map)

The first parameter is a callback that is invoked once for each entry in this Map. If
thisArg is provided, this is set to it for each invocation. Otherwise, this is set to
undefined.

const map = new Map([[1, 'one'], [2, 'two']]);

map.forEach((value, key) => console.log(value, key));
// Output:
// 'one', 1
// 'two', 2

• .keys(): Iterable<K> [ES6]

Returns an iterable over all keys in this Map.

const map = new Map([[1, 'one'], [2, 'two']]);

for (const key of map.keys()) {
console.log(key);
}
// Output:
// 1
// 2

• .values(): Iterable<V> [ES6]

Returns an iterable over all values in this Map.

const map = new Map([[1, 'one'], [2, 'two']]);

for (const value of map.values()) {
console.log(value);
}
// Output:
// 'one'
// 'two'

• [Symbol.iterator](): Iterable<[K,V]> [ES6]

The default way of iterating over Maps. Same as .entries().

const map = new Map([[1, 'one'], [2, 'two']]);

for (const [key, value] of map) {
console.log(key, value);
}
// Output:
// 1, 'one'
// 2, 'two'

33.5.5 Sources of this section

• TypeScript’s built-in typings
33.6 FAQ: Maps 381

33.6 FAQ: Maps

33.6.1 When should I use a Map, and when should I use an object?
If you need a dictionary-like data structure with keys that are neither strings nor symbols,
you have no choice: you must use a Map.
If, however, your keys are either strings or symbols, you must decide whether or not to
use an object. A rough general guideline is:
• Is there a fixed set of keys (known at development time)?
Then use an object obj and access the values via fixed keys:
const value = obj.key;

• Can the set of keys change at runtime?

Then use a Map map and access the values via keys stored in variables:
const theKey = 123;
map.get(theKey);

33.6.2 When would I use an object as a key in a Map?

You normally want Map keys to be compared by value (two keys are considered equal
if they have the same content). That excludes objects. However, there is one use case for
objects as keys: externally attaching data to objects. But that use case is served better by
WeakMaps, where entries don’t prevent keys from being garbage-collected (for details,
consult the next chapter).

33.6.3 Why do Maps preserve the insertion order of entries?

In principle, Maps are unordered. The main reason for ordering entries is so that oper-
ations that list entries, keys, or values are deterministic. That helps, for example, with
testing.

33.6.4 Why do Maps have a .size, while Arrays have a .length?

In JavaScript, indexable sequences (such as Arrays and strings) have a .length, while
unindexed collections (such as Maps and Sets) have a .size:
• .length is based on indices; it is always the highest index plus one.
• .size counts the number of elements in a collection.

Quiz
See quiz app.
382 33 Maps (Map)
Chapter 34

WeakMaps (WeakMap)

Contents
34.1 WeakMaps are black boxes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 383
34.2 The keys of a WeakMap are weakly held . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 384
34.2.1 All WeakMap keys must be objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 384
34.2.2 Use case: attaching values to objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 384
34.3 Examples . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 385
34.3.1 Caching computed results via WeakMaps . . . . . . . . . . . . 385
34.3.2 Keeping private data in WeakMaps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 385
34.4 WeakMap API . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 386

WeakMaps are similar to Maps, with the following differences:

• They are black boxes, where a value can only be accessed if you have both the
WeakMap and the key.
• The keys of a WeakMap are weakly held: if an object is a key in a WeakMap, it can
still be garbage-collected. That lets us use WeakMaps to attach data to objects.
The next two sections examine in more detail what that means.

34.1 WeakMaps are black boxes

It is impossible to inspect what’s inside a WeakMap:
• For example, you can’t iterate or loop over keys, values or entries. And you can’t
compute the size.
• Additionally, you can’t clear a WeakMap either – you have to create a fresh in-
stance.
These restrictions enable a security property. Quoting Mark Miller:
The mapping from weakmap/key pair value can only be observed or af-
fected by someone who has both the weakmap and the key. With clear(),

383
384 34 WeakMaps (WeakMap)

someone with only the WeakMap would’ve been able to affect the WeakMap-
and-key-to-value mapping.

34.2 The keys of a WeakMap are weakly held

The keys of a WeakMap are said to be weakly held: Normally if one object refers to another
one, then the latter object can’t be garbage-collected as long as the former exists. With a
WeakMap, that is different: If an object is a key and not referred to elsewhere, it can be
garbage-collected while the WeakMap still exists. That also leads to the corresponding
entry being removed (but there is no way to observe that).

34.2.1 All WeakMap keys must be objects

All WeakMap keys must be objects. You get an error if you use a primitive value:

> const wm = new WeakMap();

> wm.set(123, 'test')
TypeError: Invalid value used as weak map key

With primitive values as keys, WeakMaps wouldn’t be black boxes anymore. But given
that primitive values are never garbage-collected, you don’t profit from weakly held keys
anyway, and can just as well use a normal Map.

34.2.2 Use case: attaching values to objects

This is the main use case for WeakMaps: you can use them to externally attach values to
objects – for example:

const wm = new WeakMap();

{
const obj = {};
wm.set(obj, 'attachedValue'); // (A)
}
// (B)

In line A, we attach a value to obj. In line B, obj can already be garbage-collected, even
though wm still exists. This technique of attaching a value to an object is equivalent to a
property of that object being stored externally. If wm were a property, the previous code
would look as follows:

{
const obj = {};
obj.wm = 'attachedValue';
}
34.3 Examples 385

34.3 Examples
34.3.1 Caching computed results via WeakMaps
With WeakMaps, you can associate previously computed results with objects without
having to worry about memory management. The following function countOwnKeys()
is an example: it caches previous results in the WeakMap cache.

const cache = new WeakMap();

function countOwnKeys(obj) {
if (cache.has(obj)) {
return [cache.get(obj), 'cached'];
} else {
const count = Object.keys(obj).length;
cache.set(obj, count);
return [count, 'computed'];
}
}

If we use this function with an object obj, you can see that the result is only computed
for the first invocation, while a cached value is used for the second invocation:

> const obj = { foo: 1, bar: 2};

> countOwnKeys(obj)
[2, 'computed']
> countOwnKeys(obj)
[2, 'cached']

34.3.2 Keeping private data in WeakMaps

In the following code, the WeakMaps _counter and _action are used to store the values
of virtual properties of instances of Countdown:

const _counter = new WeakMap();

const _action = new WeakMap();

class Countdown {
constructor(counter, action) {
_counter.set(this, counter);
_action.set(this, action);
}
dec() {
let counter = _counter.get(this);
counter--;
_counter.set(this, counter);
if (counter === 0) {
_action.get(this)();
}
}
}
386 34 WeakMaps (WeakMap)

// The two pseudo-properties are truly private:

assert.deepEqual(
Object.keys(new Countdown()),
[]);

This is how Countdown is used:

let invoked = false;

const cd = new Countdown(3, () => invoked = true);

cd.dec(); assert.equal(invoked, false);

cd.dec(); assert.equal(invoked, false);
cd.dec(); assert.equal(invoked, true);

Exercise: WeakMaps for private data

exercises/weakmaps/weakmaps_private_data_test.mjs

34.4 WeakMap API

The constructor and the four methods of WeakMap work the same as their Map equivalents:
• new WeakMap<K, V>(entries?: Iterable<[K, V]>) [ES6]
• .delete(key: K) : boolean [ES6]
• .get(key: K) : V [ES6]
• .has(key: K) : boolean [ES6]
• .set(key: K, value: V) : this [ES6]

Quiz
See quiz app.
Chapter 35

Sets (Set)

Contents
35.1 Using Sets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 388
35.1.1 Creating Sets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 388
35.1.2 Adding, removing, checking membership . . . . . . . . . . . 388
35.1.3 Determining the size of a Set and clearing it . . . . . . . . . . 388
35.1.4 Iterating over Sets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 389
35.2 Examples of using Sets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 389
35.2.1 Removing duplicates from an Array . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 389
35.2.2 Creating a set of Unicode characters (code points) . . . . . . . 389
35.3 What Set elements are considered equal? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 389
35.4 Missing Set operations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 390
35.4.1 Union (a ∪ b) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 390
35.4.2 Intersection (a ∩ b) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 390
35.4.3 Difference (a \ b) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 391
35.4.4 Mapping over Sets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 391
35.4.5 Filtering Sets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 391
35.5 Quick reference: Set<T> . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 391
35.5.1 Constructor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 391
35.5.2 Set<T>.prototype: single Set elements . . . . . . . . . . . . . 391
35.5.3 Set<T>.prototype: all Set elements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 392
35.5.4 Set<T>.prototype: iterating and looping . . . . . . . . . . . . 392
35.5.5 Symmetry with Map . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 393
35.6 FAQ: Sets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 393
35.6.1 Why do Sets have a .size, while Arrays have a .length? . . . 393

Before ES6, JavaScript didn’t have a data structure for sets. Instead, two workarounds
were used:

• The keys of an object were used as a set of strings.

387
388 35 Sets (Set)

• Arrays were used as sets of arbitrary values. The downside is that checking mem-
bership (if an Array contains a value) is slower.

Since ES6, JavaScript has the data structure Set, which can contain arbitrary values and
performs membership checks quickly.

35.1 Using Sets

35.1.1 Creating Sets
There are three common ways of creating Sets.
First, you can use the constructor without any parameters to create an empty Set:
const emptySet = new Set();
assert.equal(emptySet.size, 0);

Second, you can pass an iterable (e.g., an Array) to the constructor. The iterated values
become elements of the new Set:
const set = new Set(['red', 'green', 'blue']);

Third, the .add() method adds elements to a Set and is chainable:

const set = new Set()
.add('red')
.add('green')
.add('blue');

35.1.2 Adding, removing, checking membership

.add() adds an element to a Set.

const set = new Set();

set.add('red');

.has() checks if an element is a member of a Set.

assert.equal(set.has('red'), true);

.delete() removes an element from a Set.

assert.equal(set.delete('red'), true); // there was a deletion

assert.equal(set.has('red'), false);

35.1.3 Determining the size of a Set and clearing it

.size contains the number of elements in a Set.

const set = new Set()

.add('foo')
.add('bar');
assert.equal(set.size, 2)

.clear() removes all elements of a Set.

35.2 Examples of using Sets 389

set.clear();
assert.equal(set.size, 0)

35.1.4 Iterating over Sets

Sets are iterable and the for-of loop works as you’d expect:

const set = new Set(['red', 'green', 'blue']);

for (const x of set) {
console.log(x);
}
// Output:
// 'red'
// 'green'
// 'blue'

As you can see, Sets preserve insertion order. That is, elements are always iterated over in
the order in which they were added.

Given that Sets are iterable, you can use spreading (...) to convert them to Arrays:

const set = new Set(['red', 'green', 'blue']);

const arr = [...set]; // ['red', 'green', 'blue']

35.2 Examples of using Sets

35.2.1 Removing duplicates from an Array
Converting an Array to a Set and back, removes duplicates from the Array:

assert.deepEqual(
[...new Set([1, 2, 1, 2, 3, 3, 3])],
[1, 2, 3]);

35.2.2 Creating a set of Unicode characters (code points)

Strings are iterable and can therefore be used as parameters for new Set():

assert.deepEqual(
new Set('abc'),
new Set(['a', 'b', 'c']));

35.3 What Set elements are considered equal?

As with Map keys, Set elements are compared similarly to ===, with the exception of NaN
being equal to itself.

> const set = new Set([NaN, NaN, NaN]);

> set.size
1
390 35 Sets (Set)

> set.has(NaN)
true

As with ===, two different objects are never considered equal (and there is no way to
change that at the moment):

> const set = new Set();

> set.add({});
> set.size
1

> set.add({});
> set.size
2

35.4 Missing Set operations

Sets are missing several common operations. Such an operation can usually be imple-
mented by:

• Converting the input Sets to Arrays by spreading into Array literals.

• Performing the operation on Arrays.
• Converting the result to a Set and returning it.

35.4.1 Union (a ∪ b)
Computing the union of two Sets a and b means creating a Set that contains the elements
of both a and b.

const a = new Set([1,2,3]);

const b = new Set([4,3,2]);
// Use spreading to concatenate two iterables
const union = new Set([...a, ...b]);

assert.deepEqual([...union], [1, 2, 3, 4]);

35.4.2 Intersection (a ∩ b)
Computing the intersection of two Sets a and b means creating a Set that contains those
elements of a that are also in b.

const a = new Set([1,2,3]);

const b = new Set([4,3,2]);
const intersection = new Set(
[...a].filter(x => b.has(x)));

assert.deepEqual([...intersection], [2, 3]);

35.5 Quick reference: Set<T> 391

35.4.3 Difference (a \ b)
Computing the difference between two Sets a and b means creating a Set that contains
those elements of a that are not in b. This operation is also sometimes called minus (−).
const a = new Set([1,2,3]);
const b = new Set([4,3,2]);
const difference = new Set(
[...a].filter(x => !b.has(x)));

assert.deepEqual([...difference], [1]);

35.4.4 Mapping over Sets

Sets don’t have a method .map(). But we can borrow the one that Arrays have:
const set = new Set([1, 2, 3]);
const mappedSet = new Set([...set].map(x => x * 2));

// Convert mappedSet to an Array to check what’s inside it

assert.deepEqual([...mappedSet], [2, 4, 6]);

35.4.5 Filtering Sets

We can’t directly .filter() Sets, so we need to use the corresponding Array method:
const set = new Set([1, 2, 3, 4, 5]);
const filteredSet = new Set([...set].filter(x => (x % 2) === 0));

assert.deepEqual([...filteredSet], [2, 4]);

35.5 Quick reference: Set<T>

35.5.1 Constructor
• new Set<T>(values?: Iterable<T>) [ES6]
If you don’t provide the parameter values, then an empty Set is created. If you do,
then the iterated values are added as elements to the Set. For example:
const set = new Set(['red', 'green', 'blue']);

35.5.2 Set<T>.prototype: single Set elements

• .add(value: T): this [ES6]
Adds value to this Set. This method returns this, which means that it can be
chained.
const set = new Set(['red']);
set.add('green').add('blue');
assert.deepEqual([...set], ['red', 'green', 'blue']);
392 35 Sets (Set)

• .delete(value: T): boolean [ES6]

Removes value from this Set. Returns true if something was deleted and false,
otherwise.
const set = new Set(['red', 'green', 'blue']);
assert.equal(set.delete('red'), true); // there was a deletion
assert.deepEqual([...set], ['green', 'blue']);

• .has(value: T): boolean [ES6]

Checks whether value is in this Set.
const set = new Set(['red', 'green']);
assert.equal(set.has('red'), true);
assert.equal(set.has('blue'), false);

35.5.3 Set<T>.prototype: all Set elements

• get .size: number [ES6]
Returns how many elements there are in this Set.
const set = new Set(['red', 'green', 'blue']);
assert.equal(set.size, 3);

• .clear(): void [ES6]

Removes all elements from this Set.
const set = new Set(['red', 'green', 'blue']);
assert.equal(set.size, 3);
set.clear();
assert.equal(set.size, 0);

35.5.4 Set<T>.prototype: iterating and looping

• .values(): Iterable<T> [ES6]
Returns an iterable over all elements of this Set.
const set = new Set(['red', 'green']);
for (const x of set.values()) {
console.log(x);
}
// Output:
// 'red'
// 'green'

• [Symbol.iterator](): Iterable<T> [ES6]

Default way of iterating over Sets. Same as .values().
const set = new Set(['red', 'green']);
for (const x of set) {
console.log(x);
35.6 FAQ: Sets 393

}
// Output:
// 'red'
// 'green'

• .forEach(callback: (value: T, key: T, theSet: Set<T>) => void, thisArg?:

any): void [ES6]

Feeds each element of this Set to callback(). value and key both contain the
current element. This redundancy was introduced so that this callback has the
same type signature as the callback of Map.prototype.forEach().
You can specify the this of callback via thisArg. If you omit it, this is undefined.
const set = new Set(['red', 'green']);
set.forEach(x => console.log(x));
// Output:
// 'red'
// 'green'

35.5.5 Symmetry with Map

The following two methods mainly exist so that Sets and Maps have similar interfaces.
Each Set element is handled as if it were a Map entry whose key and value are both the
element.
• Set.prototype.entries(): Iterable<[T,T]> [ES6]
• Set.prototype.keys(): Iterable<T> [ES6]
.entries() enables you to convert a Set to a Map:

const set = new Set(['a', 'b', 'c']);

const map = new Map(set.entries());
assert.deepEqual(
[...map.entries()],
[['a','a'], ['b','b'], ['c','c']]);

35.6 FAQ: Sets

35.6.1 Why do Sets have a .size, while Arrays have a .length?
The answer to this question is given in §33.6.4 “Why do Maps have a .size, while Arrays
have a .length?”.

Quiz
See quiz app.
394 35 Sets (Set)
Chapter 36

WeakSets (WeakSet)

Contents
36.1 Example: Marking objects as safe to use with a method . . . . . . . 395
36.2 WeakSet API . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 396

WeakSets are similar to Sets, with the following differences:

• They can hold objects without preventing those objects from being garbage-
collected.

• They are black boxes: we only get any data out of a WeakSet if we have both the
WeakSet and a value. The only methods that are supported are .add(), .delete(),
.has(). Consult the section on WeakMaps as black boxes for an explanation of why
WeakSets don’t allow iteration, looping, and clearing.

Given that we can’t iterate over their elements, there are not that many use cases for
WeakSets. They do enable us to mark objects.

36.1 Example: Marking objects as safe to use with a

method
Domenic Denicola shows how a class Foo can ensure that its methods are only applied
to instances that were created by it:

const foos = new WeakSet();

class Foo {
constructor() {
foos.add(this);
}

method() {
if (!foos.has(this)) {

395
396 36 WeakSets (WeakSet)

throw new TypeError('Incompatible object!');

}
}
}

const foo = new Foo();

foo.method(); // works

assert.throws(
() => {
const obj = {};
Foo.prototype.method.call(obj); // throws an exception
},
TypeError
);

36.2 WeakSet API

The constructor and the three methods of WeakSet work the same as their Set equiva-
lents:
• new WeakSet<T>(values?: Iterable<T>) [ES6]
• .add(value: T): this [ES6]
• .delete(value: T): boolean [ES6]
• .has(value: T): boolean [ES6]
Chapter 37

Destructuring

Contents
37.1 A first taste of destructuring . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 398
37.2 Constructing vs. extracting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 398
37.3 Where can we destructure? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 399
37.4 Object-destructuring . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 400
37.4.1 Property value shorthands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 400
37.4.2 Rest properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 401
37.4.3 Syntax pitfall: assigning via object destructuring . . . . . . . . 401
37.5 Array-destructuring . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 401
37.5.1 Array-destructuring works with any iterable . . . . . . . . . . 402
37.5.2 Rest elements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 402
37.6 Examples of destructuring . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 402
37.6.1 Array-destructuring: swapping variable values . . . . . . . . 402
37.6.2 Array-destructuring: operations that return Arrays . . . . . . 403
37.6.3 Object-destructuring: multiple return values . . . . . . . . . . 403
37.7 What happens if a pattern part does not match anything? . . . . . . 404
37.7.1 Object-destructuring and missing properties . . . . . . . . . . 404
37.7.2 Array-destructuring and missing elements . . . . . . . . . . . 404
37.8 What values can’t be destructured? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 404
37.8.1 You can’t object-destructure undefined and null . . . . . . . . 404
37.8.2 You can’t Array-destructure non-iterable values . . . . . . . . 405
37.9 (Advanced) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 405
37.10Default values . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 405
37.10.1 Default values in Array-destructuring . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 406
37.10.2 Default values in object-destructuring . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 406
37.11Parameter definitions are similar to destructuring . . . . . . . . . . 406
37.12Nested destructuring . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 407

397
398 37 Destructuring

37.1 A first taste of destructuring

With normal assignment, you extract one piece of data at a time – for example:

const arr = ['a', 'b', 'c'];

const x = arr[0]; // extract
const y = arr[1]; // extract

With destructuring, you can extract multiple pieces of data at the same time via patterns
in locations that receive data. The left-hand side of = in the previous code is one such
location. In the following code, the square brackets in line A are a destructuring pattern:

const arr = ['a', 'b', 'c'];

const [x, y] = arr; // (A)
assert.equal(x, 'a');
assert.equal(y, 'b');

This code does the same as the previous code.

Note that the pattern is “smaller” than the data: we are only extracting what we need.

37.2 Constructing vs. extracting

In order to understand what destructuring is, consider that JavaScript has two kinds of
operations that are opposites:

• You can construct compound data, for example, by setting properties and via object
literals.
• You can extract data out of compound data, for example, by getting properties.

Constructing data looks as follows:

// Constructing: one property at a time

const jane1 = {};
jane1.first = 'Jane';
jane1.last = 'Doe';

// Constructing: multiple properties

const jane2 = {
first: 'Jane',
last: 'Doe',
};

assert.deepEqual(jane1, jane2);

Extracting data looks as follows:

const jane = {
first: 'Jane',
last: 'Doe',
};
37.3 Where can we destructure? 399

// Extracting: one property at a time

const f1 = jane.first;
const l1 = jane.last;
assert.equal(f1, 'Jane');
assert.equal(l1, 'Doe');

// Extracting: multiple properties (NEW!)

const {first: f2, last: l2} = jane; // (A)
assert.equal(f2, 'Jane');
assert.equal(l2, 'Doe');

The operation in line A is new: we declare two variables f2 and l2 and initialize them
via destructuring (multivalue extraction).

The following part of line A is a destructuring pattern:

{first: f2, last: l2}

Destructuring patterns are syntactically similar to the literals that are used for multivalue
construction. But they appear where data is received (e.g., at the left-hand side of assign-
ments), not where data is created (e.g., at the right-hand side of assignments).

37.3 Where can we destructure?

Destructuring patterns can be used at “data sink locations” such as:

• Variable declarations:

const [a] = ['x'];

assert.equal(a, 'x');

let [b] = ['y'];

assert.equal(b, 'y');

• Assignments:

let b;
[b] = ['z'];
assert.equal(b, 'z');

• Parameter definitions:

const f = ([x]) => x;

assert.equal(f(['a']), 'a');

Note that variable declarations include const and let declarations in for-of loops:

const arr = ['a', 'b'];

for (const [index, element] of arr.entries()) {
console.log(index, element);
}
// Output:
400 37 Destructuring

// 0, 'a'
// 1, 'b'

In the next two sections, we’ll look deeper into the two kinds of destructuring: object-
destructuring and Array-destructuring.

37.4 Object-destructuring
Object-destructuring lets you batch-extract values of properties via patterns that look like
object literals:

const address = {
street: 'Evergreen Terrace',
number: '742',
city: 'Springfield',
state: 'NT',
zip: '49007',
};

const { street: s, city: c } = address;

assert.equal(s, 'Evergreen Terrace');
assert.equal(c, 'Springfield');

You can think of the pattern as a transparent sheet that you place over the data: the
pattern key 'street' has a match in the data. Therefore, the data value 'Evergreen
Terrace' is assigned to the pattern variable s.

You can also object-destructure primitive values:

const {length: len} = 'abc';

assert.equal(len, 3);

And you can object-destructure Arrays:

const {0:x, 2:y} = ['a', 'b', 'c'];

assert.equal(x, 'a');
assert.equal(y, 'c');

Why does that work? Array indices are also properties.

37.4.1 Property value shorthands

Object literals support property value shorthands and so do object patterns:

const { street, city } = address;

assert.equal(street, 'Evergreen Terrace');
assert.equal(city, 'Springfield');

Exercise: Object-destructuring
exercises/destructuring/object_destructuring_exrc.mjs
37.5 Array-destructuring 401

37.4.2 Rest properties

In object literals, you can have spread properties. In object patterns, you can have rest
properties (which must come last):

const obj = { a: 1, b: 2, c: 3 };
const { a: propValue, ...remaining } = obj; // (A)

assert.equal(propValue, 1);
assert.deepEqual(remaining, {b:2, c:3});

A rest property variable, such as remaining (line A), is assigned an object with all data
properties whose keys are not mentioned in the pattern.

remaining can also be viewed as the result of non-destructively removing property a

from obj.

37.4.3 Syntax pitfall: assigning via object destructuring

If we object-destructure in an assignment, we are facing a pitfall caused by syntactic
ambiguity – you can’t start a statement with a curly brace because then JavaScript thinks
you are starting a block:

let prop;
assert.throws(
() => eval("{prop} = { prop: 'hello' };"),
{
name: 'SyntaxError',
message: 'Unexpected token =',
});

Why eval()?
eval() delays parsing (and therefore the SyntaxError) until the callback of as-
sert.throws() is executed. If we didn’t use it, we’d already get an error when this
code is parsed and assert.throws() wouldn’t even be executed.

The workaround is to put the whole assignment in parentheses:

let prop;
({prop} = { prop: 'hello' });
assert.equal(prop, 'hello');

37.5 Array-destructuring
Array-destructuring lets you batch-extract values of Array elements via patterns that look
like Array literals:

const [x, y] = ['a', 'b'];

assert.equal(x, 'a');
402 37 Destructuring

assert.equal(y, 'b');

You can skip elements by mentioning holes inside Array patterns:

const [, x, y] = ['a', 'b', 'c']; // (A)

assert.equal(x, 'b');
assert.equal(y, 'c');

The first element of the Array pattern in line A is a hole, which is why the Array element
at index 0 is ignored.

37.5.1 Array-destructuring works with any iterable

Array-destructuring can be applied to any value that is iterable, not just to Arrays:

// Sets are iterable

const mySet = new Set().add('a').add('b').add('c');
const [first, second] = mySet;
assert.equal(first, 'a');
assert.equal(second, 'b');

// Strings are iterable

const [a, b] = 'xyz';
assert.equal(a, 'x');
assert.equal(b, 'y');

37.5.2 Rest elements

In Array literals, you can have spread elements. In Array patterns, you can have rest
elements (which must come last):

const [x, y, ...remaining] = ['a', 'b', 'c', 'd']; // (A)

assert.equal(x, 'a');
assert.equal(y, 'b');
assert.deepEqual(remaining, ['c', 'd']);

A rest element variable, such as remaining (line A), is assigned an Array with all elements
of the destructured value that were not mentioned yet.

37.6 Examples of destructuring

37.6.1 Array-destructuring: swapping variable values
You can use Array-destructuring to swap the values of two variables without needing a
temporary variable:

let x = 'a';
let y = 'b';

[x,y] = [y,x]; // swap

37.6 Examples of destructuring 403

assert.equal(x, 'b');
assert.equal(y, 'a');

37.6.2 Array-destructuring: operations that return Arrays

Array-destructuring is useful when operations return Arrays, as does, for example, the
regular expression method .exec():
// Skip the element at index 0 (the whole match):
const [, year, month, day] =
/^([0-9]{4})-([0-9]{2})-([0-9]{2})$/
.exec('2999-12-31');

assert.equal(year, '2999');
assert.equal(month, '12');
assert.equal(day, '31');

37.6.3 Object-destructuring: multiple return values

Destructuring is very useful if a function returns multiple values – either packaged as an
Array or packaged as an object.
Consider a function findElement() that finds elements in an Array:
findElement(array, (value, index) => «boolean expression»)

Its second parameter is a function that receives the value and index of an element and
returns a boolean indicating if this is the element the caller is looking for.
We are now faced with a dilemma: Should findElement() return the value of the element
it found or the index? One solution would be to create two separate functions, but that
would result in duplicated code because both functions would be very similar.
The following implementation avoids duplication by returning an object that contains
both index and value of the element that is found:
function findElement(arr, predicate) {
for (let index=0; index < arr.length; index++) {
const value = arr[index];
if (predicate(value)) {
// We found something:
return { value, index };
}
}
// We didn’t find anything:
return { value: undefined, index: -1 };
}

Destructuring helps us with processing the result of findElement():

const arr = [7, 8, 6];
404 37 Destructuring

const {value, index} = findElement(arr, x => x % 2 === 0);

assert.equal(value, 8);
assert.equal(index, 1);

As we are working with property keys, the order in which we mention value and index
doesn’t matter:

const {index, value} = findElement(arr, x => x % 2 === 0);

The kicker is that destructuring also serves us well if we are only interested in one of the
two results:

const arr = [7, 8, 6];

const {value} = findElement(arr, x => x % 2 === 0);

assert.equal(value, 8);

const {index} = findElement(arr, x => x % 2 === 0);

assert.equal(index, 1);

All of these conveniences combined make this way of handling multiple return values
quite versatile.

37.7 What happens if a pattern part does not match any-

thing?
What happens if there is no match for part of a pattern? The same thing that happens if
you use non-batch operators: you get undefined.

37.7.1 Object-destructuring and missing properties

If a property in an object pattern has no match on the right-hand side, you get undefined:

const {prop: p} = {};

assert.equal(p, undefined);

37.7.2 Array-destructuring and missing elements

If an element in an Array pattern has no match on the right-hand side, you get undefined:

const [x] = [];

assert.equal(x, undefined);

37.8 What values can’t be destructured?

37.8.1 You can’t object-destructure undefined and null
Object-destructuring only fails if the value to be destructured is either undefined or null.
That is, it fails whenever accessing a property via the dot operator would fail too.
37.9 (Advanced) 405

assert.throws(
() => { const {prop} = undefined; },
{
name: 'TypeError',
message: "Cannot destructure property `prop` of " +
"'undefined' or 'null'.",
}
);
assert.throws(
() => { const {prop} = null; },
{
name: 'TypeError',
message: "Cannot destructure property `prop` of " +
"'undefined' or 'null'.",
}
);

37.8.2 You can’t Array-destructure non-iterable values

Array-destructuring demands that the destructured value be iterable. Therefore,
you can’t Array-destructure undefined and null. But you can’t Array-destructure
non-iterable objects either:

assert.throws(
() => { const [x] = {}; },
{
name: 'TypeError',
message: '{} is not iterable',
}
);

Quiz: basic
See quiz app.

37.9 (Advanced)
All of the remaining sections are advanced.

37.10 Default values

Normally, if a pattern has no match, the corresponding variable is set to undefined:

const {prop: p} = {};

assert.equal(p, undefined);

If you want a different value to be used, you need to specify a default value (via =):
406 37 Destructuring

const {prop: p = 123} = {}; // (A)

assert.equal(p, 123);

In line A, we specify the default value for p to be 123. That default is used because the
data that we are destructuring has no property named prop.

37.10.1 Default values in Array-destructuring

Here, we have two default values that are assigned to the variables x and y because the
corresponding elements don’t exist in the Array that is destructured.

const [x=1, y=2] = [];

assert.equal(x, 1);
assert.equal(y, 2);

The default value for the first element of the Array pattern is 1; the default value for the
second element is 2.

37.10.2 Default values in object-destructuring

You can also specify default values for object-destructuring:

const {first: f='', last: l=''} = {};

assert.equal(f, '');
assert.equal(l, '');

Neither property key first nor property key last exist in the object that is destructured.
Therefore, the default values are used.

With property value shorthands, this code becomes simpler:

const {first='', last=''} = {};

assert.equal(first, '');
assert.equal(last, '');

37.11 Parameter definitions are similar to destructuring

Considering what we have learned in this chapter, parameter definitions have much in
common with an Array pattern (rest elements, default values, etc.). In fact, the following
two function declarations are equivalent:

function f1(«pattern1», «pattern2») {

// ···
}

function f2(...args) {
const [«pattern1», «pattern2»] = args;
// ···
}
37.12 Nested destructuring 407

37.12 Nested destructuring

Until now, we have only used variables as assignment targets (data sinks) inside destruc-
turing patterns. But you can also use patterns as assignment targets, which enables you
to nest patterns to arbitrary depths:
const arr = [
{ first: 'Jane', last: 'Bond' },
{ first: 'Lars', last: 'Croft' },
];
const [, {first}] = arr;
assert.equal(first, 'Lars');

Inside the Array pattern in line A, there is a nested object pattern at index 1.
Nested patterns can become difficult to understand, so they are best used in moderation.

Quiz: advanced
See quiz app.
408 37 Destructuring
Chapter 38

Synchronous generators
(advanced)

Contents
38.1 What are synchronous generators? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 409
38.1.1 Generator functions return iterables and fill them via yield . . 410
38.1.2 yield pauses a generator function . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 410
38.1.3 Why does yield pause execution? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 412
38.1.4 Example: Mapping over iterables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 413
38.2 Calling generators from generators (advanced) . . . . . . . . . . . . 413
38.2.1 Calling generators via yield* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 413
38.2.2 Example: Iterating over a tree . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 414
38.3 Background: external iteration vs. internal iteration . . . . . . . . . 415
38.4 Use case for generators: reusing traversals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 416
38.4.1 The traversal to reuse . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 416
38.4.2 Internal iteration (push) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 416
38.4.3 External iteration (pull) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 417
38.5 Advanced features of generators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 417

38.1 What are synchronous generators?

Synchronous generators are special versions of function definitions and method defini-
tions that always return synchronous iterables:
// Generator function declaration
function* genFunc1() { /*···*/ }

// Generator function expression

const genFunc2 = function* () { /*···*/ };

409
410 38 Synchronous generators (advanced)

// Generator method definition in an object literal

const obj = {
* generatorMethod() {
// ···
}
};

// Generator method definition in a class definition

// (class declaration or class expression)
class MyClass {
* generatorMethod() {
// ···
}
}

Asterisks (*) mark functions and methods as generators:

• Functions: The pseudo-keyword function* is a combination of the keyword func-

tion and an asterisk.
• Methods: The * is a modifier (similar to static and get).

38.1.1 Generator functions return iterables and fill them via yield
If you call a generator function, it returns an iterable (actually, an iterator that is also
iterable). The generator fills that iterable via the yield operator:

function* genFunc1() {
yield 'a';
yield 'b';
}

const iterable = genFunc1();

// Convert the iterable to an Array, to check what’s inside:
assert.deepEqual([...iterable], ['a', 'b']);

// You can also use a for-of loop

for (const x of genFunc1()) {
console.log(x);
}
// Output:
// 'a'
// 'b'

38.1.2 yield pauses a generator function

Using a generator function involves the following steps:

• Function-calling it returns an iterator iter (that is also an iterable).

• Iterating over iter repeatedly invokes iter.next(). Each time, we jump into the
body of the generator function until there is a yield that returns a value.
38.1 What are synchronous generators? 411

Therefore, yield does more than just add values to iterables – it also pauses and exits the
generator function:

• Like return, a yield exits the body of the function and returns a value (via
.next()).
• Unlike return, if you repeat the invocation (of .next()), execution resumes di-
rectly after the yield.

Let’s examine what that means via the following generator function.

let location = 0;
function* genFunc2() {
location = 1; yield 'a';
location = 2; yield 'b';
location = 3;
}

In order to use genFunc2(), we must first create the iterator/iterable iter. genFunc2()
is now paused “before” its body.

const iter = genFunc2();

// genFunc2() is now paused “before” its body:
assert.equal(location, 0);

iter implements the iteration protocol. Therefore, we control the execution of gen-
Func2() via iter.next(). Calling that method resumes the paused genFunc2() and ex-
ecutes it until there is a yield. Then execution pauses and .next() returns the operand
of the yield:

assert.deepEqual(
iter.next(), {value: 'a', done: false});
// genFunc2() is now paused directly after the first `yield`:
assert.equal(location, 1);

Note that the yielded value 'a' is wrapped in an object, which is how iterators always
deliver their values.

We call iter.next() again and execution continues where we previously paused. Once
we encounter the second yield, genFunc2() is paused and .next() returns the yielded
value 'b'.

assert.deepEqual(
iter.next(), {value: 'b', done: false});
// genFunc2() is now paused directly after the second `yield`:
assert.equal(location, 2);

We call iter.next() one more time and execution continues until it leaves the body of
genFunc2():

assert.deepEqual(
iter.next(), {value: undefined, done: true});
// We have reached the end of genFunc2():
assert.equal(location, 3);
412 38 Synchronous generators (advanced)

This time, property .done of the result of .next() is true, which means that the iterator
is finished.

38.1.3 Why does yield pause execution?

What are the benefits of yield pausing execution? Why doesn’t it simply work like the
Array method .push() and fill the iterable with values without pausing?
Due to pausing, generators provide many of the features of coroutines (think processes
that are multitasked cooperatively). For example, when you ask for the next value of
an iterable, that value is computed lazily (on demand). The following two generator
functions demonstrate what that means.
/**
* Returns an iterable over lines
*/
function* genLines() {
yield 'A line';
yield 'Another line';
yield 'Last line';
}

/**
* Input: iterable over lines
* Output: iterable over numbered lines
*/
function* numberLines(lineIterable) {
let lineNumber = 1;
for (const line of lineIterable) { // input
yield lineNumber + ': ' + line; // output
lineNumber++;
}
}

Note that the yield in numberLines() appears inside a for-of loop. yield can be used
inside loops, but not inside callbacks (more on that later).
Let’s combine both generators to produce the iterable numberedLines:
const numberedLines = numberLines(genLines());
assert.deepEqual(
numberedLines.next(), {value: '1: A line', done: false});
assert.deepEqual(
numberedLines.next(), {value: '2: Another line', done: false});

The key benefit of using generators here is that everything works incrementally: via
numberedLines.next(), we ask numberLines() for only a single numbered line. In turn,
it asks genLines() for only a single unnumbered line.
This incrementalism continues to work if, for example, genLines() reads its lines from
a large text file: If we ask numberLines() for a numbered line, we get one as soon as
genLines() has read its first line from the text file.
38.2 Calling generators from generators (advanced) 413

Without generators, genLines() would first read all lines and return them. Then num-
berLines() would number all lines and return them. We therefore have to wait much
longer until we get the first numbered line.

Exercise: Turning a normal function into a generator

exercises/sync-generators/fib_seq_test.mjs

38.1.4 Example: Mapping over iterables

The following function mapIter() is similar to the Array method .map(), but it returns
an iterable, not an Array, and produces its results on demand.
function* mapIter(iterable, func) {
let index = 0;
for (const x of iterable) {
yield func(x, index);
index++;
}
}

const iterable = mapIter(['a', 'b'], x => x + x);

assert.deepEqual([...iterable], ['aa', 'bb']);

Exercise: Filtering iterables

exercises/sync-generators/filter_iter_gen_test.mjs

38.2 Calling generators from generators (advanced)

38.2.1 Calling generators via yield*
yield only works directly inside generators – so far we haven’t seen a way of delegating
yielding to another function or method.
Let’s first examine what does not work: in the following example, we’d like foo() to call
bar(), so that the latter yields two values for the former. Alas, a naive approach fails:

function* bar() {
yield 'a';
yield 'b';
}
function* foo() {
// Nothing happens if we call `bar()`:
bar();
}
assert.deepEqual(
[...foo()], []);
414 38 Synchronous generators (advanced)

Why doesn’t this work? The function call bar() returns an iterable, which we ignore.
What we want is for foo() to yield everything that is yielded by bar(). That’s what the
yield* operator does:

function* bar() {
yield 'a';
yield 'b';
}
function* foo() {
yield* bar();
}
assert.deepEqual(
[...foo()], ['a', 'b']);

In other words, the previous foo() is roughly equivalent to:

function* foo() {
for (const x of bar()) {
yield x;
}
}

Note that yield* works with any iterable:

function* gen() {
yield* [1, 2];
}
assert.deepEqual(
[...gen()], [1, 2]);

38.2.2 Example: Iterating over a tree

yield* lets us make recursive calls in generators, which is useful when iterating over
recursive data structures such as trees. Take, for example, the following data structure
for binary trees.
class BinaryTree {
constructor(value, left=null, right=null) {
this.value = value;
this.left = left;
this.right = right;
}

/** Prefix iteration: parent before children */

* [Symbol.iterator]() {
yield this.value;
if (this.left) {
// Same as yield* this.left[Symbol.iterator]()
yield* this.left;
}
if (this.right) {
38.3 Background: external iteration vs. internal iteration 415

yield* this.right;
}
}
}

Method [Symbol.iterator]() adds support for the iteration protocol, which means that
we can use a for-of loop to iterate over an instance of BinaryTree:
const tree = new BinaryTree('a',
new BinaryTree('b',
new BinaryTree('c'),
new BinaryTree('d')),
new BinaryTree('e'));

for (const x of tree) {

console.log(x);
}
// Output:
// 'a'
// 'b'
// 'c'
// 'd'
// 'e'

Exercise: Iterating over a nested Array

exercises/sync-generators/iter_nested_arrays_test.mjs

38.3 Background: external iteration vs. internal iteration

In preparation for the next section, we need to learn about two different styles of iterating
over the values “inside” an object:
• External iteration (pull): Your code asks the object for the values via an iteration
protocol. For example, the for-of loop is based on JavaScript’s iteration protocol:
for (const x of ['a', 'b']) {
console.log(x);
}
// Output:
// 'a'
// 'b'

• Internal iteration (push): You pass a callback function to a method of the object
and the method feeds the values to the callback. For example, Arrays have the
method .forEach():
['a', 'b'].forEach((x) => {
console.log(x);
});
416 38 Synchronous generators (advanced)

// Output:
// 'a'
// 'b'

The next section has examples for both styles of iteration.

38.4 Use case for generators: reusing traversals

One important use case for generators is extracting and reusing traversals.

38.4.1 The traversal to reuse

As an example, consider the following function that traverses a tree of files and logs their
paths (it uses the Node.js API for doing so):

function logPaths(dir) {
for (const fileName of fs.readdirSync(dir)) {
const filePath = path.resolve(dir, fileName);
console.log(filePath);
const stats = fs.statSync(filePath);
if (stats.isDirectory()) {
logPaths(filePath); // recursive call
}
}
}

Consider the following directory:

mydir/
a.txt
b.txt
subdir/
c.txt

Let’s log the paths inside mydir/:

logPaths('mydir');

// Output:
// 'mydir/a.txt'
// 'mydir/b.txt'
// 'mydir/subdir'
// 'mydir/subdir/c.txt'

How can we reuse this traversal and do something other than logging the paths?

38.4.2 Internal iteration (push)

One way of reusing traversal code is via internal iteration: Each traversed value is passsed
to a callback (line A).
38.5 Advanced features of generators 417

function visitPaths(dir, callback) {

for (const fileName of fs.readdirSync(dir)) {
const filePath = path.resolve(dir, fileName);
callback(filePath); // (A)
const stats = fs.statSync(filePath);
if (stats.isDirectory()) {
visitPaths(filePath, callback);
}
}
}
const paths = [];
visitPaths('mydir', p => paths.push(p));
assert.deepEqual(
paths,
[
'mydir/a.txt',
'mydir/b.txt',
'mydir/subdir',
'mydir/subdir/c.txt',
]);

38.4.3 External iteration (pull)

Another way of reusing traversal code is via external iteration: We can write a generator
that yields all traversed values (line A).
function* iterPaths(dir) {
for (const fileName of fs.readdirSync(dir)) {
const filePath = path.resolve(dir, fileName);
yield filePath; // (A)
const stats = fs.statSync(filePath);
if (stats.isDirectory()) {
yield* iterPaths(filePath);
}
}
}
const paths = [...iterPaths('mydir')];

38.5 Advanced features of generators

The chapter on generators in Exploring ES6 covers two features that are beyond the scope
of this book:
• yield can also receive data, via an argument of .next().
• Generators can also return values (not just yield them). Such values do not be-
come iteration values, but can be retrieved via yield*.
418 38 Synchronous generators (advanced)
 Part VIII

Asynchronicity

419
Chapter 39

Asynchronous programming in
JavaScript

Contents
39.1 A roadmap for asynchronous programming in JavaScript . . . . . . 422
39.1.1 Synchronous functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 422
39.1.2 JavaScript executes tasks sequentially in a single process . . . 422
39.1.3 Callback-based asynchronous functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . 422
39.1.4 Promise-based asynchronous functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . 423
39.1.5 Async functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 423
39.1.6 Next steps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 424
39.2 The call stack . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 424
39.3 The event loop . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 425
39.4 How to avoid blocking the JavaScript process . . . . . . . . . . . . . 426
39.4.1 The user interface of the browser can be blocked . . . . . . . . 426
39.4.2 How can we avoid blocking the browser? . . . . . . . . . . . . 427
39.4.3 Taking breaks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 427
39.4.4 Run-to-completion semantics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 428
39.5 Patterns for delivering asynchronous results . . . . . . . . . . . . . 428
39.5.1 Delivering asynchronous results via events . . . . . . . . . . . 429
39.5.2 Delivering asynchronous results via callbacks . . . . . . . . . 431
39.6 Asynchronous code: the downsides . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 431
39.7 Resources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 432

This chapter explains the foundations of asynchronous programming in JavaScript.

421
422 39 Asynchronous programming in JavaScript

39.1 A roadmap for asynchronous programming in

JavaScript
This section provides a roadmap for the content on asynchronous programming in
JavaScript.

Don’t worry about the details!

Don’t worry if you don’t understand everything yet. This is just a quick peek at
what’s coming up.

39.1.1 Synchronous functions

Normal functions are synchronous: the caller waits until the callee is finished with its
computation. divideSync() in line A is a synchronous function call:

function main() {
try {
const result = divideSync(12, 3); // (A)
assert.equal(result, 4);
} catch (err) {
assert.fail(err);
}
}

39.1.2 JavaScript executes tasks sequentially in a single process

By default, JavaScript tasks are functions that are executed sequentially in a single process.
That looks like this:

while (true) {
const task = taskQueue.dequeue();
task(); // run task
}

This loop is also called the event loop because events, such as clicking a mouse, add tasks
to the queue.

Due to this style of cooperative multitasking, we don’t want a task to block other tasks
from being executed while, for example, it waits for results coming from a server. The
next subsection explores how to handle this case.

39.1.3 Callback-based asynchronous functions

What if divide() needs a server to compute its result? Then the result should be deliv-
ered in a different manner: The caller shouldn’t have to wait (synchronously) until the
result is ready; it should be notified (asynchronously) when it is. One way of delivering
the result asynchronously is by giving divide() a callback function that it uses to notify
the caller.
39.1 A roadmap for asynchronous programming in JavaScript 423

function main() {
divideCallback(12, 3,
(err, result) => {
if (err) {
assert.fail(err);
} else {
assert.equal(result, 4);
}
});
}

When there is an asynchronous function call:

divideCallback(x, y, callback)

Then the following steps happen:

• divideCallback() sends a request to a server.

• Then the current task main() is finished and other tasks can be executed.
• When a response from the server arrives, it is either:
– An error err: Then the following task is added to the queue.
taskQueue.enqueue(() => callback(err));
– A result r: Then the following task is added to the queue.
taskQueue.enqueue(() => callback(null, r));

39.1.4 Promise-based asynchronous functions

Promises are two things:

• A standard pattern that makes working with callbacks easier.

• The mechanism on which async functions (the topic of the next subsection) are built.

Invoking a Promise-based function looks as follows.

function main() {
dividePromise(12, 3)
.then(result => assert.equal(result, 4))
.catch(err => assert.fail(err));
}

39.1.5 Async functions

One way of looking at async functions is as better syntax for Promise-based code:

async function main() {

try {
const result = await dividePromise(12, 3); // (A)
assert.equal(result, 4);
} catch (err) {
assert.fail(err);
}
}
 424 39 Asynchronous programming in JavaScript

The dividePromise() we are calling in line A is the same Promise-based function as in

the previous section. But we now have synchronous-looking syntax for handling the
call. await can only be used inside a special kind of function, an async function (note the
keyword async in front of the keyword function). await pauses the current async func-
tion and returns from it. Once the awaited result is ready, the execution of the function
continues where it left off.

39.1.6 Next steps

• In this chapter, we’ll see how synchronous function calls work. We’ll also explore
JavaScript’s way of executing code in a single process, via its event loop.
• Asynchronicity via callbacks is also described in this chapter.
• The following chapters cover Promises and async functions.
• This series of chapters on asynchronous programming concludes with the chapter
on asynchronous iteration, which is similar to synchronous iteration, but iterated
values are delivered asynchronously.

39.2 The call stack

Whenever a function calls another function, we need to remember where to return to
after the latter function is finished. That is typically done via a stack – the call stack: the
caller pushes onto it the location to return to, and the callee jumps to that location after
it is done.

This is an example where several calls happen:

1 function h(z) {
2 const error = new Error();
3 console.log(error.stack);
4 }
5 function g(y) {
6 h(y + 1);
7 }
8 function f(x) {
9 g(x + 1);
10 }
11 f(3);
12 // done

Initially, before running this piece of code, the call stack is empty. After the function call
f(3) in line 11, the stack has one entry:

• Line 12 (location in top-level scope)

After the function call g(x + 1) in line 9, the stack has two entries:

• Line 10 (location in f())

• Line 12 (location in top-level scope)

After the function call h(y + 1) in line 6, the stack has three entries:
39.3 The event loop 425

• Line 7 (location in g())

• Line 10 (location in f())
• Line 12 (location in top-level scope)

Logging error in line 3, produces the following output:

Error:
at h (demos/async-js/stack_trace.mjs:2:17)
at g (demos/async-js/stack_trace.mjs:6:3)
at f (demos/async-js/stack_trace.mjs:9:3)
at demos/async-js/stack_trace.mjs:11:1

This is a so-called stack trace of where the Error object was created. Note that it records
where calls were made, not return locations. Creating the exception in line 2 is yet an-
other call. That’s why the stack trace includes a location inside h().

After line 3, each of the functions terminates and each time, the top entry is removed from
the call stack. After function f is done, we are back in top-level scope and the stack is
empty. When the code fragment ends then that is like an implicit return. If we consider
the code fragment to be a task that is executed, then returning with an empty call stack
ends the task.

39.3 The event loop

By default, JavaScript runs in a single process – in both web browsers and Node.js. The
so-called event loop sequentially executes tasks (pieces of code) inside that process. The
event loop is depicted in fig. 39.1.

func3 running Task sources:

• DOM manipulation
• User interaction
• Networking
func2 • History traversal
func1 • …

onTimeout Call stack

Event loop ↺

onClick onDone onClick

Task queue

Figure 39.1: Task sources add code to run to the task queue, which is emptied by the event
loop.

Two parties access the task queue:

426 39 Asynchronous programming in JavaScript

• Task sources add tasks to the queue. Some of those sources run concurrently to the
JavaScript process. For example, one task source takes care of user interface events:
if a user clicks somewhere and a click listener was registered, then an invocation
of that listener is added to the task queue.

• The event loop runs continuously inside the JavaScript process. During each loop
iteration, it takes one task out of the queue (if the queue is empty, it waits until it
isn’t) and executes it. That task is finished when the call stack is empty and there
is a return. Control goes back to the event loop, which then retrieves the next task
from the queue and executes it. And so on.

The following JavaScript code is an approximation of the event loop:

while (true) {
const task = taskQueue.dequeue();
task(); // run task
}

39.4 How to avoid blocking the JavaScript process

39.4.1 The user interface of the browser can be blocked
Many of the user interface mechanisms of browsers also run in the JavaScript process (as
tasks). Therefore, long-running JavaScript code can block the user interface. Let’s look
at a web page that demonstrates that. There are two ways in which you can try out that
page:

• You can run it online.

• You can open the following file inside the repository with the exercises: demos/
async-js/blocking.html

The following HTML is the page’s user interface:

<a id="block" href="">Block</a>

<div id="statusMessage"></div>
<button>Click me!</button>

The idea is that you click “Block” and a long-running loop is executed via JavaScript.
During that loop, you can’t click the button because the browser/JavaScript process is
blocked.

A simplified version of the JavaScript code looks like this:

document.getElementById('block')
.addEventListener('click', doBlock); // (A)

function doBlock(event) {
// ···
displayStatus('Blocking...');
// ···
sleep(5000); // (B)
displayStatus('Done');
39.4 How to avoid blocking the JavaScript process 427

function sleep(milliseconds) {
const start = Date.now();
while ((Date.now() - start) < milliseconds);
}
function displayStatus(status) {
document.getElementById('statusMessage')
.textContent = status;
}

These are the key parts of the code:

• Line A: We tell the browser to call doBlock() whenever the HTML element is
clicked whose ID is block.
• doBlock() displays status information and then calls sleep() to block the
JavaScript process for 5000 milliseconds (line B).
• sleep() blocks the JavaScript process by looping until enough time has passed.
• displayStatus() displays status messages inside the <div> whose ID is sta-
tusMessage.

39.4.2 How can we avoid blocking the browser?

There are several ways in which you can prevent a long-running operation from blocking
the browser:

• The operation can deliver its result asynchronously: Some operations, such as down-
loads, can be performed concurrently to the JavaScript process. The JavaScript
code triggering such an operation registers a callback, which is invoked with the
result once the operation is finished. The invocation is handled via the task queue.
This style of delivering a result is called asynchronous because the caller doesn’t
wait until the results are ready. Normal function calls deliver their results syn-
chronously.

• Perform long computations in separate processes: This can be done via so-called
Web Workers. Web Workers are heavyweight processes that run concurrently to the
main process. Each one of them has its own runtime environment (global variables,
etc.). They are completely isolated and must be communicated with via message
passing. Consult MDN web docs for more information.

• Take breaks during long computations. The next subsection explains how.

39.4.3 Taking breaks

The following global function executes its parameter callback after a delay of ms mil-
liseconds (the type signature is simplified – setTimeout() has more features):

function setTimeout(callback: () => void, ms: number): any

The function returns a handle (an ID) that can be used to clear the timeout (cancel the
execution of the callback) via the following global function:
428 39 Asynchronous programming in JavaScript

function clearTimeout(handle?: any): void

setTimeout() is available on both browsers and Node.js. The next subsection shows it
in action.

setTimeout() lets tasks take breaks

Another way of looking at setTimeout() is that the current task takes a break and
continues later via the callback.

39.4.4 Run-to-completion semantics

JavaScript makes a guarantee for tasks:

Each task is always finished (“run to completion”) before the next task is
executed.

As a consequence, tasks don’t have to worry about their data being changed while they
are working on it (concurrent modification). That simplifies programming in JavaScript.

The following example demonstrates this guarantee:

console.log('start');
setTimeout(() => {
console.log('callback');
}, 0);
console.log('end');

// Output:
// 'start'
// 'end'
// 'callback'

setTimeout() puts its parameter into the task queue. The parameter is therefore exe-
cuted sometime after the current piece of code (task) is completely finished.

The parameter ms only specifies when the task is put into the queue, not when exactly it
runs. It may even never run – for example, if there is a task before it in the queue that
never terminates. That explains why the previous code logs 'end' before 'callback',
even though the parameter ms is 0.

39.5 Patterns for delivering asynchronous results

In order to avoid blocking the main process while waiting for a long-running operation to
finish, results are often delivered asynchronously in JavaScript. These are three popular
patterns for doing so:

• Events
• Callbacks
• Promises
39.5 Patterns for delivering asynchronous results 429

The first two patterns are explained in the next two subsections. Promises are explained
in the next chapter.

39.5.1 Delivering asynchronous results via events

Events as a pattern work as follows:

• They are used to deliver values asynchronously.

• They do so zero or more times.
• There are three roles in this pattern:
– The event (an object) carries the data to be delivered.
– The event listener is a function that receives events via a parameter.
– The event source sends events and lets you register event listeners.

Multiple variations of this pattern exist in the world of JavaScript. We’ll look at three
examples next.

39.5.1.1 Events: IndexedDB

IndexedDB is a database that is built into web browsers. This is an example of using it:

const openRequest = indexedDB.open('MyDatabase', 1); // (A)

openRequest.onsuccess = (event) => {

const db = event.target.result;
// ···
};

openRequest.onerror = (error) => {

console.error(error);
};

indexedDB has an unusual way of invoking operations:

• Each operation has an associated method for creating request objects. For example,
in line A, the operation is “open”, the method is .open(), and the request object is
openRequest.

• The parameters for the operation are provided via the request object, not via pa-
rameters of the method. For example, the event listeners (functions) are stored in
the properties .onsuccess and .onerror.

• The invocation of the operation is added to the task queue via the method (in line
A). That is, we configure the operation after its invocation has already been added
to the queue. Only run-to-completion semantics saves us from race conditions here
and ensures that the operation runs after the current code fragment is finished.

39.5.1.2 Events: XMLHttpRequest

The XMLHttpRequest API lets us make downloads from within a web browser. This is
how we download the file http://example.com/textfile.txt:
430 39 Asynchronous programming in JavaScript

const xhr = new XMLHttpRequest(); // (A)

xhr.open('GET', 'http://example.com/textfile.txt'); // (B)
xhr.onload = () => { // (C)
if (xhr.status == 200) {
processData(xhr.responseText);
} else {
assert.fail(new Error(xhr.statusText));
}
};
xhr.onerror = () => { // (D)
assert.fail(new Error('Network error'));
};
xhr.send(); // (E)

function processData(str) {
assert.equal(str, 'Content of textfile.txt\n');
}

With this API, we first create a request object (line A), then configure it, then activate it
(line E). The configuration consists of:

• Specifying which HTTP request method to use (line B): GET, POST, PUT, etc.
• Registering a listener (line C) that is notified if something could be downloaded.
Inside the listener, we still need to determine if the download contains what we
requested or informs us of an error. Note that some of the result data is delivered
via the request object xhr. (I’m not a fan of this kind of mixing of input and output
data.)
• Registering a listener (line D) that is notified if there was a network error.

39.5.1.3 Events: DOM

We have already seen DOM events in action in §39.4.1 “The user interface of the browser
can be blocked”. The following code also handles click events:

const element = document.getElementById('my-link'); // (A)

element.addEventListener('click', clickListener); // (B)

function clickListener(event) {
event.preventDefault(); // (C)
console.log(event.shiftKey); // (D)
}

We first ask the browser to retrieve the HTML element whose ID is 'my-link' (line A).
Then we add a listener for all click events (line B). In the listener, we first tell the browser
not to perform its default action (line C) – going to the target of the link. Then we log to
the console if the shift key is currently pressed (line D).
39.6 Asynchronous code: the downsides 431

39.5.2 Delivering asynchronous results via callbacks

Callbacks are another pattern for handling asynchronous results. They are only used for
one-off results and have the advantage of being less verbose than events.

As an example, consider a function readFile() that reads a text file and returns its con-
tents asynchronously. This is how you call readFile() if it uses Node.js-style callbacks:

readFile('some-file.txt', {encoding: 'utf8'},

(error, data) => {
if (error) {
assert.fail(error);
return;
}
assert.equal(data, 'The content of some-file.txt\n');
});

There is a single callback that handles both success and failure. If the first parameter
is not null then an error happened. Otherwise, the result can be found in the second
parameter.

Exercises: Callback-based code

The following exercises use tests for asynchronous code, which are different from
tests for synchronous code. Consult §11.3.2 “Asynchronous tests in AVA” for more
information.
• From synchronous to callback-based code: exercises/async-js/read_
file_cb_exrc.mjs
• Implementing a callback-based version of .map(): exercises/async-
js/map_cb_test.mjs

39.6 Asynchronous code: the downsides

In many situations, on either browsers or Node.js, you have no choice, you must use
asynchronous code. In this chapter, we have seen several patterns that such code can
use. All of them have two disadvantages:

• Asynchronous code is more verbose than synchronous code.

• If you call asynchronous code, your code must become asynchronous too. That’s
because you can’t wait synchronously for an asynchronous result. Asynchronous
code has an infectious quality.

The first disadvantage becomes less severe with Promises (covered in the next chapter)
and mostly disappears with async functions (covered in the chapter after next).

Alas, the infectiousness of async code does not go away. But it is mitigated by the fact
that switching between sync and async is easy with async functions.
432 39 Asynchronous programming in JavaScript

39.7 Resources
• “Help, I’m stuck in an event-loop” by Philip Roberts (video).
• “Event loops”, section in HTML5 spec.
Chapter 40

Promises for asynchronous

programming

Contents
40.1 The basics of using Promises . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 434
40.1.1 Using a Promise-based function . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 434
40.1.2 What is a Promise? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 435
40.1.3 Implementing a Promise-based function . . . . . . . . . . . . 435
40.1.4 States of Promises . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 435
40.1.5 Promise.resolve(): create a Promise fulfilled with a given value436
40.1.6 Promise.reject(): create a Promise rejected with a given value 436
40.1.7 Returning and throwing in .then() callbacks . . . . . . . . . . 436
40.1.8 .catch() and its callback . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 438
40.1.9 Chaining method calls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 438
40.1.10 Advantages of promises . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 439
40.2 Examples . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 440
40.2.1 Node.js: Reading a file asynchronously . . . . . . . . . . . . . 440
40.2.2 Browsers: Promisifying XMLHttpRequest . . . . . . . . . . . . 441
40.2.3 Node.js: util.promisify() . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 442
40.2.4 Browsers: Fetch API . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 443
40.3 Error handling: don’t mix rejections and exceptions . . . . . . . . . 443
40.4 Promise-based functions start synchronously, settle asynchronously 445
40.5 Promise combinators: working with Arrays of Promises . . . . . . . 446
40.5.1 The built-in Promise combinators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 446
40.5.2 A more detailed definition of the term Promise combinator . . . 447
40.5.3 Promise.all() [ES6] . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 447
40.5.4 Promise.race() [ES6] . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 450
40.5.5 Promise.allSettled() [ES2020] . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 453
40.5.6 Short-circuiting (advanced) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 456
40.6 Concurrency and Promise.all() (advanced) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 456

433
434 40 Promises for asynchronous programming

40.6.1 Sequential execution vs. concurrent execution . . . . . . . . . 456

40.6.2 Concurrency tip: focus on when operations start . . . . . . . . 456
40.6.3 Promise.all() is fork-join . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 457
40.7 Tips for chaining Promises . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 457
40.7.1 Chaining mistake: losing the tail . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 458
40.7.2 Chaining mistake: nesting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 458
40.7.3 Chaining mistake: more nesting than necessary . . . . . . . . 458
40.7.4 Not all nesting is bad . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 459
40.7.5 Chaining mistake: creating Promises instead of chaining . . . 459

In this chapter, we explore Promises, yet another pattern for delivering asynchronous
results.

Recommended reading
This chapter builds on the previous chapter with background on asynchronous pro-
gramming in JavaScript.

40.1 The basics of using Promises

Promises are a pattern for delivering results asynchronously.

40.1.1 Using a Promise-based function

The following code is an example of using the Promise-based function addAsync()
(whose implementation is shown soon):

addAsync(3, 4)
.then(result => { // success
assert.equal(result, 7);
})
.catch(error => { // failure
assert.fail(error);
});

Promises are similar to the event pattern: There is an object (a Promise), where we register
callbacks:

• Method .then() registers callbacks that handle results.

• Method .catch() registers callbacks that handle errors.

A Promise-based function returns a Promise and sends it a result or an error (if and when
it is done). The Promise passes it on to the relevant callbacks.

In contrast to the event pattern, Promises are optimized for one-off results:

• A result (or an error) is cached so that it doesn’t matter if we register a callback

before or after the result (or error) was sent.
40.1 The basics of using Promises 435

• We can chain the Promise methods .then() and .catch() because they both return
Promises. That helps with sequentially invoking multiple asynchronous functions.
More on that later.

40.1.2 What is a Promise?

What is a Promise? There are two ways of looking at it:

• On one hand, it is a placeholder or container for the final result that will eventually
be delivered.
• On the other hand, it is an object with which we can register listeners.

40.1.3 Implementing a Promise-based function

This is an implementation of a Promise-based function that adds two numbers x and y:

function addAsync(x, y) {
return new Promise(
(resolve, reject) => { // (A)
if (x === undefined || y === undefined) {
reject(new Error('Must provide two parameters'));
} else {
resolve(x + y);
}
});
}

addAsync() immediately invokes the Promise constructor. The actual implementation

of that function resides in the callback that is passed to that constructor (line A). That
callback is provided with two functions:

• resolve is used for delivering a result (in case of success).

• reject is used for delivering an error (in case of failure).

40.1.4 States of Promises

Settled

Pending Fulfilled

Rejected

Figure 40.1: A Promise can be in either one of three states: pending, fulfilled, or rejected.
If a Promise is in a final (non-pending) state, it is called settled.

Fig. 40.1 depicts the three states a Promise can be in. Promises specialize in one-off results
and protect us against race conditions (registering too early or too late):
436 40 Promises for asynchronous programming

• If we register a .then() callback or a .catch() callback too early, it is notified once

a Promise is settled.
• Once a Promise is settled, the settlement value (result or error) is cached. Thus, if
.then() or .catch() are called after the settlement, they receive the cached value.

Additionally, once a Promise is settled, its state and settlement value can’t change any-
more. That helps make code predictable and enforces the one-off nature of Promises.

Some Promises are never settled

It is possible that a Promise is never settled. For example:
new Promise(() => {})

40.1.5 Promise.resolve(): create a Promise fulfilled with a given

value
Promise.resolve(x) creates a Promise that is fulfilled with the value x:

Promise.resolve(123)
.then(x => {
assert.equal(x, 123);
});

If the parameter is already a Promise, it is returned unchanged:

const abcPromise = Promise.resolve('abc');

assert.equal(
Promise.resolve(abcPromise),
abcPromise);

Therefore, given an arbitrary value x, we can use Promise.resolve(x) to ensure we have

a Promise.

Note that the name is resolve, not fulfill, because .resolve() returns a rejected
Promise if its Parameter is a rejected Promise.

40.1.6 Promise.reject(): create a Promise rejected with a given value

Promise.reject(err) creates a Promise that is rejected with the value err:

const myError = new Error('My error!');

Promise.reject(myError)
.catch(err => {
assert.equal(err, myError);
});

40.1.7 Returning and throwing in .then() callbacks

.then() handles Promise fulfillments. It also returns a fresh Promise. How that Promise
is settled depends on what happens inside the callback. Let’s look at three common cases.
40.1 The basics of using Promises 437

40.1.7.1 Returning a non-Promise value

First, the callback can return a non-Promise value (line A). Consequently, the Promise
returned by .then() is fulfilled with that value (as checked in line B):

Promise.resolve('abc')
.then(str => {
return str + str; // (A)
})
.then(str2 => {
assert.equal(str2, 'abcabc'); // (B)
});

40.1.7.2 Returning a Promise

Second, the callback can return a Promise p (line A). Consequently, p “becomes” what
.then() returns. In other words: the Promise that .then() has already returned is effec-
tively replaced by p.

Promise.resolve('abc')
.then(str => {
return Promise.resolve(123); // (A)
})
.then(num => {
assert.equal(num, 123);
});

Why is that useful? We can return the result of a Promise-based operation and process
its fulfillment value via a “flat” (non-nested) .then(). Compare:

// Flat
asyncFunc1()
.then(result1 => {
/*···*/
return asyncFunc2();
})
.then(result2 => {
/*···*/
});

// Nested
asyncFunc1()
.then(result1 => {
/*···*/
asyncFunc2()
.then(result2 => {
/*···*/
});
});
438 40 Promises for asynchronous programming

40.1.7.3 Throwing an exception

Third, the callback can throw an exception. Consequently, the Promise returned by
.then() is rejected with that exception. That is, a synchronous error is converted into
an asynchronous error.

const myError = new Error('My error!');

Promise.resolve('abc')
.then(str => {
throw myError;
})
.catch(err => {
assert.equal(err, myError);
});

40.1.8 .catch() and its callback

The only difference between .then() and .catch() is that the latter is triggered by re-
jections, not fulfillments. However, both methods turn the actions of their callbacks into
Promises in the same manner. For example, in the following code, the value returned by
the .catch() callback in line A becomes a fulfillment value:

const err = new Error();

Promise.reject(err)
.catch(e => {
assert.equal(e, err);
// Something went wrong, use a default value
return 'default value'; // (A)
})
.then(str => {
assert.equal(str, 'default value');
});

40.1.9 Chaining method calls

.then() and .catch() always return Promises. That enables us to create arbitrary long
chains of method calls:

function myAsyncFunc() {
return asyncFunc1() // (A)
.then(result1 => {
// ···
return asyncFunc2(); // a Promise
})
.then(result2 => {
// ···
return result2 ?? '(Empty)'; // not a Promise
})
.then(result3 => {
40.1 The basics of using Promises 439

// ···
return asyncFunc4(); // a Promise
});
}

Due to chaining, the return in line A returns the result of the last .then().

In a way, .then() is the asynchronous version of the synchronous semicolon:

• .then() executes two asynchronous operations sequentially.

• The semicolon executes two synchronous operations sequentially.

We can also add .catch() into the mix and let it handle multiple error sources at the
same time:

asyncFunc1()
.then(result1 => {
// ···
return asyncFunction2();
})
.then(result2 => {
// ···
})
.catch(error => {
// Failure: handle errors of asyncFunc1(), asyncFunc2()
// and any (sync) exceptions thrown in previous callbacks
});

40.1.10 Advantages of promises

These are some of the advantages of Promises over plain callbacks when it comes to
handling one-off results:

• The type signatures of Promise-based functions and methods are cleaner: if a func-
tion is callback-based, some parameters are about input, while the one or two call-
backs at the end are about output. With Promises, everything output-related is
handled via the returned value.

• Chaining asynchronous processing steps is more convenient.

• Promises handle both asynchronous errors (via rejections) and synchronous errors:
Inside the callbacks for new Promise(), .then(), and .catch(), exceptions are con-
verted to rejections. In contrast, if we use callbacks for asynchronicity, exceptions
are normally not handled for us; we have to do it ourselves.

• Promises are a single standard that is slowly replacing several, mutually incom-
patible alternatives. For example, in Node.js, many functions are now available
in Promise-based versions. And new asynchronous browser APIs are usually
Promise-based.

One of the biggest advantages of Promises involves not working with them directly: they
are the foundation of async functions, a synchronous-looking syntax for performing asyn-
chronous computations. Asynchronous functions are covered in the next chapter.
440 40 Promises for asynchronous programming

40.2 Examples
Seeing Promises in action helps with understanding them. Let’s look at examples.

40.2.1 Node.js: Reading a file asynchronously

Consider the following text file person.json with JSON data in it:

{
"first": "Jane",
"last": "Doe"
}

Let’s look at two versions of code that reads this file and parses it into an object. First, a
callback-based version. Second, a Promise-based version.

40.2.1.1 The callback-based version

The following code reads the contents of this file and converts it to a JavaScript object. It
is based on Node.js-style callbacks:

import * as fs from 'fs';

fs.readFile('person.json',
(error, text) => {
if (error) { // (A)
// Failure
assert.fail(error);
} else {
// Success
try { // (B)
const obj = JSON.parse(text); // (C)
assert.deepEqual(obj, {
first: 'Jane',
last: 'Doe',
});
} catch (e) {
// Invalid JSON
assert.fail(e);
}
}
});

fs is a built-in Node.js module for file system operations. We use the callback-based
function fs.readFile() to read a file whose name is person.json. If we succeed, the
content is delivered via the parameter text as a string. In line C, we convert that string
from the text-based data format JSON into a JavaScript object. JSON is an object with
methods for consuming and producing JSON. It is part of JavaScript’s standard library
and documented later in this book.

Note that there are two error-handling mechanisms: the if in line A takes care of asyn-
chronous errors reported by fs.readFile(), while the try in line B takes care of syn-
40.2 Examples 441

chronous errors reported by JSON.parse().

40.2.1.2 The Promise-based version

The following code uses readFileAsync(), a Promise-based version of fs.readFile()

(created via util.promisify(), which is explained later):

readFileAsync('person.json')
.then(text => { // (A)
// Success
const obj = JSON.parse(text);
assert.deepEqual(obj, {
first: 'Jane',
last: 'Doe',
});
})
.catch(err => { // (B)
// Failure: file I/O error or JSON syntax error
assert.fail(err);
});

Function readFileAsync() returns a Promise. In line A, we specify a success callback via

method .then() of that Promise. The remaining code in then’s callback is synchronous.

.then() returns a Promise, which enables the invocation of the Promise method
.catch() in line B. We use it to specify a failure callback.

Note that .catch() lets us handle both the asynchronous errors of readFileAsync() and
the synchronous errors of JSON.parse() because exceptions inside a .then() callback
become rejections.

40.2.2 Browsers: Promisifying XMLHttpRequest

We have previously seen the event-based XMLHttpRequest API for downloading data in
web browsers. The following function promisifies that API:

function httpGet(url) {
return new Promise(
(resolve, reject) => {
const xhr = new XMLHttpRequest();
xhr.onload = () => {
if (xhr.status === 200) {
resolve(xhr.responseText); // (A)
} else {
// Something went wrong (404, etc.)
reject(new Error(xhr.statusText)); // (B)
}
}
xhr.onerror = () => {
reject(new Error('Network error')); // (C)
};
442 40 Promises for asynchronous programming

xhr.open('GET', url);
xhr.send();
});
}

Note how the results and errors of XMLHttpRequest are handled via resolve() and re-
ject():

• A successful outcome leads to the returned Promise being fullfilled with it (line
A).
• An error leads to the Promise being rejected (lines B and C).

This is how to use httpGet():

httpGet('http://example.com/textfile.txt')
.then(content => {
assert.equal(content, 'Content of textfile.txt\n');
})
.catch(error => {
assert.fail(error);
});

Exercise: Timing out a Promise

exercises/promises/promise_timeout_test.mjs

40.2.3 Node.js: util.promisify()

util.promisify() is a utility function that converts a callback-based function f into a
Promise-based one. That is, we are going from this type signature:

f(arg_1, ···, arg_n, (err: Error, result: T) => void) : void

To this type signature:

f(arg_1, ···, arg_n) : Promise<T>

The following code promisifies the callback-based fs.readFile() (line A) and uses it:

import * as fs from 'fs';

import {promisify} from 'util';

const readFileAsync = promisify(fs.readFile); // (A)

readFileAsync('some-file.txt', {encoding: 'utf8'})

.then(text => {
assert.equal(text, 'The content of some-file.txt\n');
})
.catch(err => {
assert.fail(err);
});
40.3 Error handling: don’t mix rejections and exceptions 443

Exercises: util.promisify()
• Using util.promisify(): exercises/promises/read_file_async_exrc.
mjs
• Implementing util.promisify() yourself: exercises/promises/my_
promisify_test.mjs

40.2.4 Browsers: Fetch API

All modern browsers support Fetch, a new Promise-based API for downloading data.
Think of it as a Promise-based version of XMLHttpRequest. The following is an excerpt
of the API:

interface Body {
text() : Promise<string>;
···
}
interface Response extends Body {
···
}
declare function fetch(str) : Promise<Response>;

That means we can use fetch() as follows:

fetch('http://example.com/textfile.txt')
.then(response => response.text())
.then(text => {
assert.equal(text, 'Content of textfile.txt\n');
});

Exercise: Using the fetch API

exercises/promises/fetch_json_test.mjs

40.3 Error handling: don’t mix rejections and exceptions

Rule for implementing functions and methods:

Don’t mix (asynchronous) rejections and (synchronous) exceptions.

This makes our synchronous and asynchronous code more predictable and simpler be-
cause we can always focus on a single error-handling mechanism.

For Promise-based functions and methods, the rule means that they should never throw
exceptions. Alas, it is easy to accidentally get this wrong – for example:

// Don’t do this
function asyncFunc() {
doSomethingSync(); // (A)
444 40 Promises for asynchronous programming

return doSomethingAsync()
.then(result => {
// ···
});
}

The problem is that if an exception is thrown in line A, then asyncFunc() will throw an
exception. Callers of that function only expect rejections and are not prepared for an
exception. There are three ways in which we can fix this issue.

We can wrap the whole body of the function in a try-catch statement and return a re-
jected Promise if an exception is thrown:

// Solution 1
function asyncFunc() {
try {
doSomethingSync();
return doSomethingAsync()
.then(result => {
// ···
});
} catch (err) {
return Promise.reject(err);
}
}

Given that .then() converts exceptions to rejections, we can execute doSomethingSync()

inside a .then() callback. To do so, we start a Promise chain via Promise.resolve(). We
ignore the fulfillment value undefined of that initial Promise.

// Solution 2
function asyncFunc() {
return Promise.resolve()
.then(() => {
doSomethingSync();
return doSomethingAsync();
})
.then(result => {
// ···
});
}

Lastly, new Promise() also converts exceptions to rejections. Using this constructor is
therefore similar to the previous solution:

// Solution 3
function asyncFunc() {
return new Promise((resolve, reject) => {
doSomethingSync();
resolve(doSomethingAsync());
})
40.4 Promise-based functions start synchronously, settle asynchronously 445

.then(result => {
// ···
});
}

40.4 Promise-based functions start synchronously, settle

asynchronously
Most Promise-based functions are executed as follows:

• Their execution starts right away, synchronously (in the current task).
• But the Promise they return is guaranteed to be settled asynchronously (in a later
task) – if ever.

The following code demonstrates that:

function asyncFunc() {
console.log('asyncFunc');
return new Promise(
(resolve, _reject) => {
console.log('new Promise()');
resolve();
});
}
console.log('START');
asyncFunc()
.then(() => {
console.log('.then()'); // (A)
});
console.log('END');

// Output:
// 'START'
// 'asyncFunc'
// 'new Promise()'
// ' END '
// '.then()'

We can see that the callback of new Promise() is executed before the end of the code,
while the result is delivered later (line A).

Benefits of this approach:

• Starting synchronously helps avoid race conditions because we can rely on the
order in which Promise-based functions begin. There is an example in the next
chapter, where text is written to a file and race conditions are avoided.

• Chaining Promises won’t starve other tasks of processing time because before a
Promise is settled, there will always be a break, during which the event loop can
run.
446 40 Promises for asynchronous programming

• Promise-based functions always return results asynchronously; we can be sure

that there is never a synchronous return. This kind of predictability makes code
easier to work with.

More information on this approach

“Designing APIs for Asynchrony” by Isaac Z. Schlueter

40.5 Promise combinators: working with Arrays of

Promises
40.5.1 The built-in Promise combinators
A Promise combinator works as follows:

• Its input is an iterable over zero or more Promises.

• Its output is a single Promise P.

The remainder of this section contains a list of all Promise combinators that are built into
JavaScript.

40.5.1.1 Promise.all() [ES6]

Promise.all<T>(promises: Iterable<Promise<T>>)
: Promise<Array<T>>

• Fulfillment of P: if all input Promises are fulfilled.

– Value: Array with the fulfillment values of the input Promises
• Rejection of P: if one input Promise is rejected.
– Value: rejection value of the input Promise
• Short-circuits: yes
• Use case: processing Arrays with Promises (rejections terminate processing)
• Introduced in: ECMAScript 6

40.5.1.2 Promise.race() [ES6]

Promise.race<T>(promises: Iterable<Promise<T>>)
: Promise<T>

• Settlement of P: if the first input Promise is settled.

– Value: settlement value of the input Promise
• Short-circuits: yes
• Use case: reacting to the first settlement among multiple Promises
• Introduced in: ECMAScript 6

40.5.1.3 Promise.allSettled() [ES2020]

Promise.allSettled<T>(promises: Iterable<Promise<T>>)
: Promise<Array<SettlementObject<T>>>
40.5 Promise combinators: working with Arrays of Promises 447

• Fulfillment of P: if all input Promise are settled.

– Value: Array with one settlement object for each input Promise. A settlement
object contains the kind of settlement and the settlement value.
• Rejection of P: if there is an error when iterating over the input Promises.
• Short-circuits: no
• Use case: processing Arrays with Promises (rejections don’t terminate processing)
• Introduced in: ECMAScript 2020

Legend:

• Short-circuiting: In some cases, the output Promise can be settled early (before ev-
ery input Promise is settled). More information on how this works is given later.

40.5.2 A more detailed definition of the term Promise combinator

The combinator pattern is a pattern in functional programming for building structures. It
is based on two kinds of functions:

• Primitive functions (short: primitives) create atomic pieces.

• Combinator functions (short: combinators) combine atomic and/or compound pieces
to create compound pieces.

When it comes to JavaScript Promises:

• Primitive functions include: Promise.resolve(), Promise.reject()

• Combinators include: Promise.all(), Promise.race(), Promise.allSettled()

Next, we’ll take a closer look at Promise.all(), Promise.race(), and Promise.allSettled().

40.5.3 Promise.all() [ES6]

This is the type signature of Promise.all():

Promise.all<T>(promises: Iterable<Promise<T>>): Promise<Array<T>>

Promise.all() returns a Promise which is:

• Fulfilled if all promises are fulfilled.

– Then its fulfillment value is an Array with the fulfillment values of promises.
• Rejected if at least one Promise is rejected.
– Then its rejection value is the rejection value of that Promise.

This is a quick demo of the output Promise being fulfilled:

const promises = [
Promise.resolve('result a'),
Promise.resolve('result b'),
Promise.resolve('result c'),
];
Promise.all(promises)
.then((arr) => assert.deepEqual(
arr, ['result a', 'result b', 'result c']
));
448 40 Promises for asynchronous programming

The following example demonstrates what happens if at least one of the input Promises
is rejected:
const promises = [
Promise.resolve('result a'),
Promise.resolve('result b'),
Promise.reject('ERROR'),
];
Promise.all(promises)
.catch((err) => assert.equal(
err, 'ERROR'
));

Fig. 40.2 illustrates how Promise.all() works.

✓ ✗ ✓ ✗
[ v0 r0 , v1 r1 , ··· ]
all

∀ ∃
✓ ✗

[v0, v1, ···] ri

Figure 40.2: The Promise combinator Promise.all().

40.5.3.1 Asynchronous .map() via Promise.all()

Array transformation methods such as .map(), .filter(), etc., are made for syn-
chronous computations. For example:
function timesTwoSync(x) {
return 2 * x;
}
const arr = [1, 2, 3];
const result = arr.map(timesTwoSync);
assert.deepEqual(result, [2, 4, 6]);

What happens if the callback of .map() is a Promise-based function (a function that

maps normal values to Promises)? Then the result of .map() is an Array of Promises.
Alas, that is not data that normal code can work with. Thankfully, we can fix that via
Promise.all(): It converts an Array of Promises into a Promise that is fulfilled with an
Array of normal values.
function timesTwoAsync(x) {
return new Promise(resolve => resolve(x * 2));
40.5 Promise combinators: working with Arrays of Promises 449

}
const arr = [1, 2, 3];
const promiseArr = arr.map(timesTwoAsync);
Promise.all(promiseArr)
.then(result => {
assert.deepEqual(result, [2, 4, 6]);
});

40.5.3.2 A more realistic .map() example

Next, we’ll use .map() and Promise.all() to downlooad text files from the web. For
that, we need the following tool function:
function downloadText(url) {
return fetch(url)
.then((response) => { // (A)
if (!response.ok) { // (B)
throw new Error(response.statusText);
}
return response.text(); // (C)
});
}

downloadText() uses the Promise-based fetch API to download a text file as a string:

• First, it asynchronously retrieves a response (line A).

• response.ok (line B) checks if there were errors such as “file not found”.
• If there weren’t any, we use .text() (line C) to retrieve the content of the file as a
string.
In the following example, we download two text files:
const urls = [
'http://example.com/first.txt',
'http://example.com/second.txt',
];

const promises = urls.map(

url => downloadText(url));

Promise.all(promises)
.then(
(arr) => assert.deepEqual(
arr, ['First!', 'Second!']
));

40.5.3.3 A simple implementation of Promise.all()

This is a simplified implementation of Promise.all() (e.g., it performs no safety checks):

function all(iterable) {
return new Promise((resolve, reject) => {
450 40 Promises for asynchronous programming

let index = 0;
for (const promise of iterable) {
// Capture the current value of `index`
const currentIndex = index;
promise.then(
(value) => {
if (anErrorOccurred) return;
result[currentIndex] = value;
elementCount++;
if (elementCount === result.length) {
resolve(result);
}
},
(err) => {
if (anErrorOccurred) return;
anErrorOccurred = true;
reject(err);
});
index++;
}
if (index === 0) {
resolve([]);
return;
}
let elementCount = 0;
let anErrorOccurred = false;
const result = new Array(index);
});
}

40.5.4 Promise.race() [ES6]

This is the type signature of Promise.race():

Promise.race<T>(promises: Iterable<Promise<T>>): Promise<T>

Promise.race() returns a Promise q which is settled as soon as the first Promise p among
promises is settled. q has the same settlement value as p.

In the following demo, the settlement of the fulfilled Promise (line A) happens before the
settlement of the rejected Promise (line B). Therefore, the result is also fulfilled (line C).

const promises = [
new Promise((resolve, reject) =>
setTimeout(() => resolve('result'), 100)), // (A)
new Promise((resolve, reject) =>
setTimeout(() => reject('ERROR'), 200)), // (B)
];
Promise.race(promises)
.then((result) => assert.equal( // (C)
40.5 Promise combinators: working with Arrays of Promises 451

result, 'result'));

In the next demo, the rejection happens first:

const promises = [
new Promise((resolve, reject) =>
setTimeout(() => resolve('result'), 200)),
new Promise((resolve, reject) =>
setTimeout(() => reject('ERROR'), 100)),
];
Promise.race(promises)
.then(
(result) => assert.fail(),
(err) => assert.equal(
err, 'ERROR'));

Note that the Promise returned by Promise.race() is settled as soon as the first among
its input Promises is settled. That means that the result of Promise.race([]) is never
settled.
Fig. 40.3 illustrates how Promise.race() works.

✓ ✗ ✓ ✗
[ v0 r0 , v1 r1 , ··· ]
race

1st 1st
✓ ✗

vi ri

Figure 40.3: The Promise combinator Promise.race().

40.5.4.1 Using Promise.race() to time out a Promise

In this section, we are going to use Promise.race() to time out Promises. The following
helper function will be useful several times:
function resolveAfter(ms, value=undefined) {
return new Promise((resolve, reject) => {
setTimeout(() => resolve(value), ms);
});
}

resolveAfter() returns a Promise that is resolved with value after ms milliseconds.

This function times out a Promise:

452 40 Promises for asynchronous programming

function timeout(timeoutInMs, promise) {

return Promise.race([
promise,
resolveAfter(timeoutInMs,
Promise.reject(new Error('Operation timed out'))),
]);
}

timeout() returns a Promise whose settlement is the same as the one of whichever
Promise settles first among the following two:
1. The parameter promise
2. A Promise that is rejected after timeoutInMs milliseconds
To produce the second Promise, timeout() uses the fact that resolving a pending Promise
with a rejected Promise leads to the former being rejected.
Let’s see timeout() in action. Here, the input Promise is fulfilled before the timeout.
Therefore, the output Promise is fulfilled.
timeout(200, resolveAfter(100, 'Result!'))
.then(result => assert.equal(result, 'Result!'));

Here, the timeout happens before the input Promise is fulfilled. Therefore, the output
Promise is rejected.
timeout(100, resolveAfter(2000, 'Result!'))
.catch(err => assert.deepEqual(err, new Error('Operation timed out')));

It is important to understand what “timing out a Promise” really means:

• If the input Promise is settled quickly enough, its settlement is passed on to the
output Promise.
• If it isn’t settled quickly enough, the output Promise is rejected.
That is, timing out only prevents the input Promise from affecting the output (since a
Promise can only be settled once). But it does not stop the asynchronous operation that
produced the input Promise. That is a different subject matter.

40.5.4.2 A simple implementation of Promise.race()

This is a simplified implementation of Promise.race() (e.g., it performs no safety

checks):
function race(iterable) {
return new Promise((resolve, reject) => {
for (const promise of iterable) {
promise.then(
(value) => {
if (settlementOccurred) return;
settlementOccurred = true;
resolve(value);
},
(err) => {
40.5 Promise combinators: working with Arrays of Promises 453

if (settlementOccurred) return;
settlementOccurred = true;
reject(err);
});
}
let settlementOccurred = false;
});
}

40.5.5 Promise.allSettled() [ES2020]

This time, the type signatures are a little more complicated. Feel free to skip ahead to the
first demo, which should be easier to understand.

This is the type signature of Promise.allSettled():

Promise.allSettled<T>(promises: Iterable<Promise<T>>)
: Promise<Array<SettlementObject<T>>>

It returns a Promise for an Array whose elements have the following type signature:

type SettlementObject<T> = FulfillmentObject<T> | RejectionObject;

interface FulfillmentObject<T> {
status: 'fulfilled';
value: T;
}

interface RejectionObject {
status: 'rejected';
reason: unknown;
}

Promise.allSettled() returns a Promise out. Once all promises are settled, out is ful-
filled with an Array. Each element e of that Array corresponds to one Promise p of
promises:

• If p is fulfilled with the fulfillment value v, then e is

{ status: 'fulfilled', value: v }

• If p is rejected with the rejection value r, then e is

{ status: 'rejected', reason: r }

Unless there is an error when iterating over promises, the output Promise out is never
rejected.

Fig. 40.4 illustrates how Promise.allSettled() works.

40.5.5.1 A first demo of Promise.allSettled()

This is a quick first demo of how Promise.allSettled() works:

454 40 Promises for asynchronous programming

✓ ✗ ✓ ✗
[ v0 r0 , v1 r1 , ··· ]
xi = { allSettled xi = {
status: 'fulfilled', status: 'rejected',
value: vi reason: ri
} ✓ ✗ }
iteration
[x0, x1, ···] error

Figure 40.4: The Promise combinator Promise.allSettled().

Promise.allSettled([
Promise.resolve('a'),
Promise.reject('b'),
])
.then(arr => assert.deepEqual(arr, [
{ status: 'fulfilled', value: 'a' },
{ status: 'rejected', reason: 'b' },
]));

40.5.5.2 A longer example for Promise.allSettled()

The next example is similar to the .map() plus Promise.all() example (from which we
are borrowing the function downloadText()): We are downloading multiple text files
whose URLs are stored in an Array. However, this time, we don’t want to stop when
there is an error, we want to keep going. Promise.allSettled() allows us to do that:

const urls = [
'http://example.com/exists.txt',
'http://example.com/missing.txt',
];

const result = Promise.allSettled(

urls.map(u => downloadText(u)));
result.then(
arr => assert.deepEqual(
arr,
[
{
status: 'fulfilled',
value: 'Hello!',
},
40.5 Promise combinators: working with Arrays of Promises 455

{
status: 'rejected',
reason: new Error('Not Found'),
},
]
));

40.5.5.3 A simple implementation of Promise.allSettled()

This is a simplified implementation of Promise.allSettled() (e.g., it performs no safety

checks):

function allSettled(iterable) {
return new Promise((resolve, reject) => {
function addElementToResult(i, elem) {
result[i] = elem;
elementCount++;
if (elementCount === result.length) {
resolve(result);
}
}

let index = 0;
for (const promise of iterable) {
// Capture the current value of `index`
const currentIndex = index;
promise.then(
(value) => addElementToResult(
currentIndex, {
status: 'fulfilled',
value
}),
(reason) => addElementToResult(
currentIndex, {
status: 'rejected',
reason
}));
index++;
}
if (index === 0) {
resolve([]);
return;
}
let elementCount = 0;
const result = new Array(index);
});
}
456 40 Promises for asynchronous programming

40.5.6 Short-circuiting (advanced)

For a Promise combinator, short-circuiting means that the output Promise is settled early
– before all input Promises are settled. Two combinators short-circuit:

• Promise.all(): The output Promise is rejected as soon as one input Promise is

rejected.
• Promise.race(): The output Promise is settled as soon as one input Promise is
settled.

Once again, settling early does not mean that the operations behind the ignored Promises
are stopped. It just means that their settlements are ignored.

40.6 Concurrency and Promise.all() (advanced)

40.6.1 Sequential execution vs. concurrent execution
Consider the following code:

const asyncFunc1 = () => Promise.resolve('one');

const asyncFunc2 = () => Promise.resolve('two');

asyncFunc1()
.then(result1 => {
assert.equal(result1, 'one');
return asyncFunc2();
})
.then(result2 => {
assert.equal(result2, 'two');
});

Using .then() in this manner executes Promise-based functions sequentially: only after
the result of asyncFunc1() is settled will asyncFunc2() be executed.

Promise.all() helps execute Promise-based functions more concurrently:

Promise.all([asyncFunc1(), asyncFunc2()])
.then(arr => {
assert.deepEqual(arr, ['one', 'two']);
});

40.6.2 Concurrency tip: focus on when operations start

Tip for determining how “concurrent” asynchronous code is: Focus on when asyn-
chronous operations start, not on how their Promises are handled.

For example, each of the following functions executes asyncFunc1() and asyncFunc2()
concurrently because they are started at nearly the same time.

function concurrentAll() {
return Promise.all([asyncFunc1(), asyncFunc2()]);
}
40.7 Tips for chaining Promises 457

function concurrentThen() {
const p1 = asyncFunc1();
const p2 = asyncFunc2();
return p1.then(r1 => p2.then(r2 => [r1, r2]));
}

On the other hand, both of the following functions execute asyncFunc1() and async-
Func2() sequentially: asyncFunc2() is only invoked after the Promise of asyncFunc1()
is fulfilled.

function sequentialThen() {
return asyncFunc1()
.then(r1 => asyncFunc2()
.then(r2 => [r1, r2]));
}

function sequentialAll() {
const p1 = asyncFunc1();
const p2 = p1.then(() => asyncFunc2());
return Promise.all([p1, p2]);
}

40.6.3 Promise.all() is fork-join

Promise.all() is loosely related to the concurrency pattern “fork join”. Let’s revisit an
example that we have encountered previously:

Promise.all([
// (A) fork
downloadText('http://example.com/first.txt'),
downloadText('http://example.com/second.txt'),
])
// (B) join
.then(
(arr) => assert.deepEqual(
arr, ['First!', 'Second!']
));

• Fork: In line A, we are forking two asynchronous computations and executing

them concurrently.
• Join: In line B, we are joining these computations into a single “thread” which is
started once all of them are done.

40.7 Tips for chaining Promises

This section gives tips for chaining Promises.
458 40 Promises for asynchronous programming

40.7.1 Chaining mistake: losing the tail

Problem:

// Don’t do this
function foo() {
const promise = asyncFunc();
promise.then(result => {
// ···
});

return promise;
}

Computation starts with the Promise returned by asyncFunc(). But afterward, compu-
tation continues and another Promise is created via .then(). foo() returns the former
Promise, but should return the latter. This is how to fix it:

function foo() {
const promise = asyncFunc();
return promise.then(result => {
// ···
});
}

40.7.2 Chaining mistake: nesting

Problem:

// Don’t do this
asyncFunc1()
.then(result1 => {
return asyncFunc2()
.then(result2 => { // (A)
// ···
});
});

The .then() in line A is nested. A flat structure would be better:

asyncFunc1()
.then(result1 => {
return asyncFunc2();
})
.then(result2 => {
// ···
});

40.7.3 Chaining mistake: more nesting than necessary

This is another example of avoidable nesting:
40.7 Tips for chaining Promises 459

// Don’t do this
asyncFunc1()
.then(result1 => {
if (result1 < 0) {
return asyncFuncA()
.then(resultA => 'Result: ' + resultA);
} else {
return asyncFuncB()
.then(resultB => 'Result: ' + resultB);
}
});

We can once again get a flat structure:

asyncFunc1()
.then(result1 => {
return result1 < 0 ? asyncFuncA() : asyncFuncB();
})
.then(resultAB => {
return 'Result: ' + resultAB;
});

40.7.4 Not all nesting is bad

In the following code, we actually benefit from nesting:
db.open()
.then(connection => { // (A)
return connection.select({ name: 'Jane' })
.then(result => { // (B)
// Process result
// Use `connection` to make more queries
})
// ···
.finally(() => {
connection.close(); // (C)
});
})

We are receiving an asynchronous result in line A. In line B, we are nesting so that we

have access to variable connection inside the callback and in line C.

40.7.5 Chaining mistake: creating Promises instead of chaining

Problem:
// Don’t do this
class Model {
insertInto(db) {
return new Promise((resolve, reject) => { // (A)
db.insert(this.fields)
460 40 Promises for asynchronous programming

.then(resultCode => {
this.notifyObservers({event: 'created', model: this});
resolve(resultCode);
}).catch(err => {
reject(err);
})
});
}
// ···
}

In line A, we are creating a Promise to deliver the result of db.insert(). That is unnec-
essarily verbose and can be simplified:
class Model {
insertInto(db) {
return db.insert(this.fields)
.then(resultCode => {
this.notifyObservers({event: 'created', model: this});
return resultCode;
});
}
// ···
}

The key idea is that we don’t need to create a Promise; we can return the result of the
.then() call. An additional benefit is that we don’t need to catch and re-reject the failure
of db.insert(). We simply pass its rejection on to the caller of .insertInto().
Chapter 41

Async functions

Contents
41.1 Async functions: the basics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 461
41.1.1 Async constructs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 463
41.2 Returning from async functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 463
41.2.1 Async functions always return Promises . . . . . . . . . . . . 463
41.2.2 Returned Promises are not wrapped . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 464
41.2.3 Executing async functions: synchronous start, asynchronous
settlement (advanced) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 464
41.3 await: working with Promises . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 465
41.3.1 await and fulfilled Promises . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 466
41.3.2 await and rejected Promises . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 466
41.3.3 await is shallow (we can’t use it in callbacks) . . . . . . . . . . 466
41.4 (Advanced) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 467
41.5 Immediately invoked async arrow functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . 467
41.6 Concurrency and await . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 467
41.6.1 await: running asynchronous functions sequentially . . . . . . 468
41.6.2 await: running asynchronous functions concurrently . . . . . 468
41.7 Tips for using async functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 469
41.7.1 We don’t need await if we “fire and forget” . . . . . . . . . . . 469
41.7.2 It can make sense to await and ignore the result . . . . . . . . 469

Roughly, async functions provide better syntax for code that uses Promises. In order to
use async functions, we should therefore understand Promises. They are explained in
the previous chapter.

41.1 Async functions: the basics

Consider the following async function:

461
462 41 Async functions

async function fetchJsonAsync(url) {

try {
const request = await fetch(url); // async
const text = await request.text(); // async
return JSON.parse(text); // sync
}
catch (error) {
assert.fail(error);
}
}

The previous, rather synchronous-looking code is equivalent to the following code that
uses Promises directly:

function fetchJsonViaPromises(url) {
return fetch(url) // async
.then(request => request.text()) // async
.then(text => JSON.parse(text)) // sync
.catch(error => {
assert.fail(error);
});
}

A few observations about the async function fetchJsonAsync():

• Async functions are marked with the keyword async.

• Inside the body of an async function, we write Promise-based code as if it were

synchronous. We only need to apply the await operator whenever a value is a
Promise. That operator pauses the async function and resumes it once the Promise
is settled:

– If the Promise is fulfilled, await returns the fulfillment value.

– If the Promise is rejected, await throws the rejection value.

• The result of an async function is always a Promise:

– Any value that is returned (explicitly or implicitly) is used to fulfill the

Promise.
– Any exception that is thrown is used to reject the Promise.

Both fetchJsonAsync() and fetchJsonViaPromises() are called in exactly the same

way, like this:

fetchJsonAsync('http://example.com/person.json')
.then(obj => {
assert.deepEqual(obj, {
first: 'Jane',
last: 'Doe',
});
});
41.2 Returning from async functions 463

Async functions are as Promise-based as functions that use Promises di-

rectly
From the outside, it is virtually impossible to tell the difference between an async
function and a function that returns a Promise.

41.1.1 Async constructs

JavaScript has the following async versions of synchronous callable entities. Their roles
are always either real function or method.

// Async function declaration

async function func1() {}

// Async function expression

const func2 = async function () {};

// Async arrow function

const func3 = async () => {};

// Async method definition in an object literal

const obj = { async m() {} };

// Async method definition in a class definition

class MyClass { async m() {} }

Asynchronous functions vs. async functions

The difference between the terms asynchronous function and async function is subtle,
but important:
• An asynchronous function is any function that delivers its result asyn-
chronously – for example, a callback-based function or a Promise-based
function.
• An async function is defined via special syntax, involving the keywords async
and await. It is also called async/await due to these two keywords. Async
functions are based on Promises and therefore also asynchronous functions
(which is somewhat confusing).

41.2 Returning from async functions

41.2.1 Async functions always return Promises
Each async function always returns a Promise.

Inside the async function, we fulfill the result Promise via return (line A):

async function asyncFunc() {

464 41 Async functions

return 123; // (A)

}

asyncFunc()
.then(result => {
assert.equal(result, 123);
});

As usual, if we don’t explicitly return anything, undefined is returned for us:

async function asyncFunc() {
}

asyncFunc()
.then(result => {
assert.equal(result, undefined);
});

We reject the result Promise via throw (line A):

async function asyncFunc() {
throw new Error('Problem!'); // (A)
}

asyncFunc()
.catch(err => {
assert.deepEqual(err, new Error('Problem!'));
});

41.2.2 Returned Promises are not wrapped

If we return a Promise p from an async function, then p becomes the result of the function
(or rather, the result “locks in” on p and behaves exactly like it). That is, the Promise is
not wrapped in yet another Promise.
async function asyncFunc() {
return Promise.resolve('abc');
}

asyncFunc()
.then(result => assert.equal(result, 'abc'));

Recall that any Promise q is treated similarly in the following situations:

• resolve(q) inside new Promise((resolve, reject) => { ··· })
• return q inside .then(result => { ··· })
• return q inside .catch(err => { ··· })

41.2.3 Executing async functions: synchronous start, asynchronous

settlement (advanced)
Async functions are executed as follows:
41.3 await: working with Promises 465

• The Promise p for the result is created when the async function is started.
• Then the body is executed. There are two ways in which execution can leave the
body:
– Execution can leave permanently while settling p:
* A return fulfills p.
* A throw rejects p.
– Execution can also leave temporarily when awaiting the settlement of an-
other Promise q via await. The async function is paused and execution leaves
it. It is resumed once q is settled.
• Promise p is returned after execution has left the body for the first time (perma-
nently or temporarily).

Note that the notification of the settlement of the result p happens asynchronously, as is
always the case with Promises.

The following code demonstrates that an async function is started synchronously (line A),
then the current task finishes (line C), then the result Promise is settled – asynchronously
(line B).

async function asyncFunc() {

console.log('asyncFunc() starts'); // (A)
return 'abc';
}
asyncFunc().
then(x => { // (B)
console.log(`Resolved: ${x}`);
});
console.log('Task ends'); // (C)

// Output:
// 'asyncFunc() starts'
// 'Task ends'
// 'Resolved: abc'

41.3 await: working with Promises

The await operator can only be used inside async functions and async generators (which
are explained in §42.2 “Asynchronous generators”). Its operand is usually a Promise and
leads to the following steps being performed:

• The current async function is paused and returned from. This step is similar to
how yield works in sync generators.
• Eventually, the current task is finished and processing of the task queue continues.
• When and if the Promise is settled, the async function is resumed in a new task:
– If the Promise is fulfilled, await returns the fulfillment value.
– If the Promise is rejected, await throws the rejection value.

Read on to find out more about how await handles Promises in various states.
466 41 Async functions

41.3.1 await and fulfilled Promises

If its operand ends up being a fulfilled Promise, await returns its fulfillment value:

assert.equal(await Promise.resolve('yes!'), 'yes!');

Non-Promise values are allowed, too, and simply passed on (synchronously, without
pausing the async function):

assert.equal(await 'yes!', 'yes!');

41.3.2 await and rejected Promises

If its operand is a rejected Promise, then await throws the rejection value:

try {
await Promise.reject(new Error());
assert.fail(); // we never get here
} catch (e) {
assert.equal(e instanceof Error, true);
}

Exercise: Fetch API via async functions

exercises/async-functions/fetch_json2_test.mjs

41.3.3 await is shallow (we can’t use it in callbacks)

If we are inside an async function and want to pause it via await, we must do so directly
within that function; we can’t use it inside a nested function, such as a callback. That is,
pausing is shallow.

For example, the following code can’t be executed:

async function downloadContent(urls) {

return urls.map((url) => {
return await httpGet(url); // SyntaxError!
});
}

The reason is that normal arrow functions don’t allow await inside their bodies.

OK, let’s try an async arrow function then:

async function downloadContent(urls) {

return urls.map(async (url) => {
return await httpGet(url);
});
}

Alas, this doesn’t work either: Now .map() (and therefore downloadContent()) returns
an Array with Promises, not an Array with (unwrapped) values.
41.4 (Advanced) 467

One possible solution is to use Promise.all() to unwrap all Promises:

async function downloadContent(urls) {

const promiseArray = urls.map(async (url) => {
return await httpGet(url); // (A)
});
return await Promise.all(promiseArray);
}

Can this code be improved? Yes it can: in line A, we are unwrapping a Promise via
await, only to re-wrap it immediately via return. If we omit await, we don’t even need
an async arrow function:

async function downloadContent(urls) {

const promiseArray = urls.map(
url => httpGet(url));
return await Promise.all(promiseArray); // (B)
}

For the same reason, we can also omit await in line B.

Exercise: Mapping and filtering asynchronously

exercises/async-functions/map_async_test.mjs

41.4 (Advanced)
All remaining sections are advanced.

41.5 Immediately invoked async arrow functions

If we need an await outside an async function (e.g., at the top level of a module), then
we can immediately invoke an async arrow function:

(async () => { // start

const promise = Promise.resolve('abc');
const value = await promise;
assert.equal(value, 'abc');
})(); // end

The result of an immediately invoked async arrow function is a Promise:

const promise = (async () => 123)();

promise.then(x => assert.equal(x, 123));

41.6 Concurrency and await

In the next two subsections, we’ll use the helper function paused():
468 41 Async functions

/**
* Resolves after `ms` milliseconds
*/
function delay(ms) {
return new Promise((resolve, _reject) => {
setTimeout(resolve, ms);
});
}
async function paused(id) {
console.log('START ' + id);
await delay(10); // pause
console.log('END ' + id);
return id;
}

41.6.1 await: running asynchronous functions sequentially

If we prefix the invocations of multiple asynchronous functions with await, then those
functions are executed sequentially:
async function sequentialAwait() {
const result1 = await paused('first');
assert.equal(result1, 'first');

const result2 = await paused('second');

assert.equal(result2, 'second');
}

// Output:
// 'START first'
// ' END first'
// 'START second'
// ' END second'

That is, paused('second') is only started after paused('first') is completely finished.

41.6.2 await: running asynchronous functions concurrently

If we want to run multiple functions concurrently, we can use the tool method
Promise.all():

async function concurrentPromiseAll() {

const result = await Promise.all([
paused('first'), paused('second')
]);
assert.deepEqual(result, ['first', 'second']);
}

// Output:
// 'START first'
41.7 Tips for using async functions 469

// 'START second'
// ' END first'
// ' END second'

Here, both asynchronous functions are started at the same time. Once both are settled,
await gives us either an Array of fulfillment values or – if at least one Promise is rejected
– an exception.

Recall from §40.6.2 “Concurrency tip: focus on when operations start” that what counts
is when we start a Promise-based computation; not how we process its result. Therefore,
the following code is as “concurrent” as the previous one:

async function concurrentAwait() {

const resultPromise1 = paused('first');
const resultPromise2 = paused('second');

assert.equal(await resultPromise1, 'first');

assert.equal(await resultPromise2, 'second');
}
// Output:
// 'START first'
// 'START second'
// ' END first'
// ' END second'

41.7 Tips for using async functions

41.7.1 We don’t need await if we “fire and forget”
await is not required when working with a Promise-based function; we only need it if
we want to pause and wait until the returned Promise is settled. If we only want to start
an asynchronous operation, then we don’t need it:

async function asyncFunc() {

const writer = openFile('someFile.txt');
writer.write('hello'); // don’t wait
writer.write('world'); // don’t wait
await writer.close(); // wait for file to close
}

In this code, we don’t await .write() because we don’t care when it is finished. We do,
however, want to wait until .close() is done.

Note: Each invocation of .write() starts synchronously. That prevents race conditions.

41.7.2 It can make sense to await and ignore the result

It can occasionally make sense to use await, even if we ignore its result – for example:

await longRunningAsyncOperation();
console.log('Done!');
470 41 Async functions

Here, we are using await to join a long-running asynchronous operation. That ensures
that the logging really happens after that operation is done.
Chapter 42

Asynchronous iteration

Contents
42.1 Basic asynchronous iteration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 471
42.1.1 Protocol: async iteration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 471
42.1.2 Using async iteration directly . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 472
42.1.3 Using async iteration via for-await-of . . . . . . . . . . . . . 474
42.2 Asynchronous generators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 474
42.2.1 Example: creating an async iterable via an async generator . . 475
42.2.2 Example: converting a sync iterable to an async iterable . . . . 476
42.2.3 Example: converting an async iterable to an Array . . . . . . . 476
42.2.4 Example: transforming an async iterable . . . . . . . . . . . . 477
42.2.5 Example: mapping over asynchronous iterables . . . . . . . . 477
42.3 Async iteration over Node.js streams . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 478
42.3.1 Node.js streams: async via callbacks (push) . . . . . . . . . . . 478
42.3.2 Node.js streams: async via async iteration (pull) . . . . . . . . 479
42.3.3 Example: from chunks to lines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 479

Required knowledge
For this chapter, you should be familiar with:
• Promises
• Async functions

42.1 Basic asynchronous iteration

42.1.1 Protocol: async iteration
To understand how asynchronous iteration works, let’s first revisit synchronous iteration.
It comprises the following interfaces:

471
472 42 Asynchronous iteration

interface Iterable<T> {
[Symbol.iterator]() : Iterator<T>;
}
interface Iterator<T> {
next() : IteratorResult<T>;
}
interface IteratorResult<T> {
value: T;
done: boolean;
}

• An Iterable is a data structure whose contents can be accessed via iteration. It is

a factory for iterators.
• An Iterator is a factory for iteration results that we retrieve by calling the method
.next().
• Each IterationResult contains the iterated .value and a boolean .done that is
true after the last element and false before.

For the protocol for asynchronous iteration, we only want to change one thing: the values
produced by .next() should be delivered asynchronously. There are two conceivable
options:

• The .value could contain a Promise<T>.

• .next() could return Promise<IteratorResult<T>>.

In other words, the question is whether to wrap just values or whole iterator results in
Promises.

It has to be the latter because when .next() returns a result, it starts an asynchronous
computation. Whether or not that computation produces a value or signals the end of the
iteration can only be determined after it is finished. Therefore, both .done and .value
need to be wrapped in a Promise.

The interfaces for async iteration look as follows.

interface AsyncIterable<T> {
[Symbol.asyncIterator]() : AsyncIterator<T>;
}
interface AsyncIterator<T> {
next() : Promise<IteratorResult<T>>; // (A)
}
interface IteratorResult<T> {
value: T;
done: boolean;
}

The only difference to the synchronous interfaces is the return type of .next() (line A).

42.1.2 Using async iteration directly

The following code uses the asynchronous iteration protocol directly:
42.1 Basic asynchronous iteration 473

const asyncIterable = syncToAsyncIterable(['a', 'b']); // (A)

const asyncIterator = asyncIterable[Symbol.asyncIterator]();

// Call .next() until .done is true:

asyncIterator.next() // (B)
.then(iteratorResult => {
assert.deepEqual(
iteratorResult,
{ value: 'a', done: false });
return asyncIterator.next(); // (C)
})
.then(iteratorResult => {
assert.deepEqual(
iteratorResult,
{ value: 'b', done: false });
return asyncIterator.next(); // (D)
})
.then(iteratorResult => {
assert.deepEqual(
iteratorResult,
{ value: undefined, done: true });
})
;

In line A, we create an asynchronous iterable over the value 'a' and 'b'. We’ll see an
implementation of syncToAsyncIterable() later.

We call .next() in line B, line C and line D. Each time, we use .next() to unwrap the
Promise and assert.deepEqual() to check the unwrapped value.

We can simplify this code if we use an async function. Now we unwrap Promises via
await and the code looks almost like we are doing synchronous iteration:

async function f() {

const asyncIterable = syncToAsyncIterable(['a', 'b']);
const asyncIterator = asyncIterable[Symbol.asyncIterator]();

// Call .next() until .done is true:

assert.deepEqual(
await asyncIterator.next(),
{ value: 'a', done: false });
assert.deepEqual(
await asyncIterator.next(),
{ value: 'b', done: false });
assert.deepEqual(
await asyncIterator.next(),
{ value: undefined, done: true });
}
474 42 Asynchronous iteration

42.1.3 Using async iteration via for-await-of

The asynchronous iteration protocol is not meant to be used directly. One of the language
constructs that supports it is the for-await-of loop, which is an asynchronous version
of the for-of loop. It can be used in async functions and async generators (which are
introduced later in this chapter). This is an example of for-await-of in use:
for await (const x of syncToAsyncIterable(['a', 'b'])) {
console.log(x);
}
// Output:
// 'a'
// 'b'

for-await-of is relatively flexible. In addition to asynchronous iterables, it also supports

synchronous iterables:
for await (const x of ['a', 'b']) {
console.log(x);
}
// Output:
// 'a'
// 'b'

And it supports synchronous iterables over values that are wrapped in Promises:
const arr = [Promise.resolve('a'), Promise.resolve('b')];
for await (const x of arr) {
console.log(x);
}
// Output:
// 'a'
// 'b'

Exercise: Convert an async iterable to an Array

Warning: We’ll soon see the solution for this exercise in this chapter.
• exercises/async-iteration/async_iterable_to_array_test.mjs

42.2 Asynchronous generators

An asynchronous generator is two things at the same time:
• An async function (input): We can use await and for-await-of to retrieve data.
• A generator that returns an asynchronous iterable (output): We can use yield and
yield* to produce data.

Asynchronous generators are very similar to synchronous generators

42.2 Asynchronous generators 475

Due to async generators and sync generators being so similar, I don’t explain how
exactly yield and yield* work. Please consult §38 “Synchronous generators” if
you have doubts.

Therefore, an asynchronous generator has:

• Input that can be:

– synchronous (single values, sync iterables) or
– asynchronous (Promises, async iterables).
• Output that is an asynchronous iterable.

This looks as follows:

async function* asyncGen() {

// Input: Promises, async iterables
const x = await somePromise;
for await (const y of someAsyncIterable) {
// ···
}

// Output
yield someValue;
yield* otherAsyncGen();
}

42.2.1 Example: creating an async iterable via an async generator

Let’s look at an example. The following code creates an async iterable with three num-
bers:

async function* yield123() {

for (let i=1; i<=3; i++) {
yield i;
}
}

Does the result of yield123() conform to the async iteration protocol?

(async () => {
const asyncIterable = yield123();
const asyncIterator = asyncIterable[Symbol.asyncIterator]();
assert.deepEqual(
await asyncIterator.next(),
{ value: 1, done: false });
assert.deepEqual(
await asyncIterator.next(),
{ value: 2, done: false });
assert.deepEqual(
await asyncIterator.next(),
{ value: 3, done: false });
476 42 Asynchronous iteration

assert.deepEqual(
await asyncIterator.next(),
{ value: undefined, done: true });
})();

We wrapped the code in an immediately invoked async arrow function.

42.2.2 Example: converting a sync iterable to an async iterable

The following asynchronous generator converts a synchronous iterable to an asyn-
chronous iterable. It implements the function syncToAsyncIterable() that we have
used previously.

async function* syncToAsyncIterable(syncIterable) {

for (const elem of syncIterable) {
yield elem;
}
}

Note: The input is synchronous in this case (no await is needed).

42.2.3 Example: converting an async iterable to an Array

The following function is a solution to a previous exercise. It converts an async iterable
to an Array (think spreading, but for async iterables instead of sync iterables).

async function asyncIterableToArray(asyncIterable) {

const result = [];
for await (const value of asyncIterable) {
result.push(value);
}
return result;
}

Note that we can’t use an async generator in this case: We get our input via for-await-
of and return an Array wrapped in a Promise. The latter requirement rules out async
generators.

This is a test for asyncIterableToArray():

async function* createAsyncIterable() {

yield 'a';
yield 'b';
}
const asyncIterable = createAsyncIterable();
assert.deepEqual(
await asyncIterableToArray(asyncIterable), // (A)
['a', 'b']
);

Note the await in line A, which is needed to unwrap the Promise returned by asyncIt-
erableToArray(). In order for await to work, this code fragment must be run inside an
42.2 Asynchronous generators 477

async function.

42.2.4 Example: transforming an async iterable

Let’s implement an async generator that produces a new async iterable by transforming
an existing async iterable.

async function* timesTwo(asyncNumbers) {

for await (const x of asyncNumbers) {
yield x * 2;
}
}

To test this function, we use asyncIterableToArray() from the previous section.

async function* createAsyncIterable() {

for (let i=1; i<=3; i++) {
yield i;
}
}
assert.deepEqual(
await asyncIterableToArray(timesTwo(createAsyncIterable())),
[2, 4, 6]
);

Exercise: Async generators

Warning: We’ll soon see the solution for this exercise in this chapter.
• exercises/async-iteration/number_lines_test.mjs

42.2.5 Example: mapping over asynchronous iterables

As a reminder, this is how to map over synchronous iterables:

function* mapSync(iterable, func) {

let index = 0;
for (const x of iterable) {
yield func(x, index);
index++;
}
}
const syncIterable = mapSync(['a', 'b', 'c'], s => s.repeat(3));
assert.deepEqual(
[...syncIterable],
['aaa', 'bbb', 'ccc']);

The asynchronous version looks as follows:

async function* mapAsync(asyncIterable, func) { // (A)

let index = 0;
478 42 Asynchronous iteration

for await (const x of asyncIterable) { // (B)

yield func(x, index);
index++;
}
}

Note how similar the sync implementation and the async implementation are. The only
two differences are the async in line A and the await in line B. That is comparable to
going from a synchronous function to an asynchronous function – we only need to add
the keyword async and the occasional await.

To test mapAsync(), we use the helper function asyncIterableToArray() (shown earlier

in this chapter):

async function* createAsyncIterable() {

yield 'a';
yield 'b';
}
const mapped = mapAsync(
createAsyncIterable(), s => s.repeat(3));
assert.deepEqual(
await asyncIterableToArray(mapped), // (A)
['aaa', 'bbb']);

Once again, we await to unwrap a Promise (line A) and this code fragment must run
inside an async function.

Exercise: filterAsyncIter()
exercises/async-iteration/filter_async_iter_test.mjs

42.3 Async iteration over Node.js streams

42.3.1 Node.js streams: async via callbacks (push)
Traditionally, reading asynchronously from Node.js streams is done via callbacks:

function main(inputFilePath) {
const readStream = fs.createReadStream(inputFilePath,
{ encoding: 'utf8', highWaterMark: 1024 });
readStream.on('data', (chunk) => {
console.log('>>> '+chunk);
});
readStream.on('end', () => {
console.log('### DONE ###');
});
}

That is, the stream is in control and pushes data to the reader.
42.3 Async iteration over Node.js streams 479

42.3.2 Node.js streams: async via async iteration (pull)

Starting with Node.js 10, we can also use asynchronous iteration to read from streams:

async function main(inputFilePath) {

const readStream = fs.createReadStream(inputFilePath,
{ encoding: 'utf8', highWaterMark: 1024 });

for await (const chunk of readStream) {

console.log('>>> '+chunk);
}
console.log('### DONE ###');
}

This time, the reader is in control and pulls data from the stream.

42.3.3 Example: from chunks to lines

Node.js streams iterate over chunks (arbitrarily long pieces) of data. The following asyn-
chronous generator converts an async iterable over chunks to an async iterable over lines:

/**
* Parameter: async iterable of chunks (strings)
* Result: async iterable of lines (incl. newlines)
*/
async function* chunksToLines(chunksAsync) {
let previous = '';
for await (const chunk of chunksAsync) { // input
previous += chunk;
let eolIndex;
while ((eolIndex = previous.indexOf('\n')) >= 0) {
// line includes the EOL (Windows '\r\n' or Unix '\n')
const line = previous.slice(0, eolIndex+1);
yield line; // output
previous = previous.slice(eolIndex+1);
}
}
if (previous.length > 0) {
yield previous;
}
}

Let’s apply chunksToLines() to an async iterable over chunks (as produced by chunkIt-
erable()):

async function* chunkIterable() {

yield 'First\nSec';
yield 'ond\nThird\nF';
yield 'ourth';
}
const linesIterable = chunksToLines(chunkIterable());
480 42 Asynchronous iteration

assert.deepEqual(
await asyncIterableToArray(linesIterable),
[
'First\n',
'Second\n',
'Third\n',
'Fourth',
]);

Now that we have an asynchronous iterable over lines, we can use the solution of a
previous exercise, numberLines(), to number those lines:
async function* numberLines(linesAsync) {
let lineNumber = 1;
for await (const line of linesAsync) {
yield lineNumber + ': ' + line;
lineNumber++;
}
}
const numberedLines = numberLines(chunksToLines(chunkIterable()));
assert.deepEqual(
await asyncIterableToArray(numberedLines),
[
'1: First\n',
'2: Second\n',
'3: Third\n',
'4: Fourth',
]);
 Part IX

More standard library

481
Chapter 43

Regular expressions (RegExp)

Contents
43.1 Creating regular expressions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 484
43.1.1 Literal vs. constructor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 484
43.1.2 Cloning and non-destructively modifying regular expressions 484
43.2 Syntax . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 485
43.2.1 Syntax characters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 485
43.2.2 Basic atoms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 485
43.2.3 Unicode property escapes [ES2018] . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 486
43.2.4 Character classes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 487
43.2.5 Groups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 488
43.2.6 Quantifiers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 488
43.2.7 Assertions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 488
43.2.8 Disjunction (|) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 489
43.3 Flags . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 489
43.3.1 Flag: Unicode mode via /u . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 491
43.4 Properties of regular expression objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 493
43.4.1 Flags as properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 493
43.4.2 Other properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 493
43.5 Methods for working with regular expressions . . . . . . . . . . . . 494
43.5.1 By default, regular expressions match anywhere in a string . . 494
[ES3]
43.5.2 regExp.test(str): is there a match? . . . . . . . . . . . . 494
[ES3]
43.5.3 str.search(regExp): at what index is the match? . . . . . 494
[ES3]
43.5.4 regExp.exec(str): capturing groups . . . . . . . . . . . . 495
43.5.5 str.match(regExp): getting all group 0 captures [ES3] . . . . . 496
43.5.6 str.matchAll(regExp): getting an iterable over all match ob-
jects [ES2020] . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 497
43.5.7 regExp.exec() vs. str.match() vs. str.matchAll() . . . . . . 498
43.5.8 str.replace(searchValue, replacementValue) [ES3] . . . . . 498
43.5.9 Other methods for working with regular expressions . . . . . 499

483
484 43 Regular expressions (RegExp)

43.6 The flags /g, /y, and the property .lastIndex (advanced) . . . . . . 500
43.6.1 The flags /g and /y . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 500
43.6.2 The regular expression property .lastIndex . . . . . . . . . . 502
43.6.3 Pitfalls of /g and /y . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 503
43.6.4 Use case for .lastIndex: starting matching at a given index . 506
43.6.5 Summary: .global (/g) and .sticky (/y) . . . . . . . . . . . . 508
43.6.6 Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 508
43.7 Techniques for working with regular expressions . . . . . . . . . . . 509
43.7.1 Escaping arbitrary text for regular expressions . . . . . . . . . 509
43.7.2 Matching everything or nothing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 509

Availability of features
Unless stated otherwise, each regular expression feature has been available since
ES3.

43.1 Creating regular expressions

43.1.1 Literal vs. constructor
The two main ways of creating regular expressions are:
• Literal: compiled statically (at load time).
/abc/ui

• Constructor: compiled dynamically (at runtime).

new RegExp('abc', 'ui')

Both regular expressions have the same two parts:

• The body abc – the actual regular expression.
• The flags u and i. Flags configure how the pattern is interpreted. For example,
i enables case-insensitive matching. A list of available flags is given later in this
chapter.

43.1.2 Cloning and non-destructively modifying regular expressions

There are two variants of the constructor RegExp():
• new RegExp(pattern : string, flags = '') [ES3]
A new regular expression is created as specified via pattern. If flags is missing,
the empty string '' is used.
• new RegExp(regExp : RegExp, flags = regExp.flags) [ES6]
regExp is cloned. If flags is provided, then it determines the flags of the clone.

The second variant is useful for cloning regular expressions, optionally while modifying
them. Flags are immutable and this is the only way of changing them – for example:
43.2 Syntax 485

function copyAndAddFlags(regExp, flagsToAdd='') {

// The constructor doesn’t allow duplicate flags;
// make sure there aren’t any:
const newFlags = [...new Set(regExp.flags + flagsToAdd)].join('');
return new RegExp(regExp, newFlags);
}
assert.equal(/abc/i.flags, 'i');
assert.equal(copyAndAddFlags(/abc/i, 'g').flags, 'gi');

43.2 Syntax
43.2.1 Syntax characters
At the top level of a regular expression, the following syntax characters are special. They
are escaped by prefixing a backslash (\).
\ ^ $ . * + ? ( ) [ ] { } |

In regular expression literals, we must escape slashs:

> /\//.test('/')
true

In the argument of new RegExp(), we don’t have to escape slashes:

> new RegExp('/').test('/')
true

43.2.2 Basic atoms

Atoms are the basic building blocks of regular expressions.

• Pattern characters are all characters except syntax characters (^, $, etc.). Pattern char-
acters match themselves. Examples: A b %
• . matches any character. We can use the flag /s (dotall) to control if the dot
matches line terminators or not (more below).
• Character escapes (each escape matches a single fixed character):
– Control escapes (for a few control characters):
* \f: form feed (FF)
* \n: line feed (LF)
* \r: carriage return (CR)
* \t: character tabulation
* \v: line tabulation
– Arbitrary control characters: \cA (Ctrl-A), …, \cZ (Ctrl-Z)
– Unicode code units: \u00E4
– Unicode code points (require flag /u): \u{1F44D}
• Character class escapes (each escape matches one out of a set of characters):
– \d: digits (same as [0-9])
* \D: non-digits
– \w: “word” characters (same as [A-Za-z0-9_], related to identifiers in pro-
gramming languages)
486 43 Regular expressions (RegExp)

* \W: non-word characters

– \s: whitespace (space, tab, line terminators, etc.)
* \S: non-whitespace
– Unicode property escapes [ES2018] : \p{White_Space}, \P{White_Space}, etc.
* Require flag /u.
* Described in the next subsection.

43.2.3 Unicode property escapes [ES2018]

43.2.3.1 Unicode character properties

In the Unicode standard, each character has properties – metadata describing it. Proper-
ties play an important role in defining the nature of a character. Quoting the Unicode
Standard, Sect. 3.3, D3:

The semantics of a character are determined by its identity, normative prop-

erties, and behavior.

These are a few examples of properties:

• Name: a unique name, composed of uppercase letters, digits, hyphens, and spaces
– for example:
– A: Name = LATIN CAPITAL LETTER A
– ☺: Name = SLIGHTLY SMILING FACE
• General_Category: categorizes characters – for example:
– x: General_Category = Lowercase_Letter
– $: General_Category = Currency_Symbol
• White_Space: used for marking invisible spacing characters, such as spaces, tabs
and newlines – for example:
– \t: White_Space = True
– π: White_Space = False
• Age: version of the Unicode Standard in which a character was introduced – for
example: The Euro sign € was added in version 2.1 of the Unicode standard.
– €: Age = 2.1
• Block: a contiguous range of code points. Blocks don’t overlap and their names
are unique. For example:
– S: Block = Basic_Latin (range U+0000..U+007F)
– ☺: Block = Emoticons (range U+1F600..U+1F64F)
• Script: is a collection of characters used by one or more writing systems.
– Some scripts support several writing systems. For example, the Latin script
supports the writing systems English, French, German, Latin, etc.
– Some languages can be written in multiple alternate writing systems that are
supported by multiple scripts. For example, Turkish used the Arabic script
before it transitioned to the Latin script in the early 20th century.
– Examples:
* α: Script = Greek
* Д: Script = Cyrillic
43.2 Syntax 487

43.2.3.2 Unicode property escapes

Unicode property escapes look like this:

1. \p{prop=value}: matches all characters whose property prop has the value value.
2. \P{prop=value}: matches all characters that do not have a property prop whose
value is value.
3. \p{bin_prop}: matches all characters whose binary property bin_prop is True.
4. \P{bin_prop}: matches all characters whose binary property bin_prop is False.

Comments:

• We can only use Unicode property escapes if the flag /u is set. Without /u, \p is
the same as p.

• Forms (3) and (4) can be used as abbreviations if the property is General_Category.
For example, the following two escapes are equivalent:

\p{Lowercase_Letter}
\p{General_Category=Lowercase_Letter}

Examples:

• Checking for whitespace:

> /^\p{White_Space}+$/u.test('\t \n\r')

true

• Checking for Greek letters:

> /^\p{Script=Greek}+$/u.test('μετά')
true

• Deleting any letters:

> '1π2ü3é4'.replace(/\p{Letter}/ug, '')

'1234'

• Deleting lowercase letters:

> 'AbCdEf'.replace(/\p{Lowercase_Letter}/ug, '')

'ACE'

Further reading:

• Lists of Unicode properties and their values: “Unicode Standard Annex #44: Uni-
code Character Database” (Editors: Mark Davis, Laurențiu Iancu, Ken Whistler)

43.2.4 Character classes

A character class wraps class ranges in square brackets. The class ranges specify a set of
characters:

• [«class ranges»] matches any character in the set.

• [^«class ranges»] matches any character not in the set.

Rules for class ranges:

488 43 Regular expressions (RegExp)

• Non-syntax characters stand for themselves: [abc]

• Only the following four characters are special and must be escaped via slashes:
^ \ - ]

– ^ only has to be escaped if it comes first.

– - need not be escaped if it comes first or last.

• Character escapes (\n, \u{1F44D}, etc.) have the usual meaning.

– Watch out: \b stands for backspace. Elsewhere in a regular expression, it

matches word boundaries.

• Character class escapes (\d, \p{White_Space}, etc.) have the usual meaning.

• Ranges of characters are specified via dashes: [a-z]

43.2.5 Groups
• Positional capture group: (#+)
– Backreference: \1, \2, etc.
• Named capture group [ES2018] : (?<hashes>#+)
– Backreference: \k<hashes>
• Noncapturing group: (?:#+)

43.2.6 Quantifiers
By default, all of the following quantifiers are greedy (they match as many characters as
possible):

• ?: match never or once

• *: match zero or more times
• +: match one or more times
• {n}: match n times
• {n,}: match n or more times
• {n,m}: match at least n times, at most m times.

To make them reluctant (so that they match as few characters as possible), put question
marks (?) after them:

> /".*"/.exec('"abc"def"')[0] // greedy

'"abc"def"'
> /".*?"/.exec('"abc"def"')[0] // reluctant
'"abc"'

43.2.7 Assertions
• ^ matches only at the beginning of the input
• $ matches only at the end of the input
• \b matches only at a word boundary
– \B matches only when not at a word boundary
43.3 Flags 489

43.2.7.1 Lookahead

Positive lookahead: (?=«pattern») matches if pattern matches what comes next.

Example: sequences of lowercase letters that are followed by an X.
> 'abcX def'.match(/[a-z]+(?=X)/g)
[ 'abc' ]

Note that the X itself is not part of the matched substring.

Negative lookahead: (?!«pattern») matches if pattern does not match what comes
next.
Example: sequences of lowercase letters that are not followed by an X.
> 'abcX def'.match(/[a-z]+(?!X)/g)
[ 'ab', 'def' ]

43.2.7.2 Lookbehind [ES2018]

Positive lookbehind: (?<=«pattern») matches if pattern matches what came before.

Example: sequences of lowercase letters that are preceded by an X.
> 'Xabc def'.match(/(?<=X)[a-z]+/g)
[ 'abc' ]

Negative lookbehind: (?<!«pattern») matches if pattern does not match what came
before.
Example: sequences of lowercase letters that are not preceded by an X.
> 'Xabc def'.match(/(?<!X)[a-z]+/g)
[ 'bc', 'def' ]

Example: replace “.js” with “.html”, but not in “Node.js”.

> 'Node.js: index.js and main.js'.replace(/(?<!Node)\.js/g, '.html')
'Node.js: index.html and main.html'

43.2.8 Disjunction (|)

Caveat: this operator has low precedence. Use groups if necessary:
• ^aa|zz$ matches all strings that start with aa and/or end with zz. Note that | has
a lower precedence than ^ and $.
• ^(aa|zz)$ matches the two strings 'aa' and 'zz'.
• ^a(a|z)z$ matches the two strings 'aaz' and 'azz'.

43.3 Flags
490 43 Regular expressions (RegExp)

Table 43.1: These are the regular expression flags supported by

JavaScript.

Literal flag Property name ES Description

g global ES3 Match multiple times
i ignoreCase ES3 Match case-insensitively
m multiline ES3 ^ and $ match per line
s dotall ES2018 Dot matches line terminators
u unicode ES6 Unicode mode (recommended)
y sticky ES6 No characters between matches

The following regular expression flags are available in JavaScript (tbl. 43.1 provides a
compact overview):

• /g (.global): fundamentally changes how the following methods work.

– RegExp.prototype.test()
– RegExp.prototype.exec()
– String.prototype.match()

How, is explained in §43.6.1 “The flags /g and /y”. In a nutshell, without /g, the
methods only consider the first match for a regular expression in an input string.
With /g, they consider all matches.

• /i (.ignoreCase): switches on case-insensitive matching:

> /a/.test('A')
false
> /a/i.test('A')
true

• /m (.multiline): If this flag is on, ^ matches the beginning of each line and $
matches the end of each line. If it is off, ^ matches the beginning of the whole
input string and $ matches the end of the whole input string.

> 'a1\na2\na3'.match(/^a./gm)
[ 'a1', 'a2', 'a3' ]
> 'a1\na2\na3'.match(/^a./g)
[ 'a1' ]

• /u (.unicode): This flag switches on the Unicode mode for a regular expression.
That mode is explained in the next subsection.

• /y (.sticky): This flag mainly makes sense in conjunction with /g. When both are
switched on, any match must directly follow the previous one (that is, it must start
at index .lastIndex of the regular expression object). Therefore, the first match
must be at index 0.

> 'a1a2 a3'.match(/a./gy)

[ 'a1', 'a2' ]
> '_a1a2 a3'.match(/a./gy) // first match must be at index 0
43.3 Flags 491

null

> 'a1a2 a3'.match(/a./g)

[ 'a1', 'a2', 'a3' ]
> '_a1a2 a3'.match(/a./g)
[ 'a1', 'a2', 'a3' ]

The main use case for /y is tokenization (during parsing).

• /s (.dotall): By default, the dot does not match line terminators. With this flag,
it does:

> /./.test('\n')
false
> /./s.test('\n')
true

Workaround if /s isn’t supported: Use [^] instead of a dot.

> /[^]/.test('\n')
true

43.3.1 Flag: Unicode mode via /u

The flag /u switches on a special Unicode mode for regular expressions. That mode
enables several features:

• In patterns, we can use Unicode code point escapes such as \u{1F42A} to specify
characters. Code unit escapes such as \u03B1 only have a range of four hexadeci-
mal digits (which corresponds to the basic multilingual plane).

• In patterns, we can use Unicode property escapes such as \p{White_Space}.

• Many escapes are now forbidden. For example: \a \- \:

Pattern characters always match themselves:

> /pa-:/.test('pa-:')
true

Without /u, there are some pattern characters that still match themselves if we
escape them with backslashes:

> /\p\a\-\:/.test('pa-:')
true

With /u:

– \p starts a Unicode property escape.

– The remaining “self-matching” escapes are forbidden. As a consequence,
they can now be used for new features in the future.

• The atomic units for matching are Unicode characters (code points), not JavaScript
characters (code units).
492 43 Regular expressions (RegExp)

The following subsections explain the last item in more detail. They use the following
Unicode character to explain when the atomic units are Unicode characters and when
they are JavaScript characters:

const codePoint = '☺';

const codeUnits = '\uD83D\uDE42'; // UTF-16

assert.equal(codePoint, codeUnits); // same string!

I’m only switching between ☺ and \uD83D\uDE42, to illustrate how JavaScript sees things.
Both are equivalent and can be used interchangeably in strings and regular expressions.

43.3.1.1 Consequence: we can put Unicode characters in character classes

With /u, the two code units of ☺ are treated as a single character:

> /^[☺]$/u.test('☺')
true

Without /u, ☺ is treated as two characters:

> /^[\uD83D\uDE42]$/.test('\uD83D\uDE42')
false
> /^[\uD83D\uDE42]$/.test('\uDE42')
true

Note that ^ and $ demand that the input string have a single character. That’s why the
first result is false.

43.3.1.2 Consequence: the dot operator (.) matches Unicode characters, not
JavaScript characters

With /u, the dot operator matches Unicode characters:

> '☺'.match(/./gu).length
1

.match() plus /g returns an Array with all the matches of a regular expression.

Without /u, the dot operator matches JavaScript characters:

> '\uD83D\uDE80'.match(/./g).length
2

43.3.1.3 Consequence: quantifiers apply to Unicode characters, not JavaScript char-

acters

With /u, a quantifier applies to the whole preceding Unicode character:

> /^☺{3}$/u.test('☺☺☺')
true

Without /u, a quantifier only applies to the preceding JavaScript character:

43.4 Properties of regular expression objects 493

> /^\uD83D\uDE80{3}$/.test('\uD83D\uDE80\uDE80\uDE80')
true

43.4 Properties of regular expression objects

Noteworthy:

• Strictly speaking, only .lastIndex is a real instance property. All other properties
are implemented via getters.
• Accordingly, .lastIndex is the only mutable property. All other properties are
read-only. If we want to change them, we need to copy the regular expression
(consult §43.1.2 “Cloning and non-destructively modifying regular expressions”
for details).

43.4.1 Flags as properties

Each regular expression flag exists as a property with a longer, more descriptive name:

> /a/i.ignoreCase
true
> /a/.ignoreCase
false

This is the complete list of flag properties:

• .dotall (/s)
• .global (/g)
• .ignoreCase (/i)
• .multiline (/m)
• .sticky (/y)
• .unicode (/u)

43.4.2 Other properties

Each regular expression also has the following properties:

• .source [ES3] : The regular expression pattern

> /abc/ig.source
'abc'

• .flags [ES6] : The flags of the regular expression

> /abc/ig.flags
'gi'

• .lastIndex [ES3] : Used when flag /g is switched on. Consult §43.6.1 “The flags /g
and /y” for details.
494 43 Regular expressions (RegExp)

43.5 Methods for working with regular expressions

43.5.1 By default, regular expressions match anywhere in a string
By default, regular expressions match anywhere in a string:

> /a/.test('__a__')
true

We can change that by using assertions such as ^ or by using the flag /y:

> /^a/.test('__a__')
false
> /^a/.test('a__')
true

[ES3]
43.5.2 regExp.test(str): is there a match?

The regular expression method .test() returns true if regExp matches str:

> /bc/.test('ABCD')
false
> /bc/i.test('ABCD')
true
> /\.mjs$/.test('main.mjs')
true

With .test() we should normally avoid the /g flag. If we use it, we generally don’t get
the same result every time we call the method:

> const r = /a/g;

> r.test('aab')
true
> r.test('aab')
true
> r.test('aab')
false

The results are due to /a/ having two matches in the string. After all of those were found,
.test() returns false.

[ES3]
43.5.3 str.search(regExp): at what index is the match?

The string method .search() returns the first index of str at which there is a match for
regExp:

> '_abc_'.search(/abc/)
1
> 'main.mjs'.search(/\.mjs$/)
4
43.5 Methods for working with regular expressions 495

43.5.4 regExp.exec(str): capturing groups [ES3]

43.5.4.1 Getting a match object for the first match

Without the flag /g, .exec() returns the captures of the first match for regExp in str:
assert.deepEqual(
/(a+)b/.exec('ab aab'),
{
0: 'ab',
1: 'a',
index: 0,
input: 'ab aab',
groups: undefined,
}
);

The result is a match object with the following properties:

• [0]: the complete substring matched by the regular expression
• [1]: capture of positional group 1 (etc.)
• .index: where did the match occur?
• .input: the string that was matched against
• .groups: captures of named groups

43.5.4.2 Named capture groups [ES2018]

The previous example contained a single positional group. The following example
demonstrates named groups:
assert.deepEqual(
/(?<as>a+)b/.exec('ab aab'),
{
0: 'ab',
1: 'a',
index: 0,
input: 'ab aab',
groups: { as: 'a' },
}
);

In the result of .exec(), we can see that a named group is also a positional group – its
capture exists twice:
• Once as a positional capture (property '1').
• Once as a named capture (property groups.as).

43.5.4.3 Looping over all matches

Better alternative for retrieving all matches: str.matchAll(regExp) [ES2020]

496 43 Regular expressions (RegExp)

Since ECMAScript 2020, JavaScript has another method for retrieving all matches:
str.matchAll(regExp). This method is easier to use and has fewer caveats.

If we want to retrieve all matches of a regular expression (not just the first one), we need
to switch on the flag /g. Then we can call .exec() multiple times and get one match each
time. After the last match, .exec() returns null.

> const regExp = /(a+)b/g;

> regExp.exec('ab aab')
{ 0: 'ab', 1: 'a', index: 0, input: 'ab aab', groups: undefined }
> regExp.exec('ab aab')
{ 0: 'aab', 1: 'aa', index: 3, input: 'ab aab', groups: undefined }
> regExp.exec('ab aab')
null

Therefore, we can loop over all matches as follows:

const regExp = /(a+)b/g;

const str = 'ab aab';

let match;
// Check for null via truthiness
// Alternative: while ((match = regExp.exec(str)) !== null)
while (match = regExp.exec(str)) {
console.log(match[1]);
}
// Output:
// 'a'
// 'aa'

Be careful when sharing regular expressions with /g!

Sharing regular expressions with /g has a few pitfalls, which are explained later.

Exercise: Extracting quoted text via .exec()

exercises/regexps/extract_quoted_test.mjs

43.5.5 str.match(regExp): getting all group 0 captures [ES3]

Without /g, .match() works like .exec() – it returns a single match object.

With /g, .match() returns all substrings of str that match regExp:

> 'ab aab'.match(/(a+)b/g)

[ 'ab', 'aab' ]

If there is no match, .match() returns null:

43.5 Methods for working with regular expressions 497

> 'xyz'.match(/(a+)b/g)
null

We can use the nullish coalescing operator (??) to protect ourselves against null:

const numberOfMatches = (str.match(regExp) ?? []).length;

43.5.6 str.matchAll(regExp): getting an iterable over all match ob-

jects [ES2020]
This is how .matchAll() is invoked:

const matchIterable = str.matchAll(regExp);

Given a string and a regular expression, .matchAll() returns an iterable over the match
objects of all matches.

We can also use the spread operator (...) to convert the iterable to an Array:

> [...'-a-a-a'.matchAll(/-(a)/ug)]
[ [ '-a', 'a' ], [ '-a', 'a' ], [ '-a', 'a' ] ]

Flag /g must be set:

> [...'-a-a-a'.matchAll(/-(a)/u)]
TypeError: String.prototype.matchAll called with a non-global
RegExp argument

.matchAll() isn’t affected by regExp.lastIndex and doesn’t change it.

43.5.6.1 Implementing .matchAll()

.matchAll() could be implemented via .exec() as follows:

function* matchAll(str, regExp) {

if (!regExp.global) {
throw new TypeError('Flag /g must be set!');
}
const localCopy = new RegExp(regExp, regExp.flags);
let match;
while (match = localCopy.exec(str)) {
yield match;
}
}

Making a local copy ensures two things:

• regex.lastIndex isn’t changed.

• localCopy.lastIndex is zero.

Using matchAll():

const str = '"fee" "fi" "fo" "fum"';

const regex = /"([^"]*)"/g;
498 43 Regular expressions (RegExp)

for (const match of matchAll(str, regex)) {

console.log(match[1]);
}
// Output:
// fee
// fi
// fo
// fum

43.5.7 regExp.exec() vs. str.match() vs. str.matchAll()

The following table summarizes the differences between three methods:

Without /g With /g
regExp.exec(str) First match object Next match object or null
str.match(regExp) First match object Array of group 0 captures
str.matchAll(regExp) TypeError Iterable over match objects

43.5.8 str.replace(searchValue, replacementValue) [ES3]

.replace() is overloaded – it works differently, depending on the types of its parame-
ters:
• If searchValue is:
– Regular expression without /g: Replace first match of this regular expression.
– Regular expression with /g: Replace all matches of this regular expression.
– String: Replace first occurrence of this string (the string is interpreted ver-
batim, not as a regular expression). Alas, there is no way to replace every
occurrence of a string. Later in this chapter, we’ll see a tool function that
converts a string into a regular expression that matches this string (e.g., '*'
becomes /\*/).
• If replacementValue is:
– String: Replace matches with this string. The character $ has special meaning
and lets us insert captures of groups and more (read on for details).
– Function: Compute strings that replace matches via this function.
The next two subsubsections assume that a regular expression with /g is being used.

43.5.8.1 replacementValue is a string

If the replacement value is a string, the dollar sign has special meaning – it inserts text
matched by the regular expression:

Text Result
$$ single $
$& complete match
$` text before match
$' text after match
43.5 Methods for working with regular expressions 499

Text Result
$n capture of positional group n (n > 0)
$<name> capture of named group name [ES2018]

Example: Inserting the text before, inside, and after the matched substring.

> 'a1 a2'.replace(/a/g, "($`|$&|$')")

'(|a|1 a2)1 (a1 |a|2)2'

Example: Inserting the captures of positional groups.

> const regExp = /^([A-Za-z]+): (.*)$/ug;

> 'first: Jane'.replace(regExp, 'KEY: $1, VALUE: $2')
'KEY: first, VALUE: Jane'

Example: Inserting the captures of named groups.

> const regExp = /^(?<key>[A-Za-z]+): (?<value>.*)$/ug;

> 'first: Jane'.replace(regExp, 'KEY: $<key>, VALUE: $<value>')
'KEY: first, VALUE: Jane'

43.5.8.2 replacementValue is a function

If the replacement value is a function, we can compute each replacement. In the following
example, we multiply each non-negative integer that we find by two.

assert.equal(
'3 cats and 4 dogs'.replace(/[0-9]+/g, (all) => 2 * Number(all)),
'6 cats and 8 dogs'
);

The replacement function gets the following parameters. Note how similar they are to
match objects. These parameters are all positional, but I’ve included how one might
name them:

• all: complete match

• g1: capture of positional group 1
• Etc.
• index: where did the match occur?
• input: the string in which we are replacing
• groups [ES2018] : captures of named groups (an object)

Exercise: Change quotes via .replace() and a named group

exercises/regexps/change_quotes_test.mjs

43.5.9 Other methods for working with regular expressions

String.prototype.split() is described in the chapter on strings. Its first parameter of
String.prototype.split() is either a string or a regular expression. If it is the latter,
500 43 Regular expressions (RegExp)

then captures of groups appear in the result:

> 'a:b : c'.split(':')
[ 'a', 'b ', ' c' ]
> 'a:b : c'.split(/ *: */)
[ 'a', 'b', 'c' ]
> 'a:b : c'.split(/( *):( *)/)
[ 'a', '', '', 'b', ' ', ' ', 'c' ]

43.6 The flags /g, /y, and the property .lastIndex (ad-
vanced)
In this section, we examine how the RegExp flags /g and /y work and how they de-
pend on the RegExp property .lastIndex. We’ll also discover an interesting use case for
.lastIndex that we may not have considered yet.

43.6.1 The flags /g and /y

These flags can be summarized as follows:
• /g (.global) activates multi-match modes for several regular expression opera-
tions.
• /y (.sticky) is similar to /g, but there can’t be gaps between matches.
The following two regular expression operations completely ignore /g and /y:
• String.prototype.search(regExp)
• String.prototype.split(regExp)
All other operations are affected by them, in some ways.

43.6.1.1 Flag /g (.global) [ES3]

Let’s see what the multi-match modes look like.

43.6.1.1.1 .exec() and /g

Without /g, .exec() always returns a match object for the first match:
> const re = /#/;
> re.exec('##-#')
{ 0: '#', index: 0, input: '##-#' }
> re.exec('##-#')
{ 0: '#', index: 0, input: '##-#' }

With /g, it returns one new match per invocation and null when there are no more
matches:
> const re = /#/g;
> re.exec('##-#')
{ 0: '#', index: 0, input: '##-#' }
> re.exec('##-#')
43.6 The flags /g, /y, and the property .lastIndex (advanced) 501

{ 0: '#', index: 1, input: '##-#' }

> re.exec('##-#')
{ 0: '#', index: 3, input: '##-#' }
> re.exec('##-#')
null

43.6.1.1.2 .replace() and /g

Without /g, .replace() only replaces the first match:

> '##-#'.replace(/#/, 'x')
'x#-#'

With /g, .replace() replaces all matches:

> '##-#'.replace(/#/g, 'x')
'xx-x'

43.6.1.1.3 .matchAll() and /g

.matchAll() only works if /g is set and returns all match objects:

> const re = /#/g;

> [...'##-#'.matchAll(re)]
[
{ 0: '#', index: 0, input: '##-#' },
{ 0: '#', index: 1, input: '##-#' },
{ 0: '#', index: 3, input: '##-#' },
]

43.6.1.2 Flag /y (.sticky) [ES6]

We will use /y together with /g for now (think “/g without gaps”). To understand /y on
its own, we’ll need to learn about the RegExp property .lastIndex, which we’ll get to
soon.

43.6.1.2.1 .exec() and /gy

With /gy, each match returned by .exec() must immediately follow the previous match.
That’s why it only returns two matches in the following example:
> const re = /#/gy;
> re.exec('##-#')
{ 0: '#', index: 0, input: '##-#' }
> re.exec('##-#')
{ 0: '#', index: 1, input: '##-#' }
> re.exec('##-#')
null

43.6.1.2.2 .replace() and /gy

With /gy, .replace() replaces all matches, as long as there are no gaps between them:
502 43 Regular expressions (RegExp)

> '##-#'.replace(/#/gy, 'x')

'xx-#'

43.6.1.2.3 .matchAll() and /gy

With /gy, .matchAll() returns match objects for adjacent matches only:

> const re = /#/gy;

> [...'##-#'.matchAll(re)]
[
{ 0: '#', index: 0, input: '##-#' },
{ 0: '#', index: 1, input: '##-#' },
]

43.6.2 The regular expression property .lastIndex

The regular expression property .lastIndex only has an effect if at least one of the flags
/g and /y is used.

For regular expression operations that are affected by it, it controls where matching starts.

43.6.2.1 .lastIndex and /g

For example, .exec() uses .lastIndex to remember where it currently is in the input
string:

> const re = /[a-z]/g;

> re.lastIndex
0
> [re.exec('a-b'), re.lastIndex]
[{ 0: 'a', index: 0, input: 'a-b' }, 1]
> [re.exec('a-b'), re.lastIndex]
[{ 0: 'b', index: 2, input: 'a-b' }, 3]
> [re.exec('a-b'), re.lastIndex]
[ null, 0 ]

.matchAll() honors .lastIndex but does not change it:

> const re = /#/g; re.lastIndex = 1;

> [...'##-#'.matchAll(re)]
[
{ 0: '#', index: 1, input: '##-#' },
{ 0: '#', index: 3, input: '##-#' },
]
> re.lastIndex
1

.replace() ignores .lastIndex and sets it to zero:

> const re = /#/g; re.lastIndex = 1;

> '##-#'.replace(re, 'x')
'xx-x'
43.6 The flags /g, /y, and the property .lastIndex (advanced) 503

> re.lastIndex
0

To summarize, for several operations, /g means: Match at .lastIndex or later.

43.6.2.2 .lastIndex and /y

For /y, .lastIndex means: Match at exactly .lastIndex. It works as if the beginning of
the regular expression were anchored to .lastIndex.

Note that ^ and $ continue to work as usually: They anchor matches to the beginning or
end of the input string, unless .multiline is set. Then they anchor to the beginnings or
ends of lines.

.exec() matches multiple times if /y is set (even if /g is not set):

> const re = /#/y; re.lastIndex = 1;

> [re.exec('##-#'), re.lastIndex]
[{0: '#', index: 1, input: '##-#'}, 2]
> [re.exec('##-#'), re.lastIndex]
[ null, 0 ]

If /y is used without /g, then .replace() replaces the first occurrence that is found (di-
rectly) at .lastIndex. It updates .lastIndex.

> const re = /#/y; re.lastIndex = 1;

> ['##-#'.replace(re, 'x'), re.lastIndex]
[ '#x-#', 2 ]
> ['##-#'.replace(re, 'x'), re.lastIndex] // no match
[ '##-#', 0 ]
> ['##-#'.replace(re, 'x'), re.lastIndex]
[ 'x#-#', 1 ]

43.6.3 Pitfalls of /g and /y

43.6.3.1 Pitfall: We can’t inline a regular expression with /g or /y

A regular expression with /g can’t be inlined. For example, in the following while loop,
the regular expression is created fresh, every time the condition is checked. Therefore,
its .lastIndex is always zero and the loop never terminates.

let matchObj;
// Infinite loop
while (matchObj = /a+/g.exec('bbbaabaaa')) {
console.log(matchObj[0]);
}

With /y, the problem is the same.

43.6.3.2 Pitfall: Removing /g or /y can break code

If code expects a regular expression with /g and has a loop over the results of .exec()
or .test(), then a regular expression without /g can cause an infinite loop:
504 43 Regular expressions (RegExp)

function collectMatches(regExp, str) {

const matches = [];
let matchObj;
// Infinite loop
while (matchObj = regExp.exec(str)) {
matches.push(matchObj[0]);
}
return matches;
}
collectMatches(/a+/, 'bbbaabaaa'); // Missing: flag /g

Why is there an infinity loop? Because .exec() always returns the first result, a match
object, and never null.

With /y, the problem is the same.

43.6.3.3 Pitfall: Adding /g or /y can break code

With .test(), there is another caveat: It is affected by .lastIndex. Therefore, if we

want to check exactly once if a regular expression matches a string, then the regular
expression must not have /g. Otherwise, we generally get a different result every time
we call .test():

> const regExp = /^X/g;

> [regExp.test('Xa'), regExp.lastIndex]
[ true, 1 ]
> [regExp.test('Xa'), regExp.lastIndex]
[ false, 0 ]
> [regExp.test('Xa'), regExp.lastIndex]
[ true, 1 ]

The first invocation produces a match and updates .lastIndex. The second invocation
does not find a match and resets .lastIndex to zero.

If we create a regular expression specifically for .test(), then we probably won’t add
/g. However, the likeliness of encountering /g increases if we use the same regular ex-
pression for replacing and for testing.

Once again, this problem also exists with /y:

> const regExp = /^X/y;

> regExp.test('Xa')
true
> regExp.test('Xa')
false
> regExp.test('Xa')
true

43.6.3.4 Pitfall: Code can produce unexpected results if .lastIndex isn’t zero

Given all the regular expression operations that are affected by .lastIndex, we must be
careful with many algorithms that .lastIndex is zero at the beginning. Otherwise, we
43.6 The flags /g, /y, and the property .lastIndex (advanced) 505

may get unexpected results:

function countMatches(regExp, str) {
let count = 0;
while (regExp.test(str)) {
count++;
}
return count;
}

const myRegExp = /a/g;

myRegExp.lastIndex = 4;
assert.equal(
countMatches(myRegExp, 'babaa'), 1); // should be 3

Normally, .lastIndex is zero in newly created regular expressions and we won’t change
it explicitly like we did in the example. But .lastIndex can still end up not being zero if
we use the regular expression multiple times.

43.6.3.5 Measures for avoiding the pitfalls of /g, /y, and .lastIndex

As an example of dealing with /g and .lastIndex, we revisit countMatches() from the

previous example. How do we prevent a wrong regular expression from breaking our
code? Let’s look at three approaches.

43.6.3.5.1 Throwing exceptions

First, we can throw an exception if /g isn’t set or .lastIndex isn’t zero:
function countMatches(regExp, str) {
if (!regExp.global) {
throw new Error('Flag /g of regExp must be set');
}
if (regExp.lastIndex !== 0) {
throw new Error('regExp.lastIndex must be zero');
}

let count = 0;
while (regExp.test(str)) {
count++;
}
return count;
}

43.6.3.5.2 Cloning regular expressions

Second, we can clone the parameter. That has the added benefit that regExp won’t be
changed.
function countMatches(regExp, str) {
const cloneFlags = regExp.flags + (regExp.global ? '' : 'g');
506 43 Regular expressions (RegExp)

const clone = new RegExp(regExp, cloneFlags);

let count = 0;
while (clone.test(str)) {
count++;
}
return count;
}

43.6.3.5.3 Using an operation that isn’t affected by .lastIndex or flags

Several regular expression operations are not affected by .lastIndex or by flags. For
example, .match() ignores .lastIndex if /g is present:

function countMatches(regExp, str) {

if (!regExp.global) {
throw new Error('Flag /g of regExp must be set');
}
return (str.match(regExp) ?? []).length;
}

const myRegExp = /a/g;

myRegExp.lastIndex = 4;
assert.equal(countMatches(myRegExp, 'babaa'), 3); // OK!

Here, countMatches() works even though we didn’t check or fix .lastIndex.

43.6.4 Use case for .lastIndex: starting matching at a given index

Apart from storing state, .lastIndex can also be used to start matching at a given index.
This section describes how.

43.6.4.1 Example: Checking if a regular expression matches at a given index

Given that .test() is affected by /y and .lastIndex, we can use it to check if a regular
expression regExp matches a string str at a given index:

function matchesStringAt(regExp, str, index) {

if (!regExp.sticky) {
throw new Error('Flag /y of regExp must be set');
}
regExp.lastIndex = index;
return regExp.test(str);
}
assert.equal(
matchesStringAt(/x+/y, 'aaxxx', 0), false);
assert.equal(
matchesStringAt(/x+/y, 'aaxxx', 2), true);

regExp is anchored to .lastIndex due to /y.

43.6 The flags /g, /y, and the property .lastIndex (advanced) 507

Note that we must not use the assertion ^ which would anchor regExp to the beginning
of the input string.

43.6.4.2 Example: Finding the location of a match, starting at a given index

.search() lets us find the location where a regular expression matches:

> '#--#'.search(/#/)
0

Alas, we can’t change where .search() starts looking for matches. As a work-around,
we can use .exec() for searching:

function searchAt(regExp, str, index) {

if (!regExp.global && !regExp.sticky) {
throw new Error('Either flag /g or flag /y of regExp must be set');
}
regExp.lastIndex = index;
const match = regExp.exec(str);
if (match) {
return match.index;
} else {
return -1;
}
}

assert.equal(
searchAt(/#/g, '#--#', 0), 0);
assert.equal(
searchAt(/#/g, '#--#', 1), 3);

43.6.4.3 Example: Replacing an occurrence at a given index

When used without /g and with /y, .replace() makes one replacement – if there is a
match at .lastIndex:

function replaceOnceAt(str, regExp, replacement, index) {

if (!(regExp.sticky && !regExp.global)) {
throw new Error('Flag /y must be set, flag /g must not be set');
}
regExp.lastIndex = index;
return str.replace(regExp, replacement);
}
assert.equal(
replaceOnceAt('aa aaaa a', /a+/y, 'X', 0), 'X aaaa a');
assert.equal(
replaceOnceAt('aa aaaa a', /a+/y, 'X', 3), 'aa X a');
assert.equal(
replaceOnceAt('aa aaaa a', /a+/y, 'X', 8), 'aa aaaa X');
508 43 Regular expressions (RegExp)

43.6.5 Summary: .global (/g) and .sticky (/y)

The following two methods are completely unaffected by /g and /y:
• String.prototype.search()
• String.prototype.split()

Flag /g Calls .lI Flag /yg

.exec() 0+ at .lI or later ✔ upd. same as /y
 : null|MObj
.test() 0+ at .lI or later ✔ upd. same as /y
 : boolean
.replace() 1 all occurrences ✘ reset /g w/o gaps
 : string
.match() 1 ✘ reset /g w/o gaps
 : null|Array<string>
.matchAll() 1 at .lI or later ✔ unch. /g w/o gaps
 : Iterable<MObj>

Legend:
• Column “#” specifies how many results a method delivers.
• .lI means .lastIndex
• MObj means MatchObject
• Is the operation affected by .lastItem?
– ✔ Yes: .lastItem is either updated or unchanged.
– ✘ No: By default, .lastItem isn’t touched, but several operations reset it to
zero.

Flag /y # Result .lI

.exec() 0+ null|MObj at .lI ✔ updated

.test() 0+ boolean at .lI ✔ updated
.replace() 1 string occurrence at .lI ✔ updated
.match() 0+ null|MObj (same as .exec()) ✔ updated
.matchAll() TypeError

A JavaScript-generated result table

I have written a Node.js script that prints a result table.

43.6.6 Summary
The regular expression property .lastIndex has two significant downsides:

• It makes regular expressions stateful:

– We now have to be mindful of the states of regular expressions and how we
43.7 Techniques for working with regular expressions 509

share them.
– For many use cases, we can’t make them immutable via freezing, either.
• Support for .lastIndex is inconsistent among regular expression operations.

On the upside, .lastIndex also gives us additional useful functionality: We can dictate
where matching should begin (for some operations).

43.7 Techniques for working with regular expressions

43.7.1 Escaping arbitrary text for regular expressions
The following function escapes an arbitrary text so that it is matched verbatim if we put
it inside a regular expression:

function escapeForRegExp(str) {
return str.replace(/[\\^$.*+?()[\]{}|]/g, '\\$&'); // (A)
}
assert.equal(escapeForRegExp('[yes?]'), String.raw`\[yes\?\]`);
assert.equal(escapeForRegExp('_g_'), String.raw`_g_`);

In line A, we escape all syntax characters. We have to be selective because the regular
expression flag /u forbids many escapes – for example: \a \: \-

The regular expression method .replace() only lets us replace plain text once. With
escapeForRegExp(), we can work around that limitation and replace plain text multiple
times:

const plainText = ':-)';

const regExp = new RegExp(escapeForRegExp(plainText), 'ug');
assert.equal(
':-) :-) :-)'.replace(regExp, '☺'), '☺ ☺ ☺');

43.7.2 Matching everything or nothing

Sometimes, we may need a regular expression that matches everything or nothing – for
example, as a default value.

• Match everything: /(?:)/

The empty group () matches everything. We make it non-capturing (via ?:), to

avoid unnecessary work.

> /(?:)/.test('')
true
> /(?:)/.test('abc')
true

• Match nothing: /.^/

^ only matches at the beginning of a string. The dot moves matching beyond the
first character and now ^ doesn’t match anymore.
510 43 Regular expressions (RegExp)

> /.^/.test('')
false
> /.^/.test('abc')
false
Chapter 44

Dates (Date)

Contents
44.1 Best practice: avoid the built-in Date . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 511
44.1.1 Things to look for in a date library . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 512
44.2 Time standards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 512
44.2.1 Background: UTC vs. Z vs. GMT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 512
44.2.2 Dates do not support time zones . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 512
44.3 Background: date time formats (ISO) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 513
44.3.1 Tip: append a Z to make date parsing deterministic . . . . . . 514
44.4 Time values . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 515
44.4.1 Creating time values . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 515
44.4.2 Getting and setting time values . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 515
44.5 Creating Dates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 516
44.5.1 Creating dates via numbers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 516
44.5.2 Parsing dates from strings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 516
44.5.3 Other ways of creating dates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 516
44.6 Getters and setters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 517
44.6.1 Time unit getters and setters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 517
44.7 Converting Dates to strings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 517
44.7.1 Strings with times . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 517
44.7.2 Strings with dates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 518
44.7.3 Strings with dates and times . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 518
44.7.4 Other methods . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 518

This chapter describes JavaScript’s API for working with dates – the class Date.

44.1 Best practice: avoid the built-in Date

The JavaScript Date API is cumbersome to use. Hence, it’s best to rely on a library for
anything related to dates. Popular libraries include:

511
512 44 Dates (Date)

• Moment.js
• Day.js
• Luxon
• js-joda
• date-fns

Consult the blog post “Why you shouldn’t use Moment.js…” for the pros and cons of
these libraries.

Additionally, TC39 is working on a new date API for JavaScript: temporal.

44.1.1 Things to look for in a date library

Two things are important to keep in mind:

• Tree-shaking can considerably reduce the size of a library. It is a technique of only

deploying those exports of a library to a web server that are imported somewhere.
Functions are much more amenable to tree-shaking than classes.

• Support for time zones: As explained later, Date does not support time zones,
which introduces a number of pitfalls and is a key weakness. Make sure that your
date library supports them.

44.2 Time standards

44.2.1 Background: UTC vs. Z vs. GMT
UTC, Z, and GMT are ways of specifying time that are similar, but subtly different:

• UTC (Coordinated Universal Time) is the time standard that all times zones are
based on. They are specified relative to it. That is, no country or territory has UTC
as its local time zone.

• Z (Zulu Time Zone) is a military time zone that is often used in aviation and the
military as another name for UTC+0.

• GMT (Greenwich Mean Time) is a time zone used in some European and African
countries. It is UTC plus zero hours and therefore has the same time as UTC.

Sources:

• “The Difference Between GMT and UTC” at TimeAndDate.com

• “Z – Zulu Time Zone (Military Time)” at TimeAndDate.com

44.2.2 Dates do not support time zones

Dates support the following time standards:

• The local time zone (which depends on the current location)

• UTC
• Time offsets (relative to UTC)
44.3 Background: date time formats (ISO) 513

Depending on the operation, only some of those options are available. For example,
when converting dates to strings or extracting time units such as the day of the month,
you can only choose between the local time zone and UTC.

Internally, Dates are stored as UTC. When converting from or to the local time zone, the
necessary offsets are determined via the date. In the following example, the local time
zone is Europe/Paris:

// CEST (Central European Summer Time)

assert.equal(
new Date('2122-06-29').getTimezoneOffset(), -120);

// CET (Central European Time)

assert.equal(
new Date('2122-12-29').getTimezoneOffset(), -60);

Whenever you create or convert dates, you need to be mindful of the time standard being
used – for example: new Date() uses the local time zone while .toISOString() uses
UTC.

> new Date(2077, 0, 27).toISOString()

'2077-01-26T23:00:00.000Z'

Dates interpret 0 as January. The day of the month is 27 in the local time zone, but 26 in
UTC.

Documenting the time standards supported by each operation

In the remainder of this chapter, the supported time standards are noted for each
operation.

44.2.2.1 The downsides of not being able to specify time zones

Not being able to specify time zones has two downsides:

• It makes it impossible to support multiple time zones.

• It can lead to location-specific bugs. For example, the previous example produces
different results depending on where it is executed. To be safe:

– Use UTC-based operations whenever possible

– Use Z or a time offset when parsing strings (see the next section for more
information).

44.3 Background: date time formats (ISO)

Date time formats describe:

• The strings accepted by:

– Date.parse()
– new Date()
514 44 Dates (Date)

• The strings returned by (always longest format):

– Date.prototype.toISOString()

The following is an example of a date time string returned by .toISOString():

'2033-05-28T15:59:59.123Z'

Date time formats have the following structures:

• Date formats: Y=year; M=month; D=day

YYYY-MM-DD
YYYY-MM
YYYY

• Time formats: T=separator (the string 'T'); H=hour; m=minute; s=second and
millisecond; Z=Zulu Time Zone (the string 'Z')

THH:mm:ss.sss
THH:mm:ss.sssZ

THH:mm:ss
THH:mm:ssZ

THH:mm
THH:mmZ

• Date time formats: are date formats followed by time formats.

– For example (longest): YYYY-MM-DDTHH:mm:ss.sssZ

Instead of Z (which is UTC+0), we can also specify time offsets relative to UTC:

• THH:mm+HH:mm (etc.)
• THH:mm-HH:mm (etc.)

44.3.1 Tip: append a Z to make date parsing deterministic

If you add a Z to the end of a string, date parsing doesn’t produce different results at
different locations:

• Without Z: Input is January 27 (in the Europe/Paris time zone), output is January
26 (in UTC).

> new Date('2077-01-27T00:00').toISOString()

'2077-01-26T23:00:00.000Z'

• With Z: Input is January 27, output is January 27.

> new Date('2077-01-27T00:00Z').toISOString()

'2077-01-27T00:00:00.000Z'
44.4 Time values 515

44.4 Time values

A time value represents a date via the number of milliseconds since 1 January 1970 00:00:00
UTC.

Time values can be used to create Dates:

const timeValue = 0;
assert.equal(
new Date(timeValue).toISOString(),
'1970-01-01T00:00:00.000Z');

Coercing a Date to a number returns its time value:

> Number(new Date(123))

123

Ordering operators coerce their operands to numbers. Therefore, you can use these op-
erators to compare Dates:

assert.equal(
new Date('1972-05-03') < new Date('2001-12-23'), true);

// Internally:
assert.equal(73699200000 < 1009065600000, true);

44.4.1 Creating time values

The following methods create time values:

• Date.now(): number (UTC)

Returns the current time as a time value.

• Date.parse(dateTimeStr: string): number (local time zone, UTC, time offset)

Parses dateTimeStr and returns the corresponding time value.

• Date.UTC(year,month,date?,hours?,minutes?,seconds?,milliseconds?):
number (UTC)

Returns the time value for the specified UTC date time.

44.4.2 Getting and setting time values

• Date.prototype.getTime(): number (UTC)

Returns the time value corresponding to the Date.

• Date.prototype.setTime(timeValue) (UTC)

Sets this to the date encoded by timeValue.

516 44 Dates (Date)

44.5 Creating Dates

44.5.1 Creating dates via numbers
new Date(year: number, month: number, date?: number, hours?: number, min-
utes?: number, seconds?: number, milliseconds?: number) (local time zone)

Two of the parameters have pitfalls:

• For month, 0 is January, 1 is February, etc.

• If 0 ≤ year ≤ 99, then 1900 is added:

> new Date(12, 1, 22, 19, 11).getFullYear()

1912

That’s why, elsewhere in this chapter, we avoid the time unit year and always use
fullYear. But in this case, we have no choice.

Example:

> new Date(2077,0,27, 21,49).toISOString() // CET (UTC+1)

'2077-01-27T20:49:00.000Z'

Note that the input hours (21) are different from the output hours (20). The former refer
to the local time zone, the latter to UTC.

44.5.2 Parsing dates from strings

new Date(dateTimeStr: string) (local time zone, UTC, time offset)

If there is a Z at the end, UTC is used:

> new Date('2077-01-27T00:00Z').toISOString()

'2077-01-27T00:00:00.000Z'

If there is not Z or time offset at the end, the local time zone is used:

> new Date('2077-01-27T00:00').toISOString() // CET (UTC+1)

'2077-01-26T23:00:00.000Z'

If a string only contains a date, it is interpreted as UTC:

> new Date('2077-01-27').toISOString()

'2077-01-27T00:00:00.000Z'

44.5.3 Other ways of creating dates

• new Date(timeValue: number) (UTC)

> new Date(0).toISOString()

'1970-01-01T00:00:00.000Z'

• new Date() (UTC)

The same as new Date(Date.now()).

44.6 Getters and setters 517

44.6 Getters and setters

44.6.1 Time unit getters and setters
Dates have getters and setters for time units – for example:
• Date.prototype.getFullYear()
• Date.prototype.setFullYear(num)
These getters and setters conform to the following patterns:
• Local time zone:
– Date.prototype.get«Unit»()
– Date.prototype.set«Unit»(num)
• UTC:
– Date.prototype.getUTC«Unit»()
– Date.prototype.setUTC«Unit»(num)
These are the time units that are supported:
• Date
– FullYear
– Month: month (0–11). Pitfall: 0 is January, etc.
– Date: day of the month (1–31)
– Day (getter only): day of the week (0–6, 0 is Sunday)
• Time
– Hours: hour (0–23)
– Minutes: minutes (0–59)
– Seconds: seconds (0–59)
– Milliseconds: milliseconds (0–999)
There is one more getter that doesn’t conform to the previously mentioned patterns:
• Date.prototype.getTimezoneOffset()
Returns the time difference between local time zone and UTC in minutes. For ex-
ample, for Europe/Paris, it returns -120 (CEST, Central European Summer Time)
or -60 (CET, Central European Time):
> new Date('2122-06-29').getTimezoneOffset()
-120
> new Date('2122-12-29').getTimezoneOffset()
-60

44.7 Converting Dates to strings

Example Date:
const d = new Date(0);

44.7.1 Strings with times

• Date.prototype.toTimeString() (local time zone)
518 44 Dates (Date)

> d.toTimeString()
'01:00:00 GMT+0100 (Central European Standard Time)'

44.7.2 Strings with dates

• Date.prototype.toDateString() (local time zone)
> d.toDateString()
'Thu Jan 01 1970'

44.7.3 Strings with dates and times

• Date.prototype.toString() (local time zone)
> d.toString()
'Thu Jan 01 1970 01:00:00 GMT+0100 (Central European Standard Time)'

• Date.prototype.toUTCString() (UTC)
> d.toUTCString()
'Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 GMT'

• Date.prototype.toISOString() (UTC)
> d.toISOString()
'1970-01-01T00:00:00.000Z'

44.7.4 Other methods

The following three methods are not really part of ECMAScript, but rather of the ECMA-
Script internationalization API. That API has much functionality for formatting dates
(including support for time zones), but not for parsing them.
• Date.prototype.toLocaleTimeString()
• Date.prototype.toLocaleDateString()
• Date.prototype.toLocaleString()

Exercise: Creating a date string

exercises/dates/create_date_string_test.mjs
Chapter 45

Creating and parsing JSON (JSON)

Contents
45.1 The discovery and standardization of JSON . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 520
45.1.1 JSON’s grammar is frozen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 520
45.2 JSON syntax . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 520
45.3 Using the JSON API . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 521
45.3.1 JSON.stringify(data, replacer?, space?) . . . . . . . . . 521
45.3.2 JSON.parse(text, reviver?) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 522
45.3.3 Example: converting to and from JSON . . . . . . . . . . . . . 523
45.4 Customizing stringification and parsing (advanced) . . . . . . . . . 523
45.4.1 .stringfy(): specifying which properties of objects to stringify 524
45.4.2 .stringify() and .parse(): value visitors . . . . . . . . . . . 524
45.4.3 Example: visiting values . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 525
45.4.4 Example: stringifying unsupported values . . . . . . . . . . . 525
45.4.5 Example: parsing unsupported values . . . . . . . . . . . . . 526
45.5 FAQ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 527
45.5.1 Why doesn’t JSON support comments? . . . . . . . . . . . . . 527

JSON (“JavaScript Object Notation”) is a storage format that uses text to encode data. Its
syntax is a subset of JavaScript expressions. As an example, consider the following text,
stored in a file jane.json:
{
"first": "Jane",
"last": "Porter",
"married": true,
"born": 1890,
"friends": [ "Tarzan", "Cheeta" ]
}

JavaScript has the global namespace object JSON that provides methods for creating and
parsing JSON.

519
520 45 Creating and parsing JSON (JSON)

45.1 The discovery and standardization of JSON

A specification for JSON was published by Douglas Crockford in 2001, at json.org. He
explains:

I discovered JSON. I do not claim to have invented JSON because it already

existed in nature. What I did was I found it, I named it, I described how it
was useful. I don’t claim to be the first person to have discovered it; I know
that there are other people who discovered it at least a year before I did. The
earliest occurrence I’ve found was, there was someone at Netscape who was
using JavaScript array literals for doing data communication as early as 1996,
which was at least five years before I stumbled onto the idea.

Later, JSON was standardized as ECMA-404:

• 1st edition: October 2013

• 2nd edition: December 2017

45.1.1 JSON’s grammar is frozen

Quoting the ECMA-404 standard:

Because it is so simple, it is not expected that the JSON grammar will ever
change. This gives JSON, as a foundational notation, tremendous stability.

Therefore, JSON will never get improvements such as optional trailing commas, com-
ments, or unquoted keys – independently of whether or not they are considered desir-
able. However, that still leaves room for creating supersets of JSON that compile to plain
JSON.

45.2 JSON syntax

JSON consists of the following parts of JavaScript:

• Compound:
– Object literals:
* Property keys are double-quoted strings.
* Property values are JSON values.
* No trailing commas are allowed.
– Array literals:
* Elements are JSON values.
* No holes or trailing commas are allowed.
• Atomic:
– null (but not undefined)
– Booleans
– Numbers (excluding NaN, +Infinity, -Infinity)
– Strings (must be double-quoted)

As a consequence, you can’t (directly) represent cyclic structures in JSON.

45.3 Using the JSON API 521

45.3 Using the JSON API

The global namespace object JSON contains methods for working with JSON data.

45.3.1 JSON.stringify(data, replacer?, space?)

.stringify() converts JavaScript data to a JSON string. In this section, we are ignoring
the parameter replacer; it is explained in §45.4 “Customizing stringification and pars-
ing”.

45.3.1.1 Result: a single line of text

If you only provide the first argument, .stringify() returns a single line of text:
assert.equal(
JSON.stringify({foo: ['a', 'b']}),
'{"foo":["a","b"]}' );

45.3.1.2 Result: a tree of indented lines

If you provide a non-negative integer for space, then .stringify() returns one or more
lines and indents by space spaces per level of nesting:
assert.equal(
JSON.stringify({foo: ['a', 'b']}, null, 2),
`{
"foo": [
"a",
"b"
]
}`);

45.3.1.3 Details on how JavaScript data is stringified

Primitive values:
• Supported primitive values are stringified as expected:
> JSON.stringify('abc')
'"abc"'
> JSON.stringify(123)
'123'
> JSON.stringify(null)
'null'

• Unsupported numbers: 'null'

> JSON.stringify(NaN)
'null'
> JSON.stringify(Infinity)
'null'

• Bigints: TypeError
522 45 Creating and parsing JSON (JSON)

> JSON.stringify(123n)
TypeError: Do not know how to serialize a BigInt

• Other unsupported primitive values are not stringified; they produce the result
undefined:

> JSON.stringify(undefined)
undefined
> JSON.stringify(Symbol())
undefined

Objects:

• If an object has a method .toJSON(), then the result of that method is stringified:

> JSON.stringify({toJSON() {return true}})

'true'

Dates have a method .toJSON() that returns a string:

> JSON.stringify(new Date(2999, 11, 31))

'"2999-12-30T23:00:00.000Z"'

• Wrapped primitive values are unwrapped and stringified:

> JSON.stringify(new Boolean(true))

'true'
> JSON.stringify(new Number(123))
'123'

• Arrays are stringified as Array literals. Unsupported Array elements are stringi-
fied as if they were null:

> JSON.stringify([undefined, 123, Symbol()])

'[null,123,null]'

• All other objects – except for functions – are stringified as object literals. Properties
with unsupported values are omitted:

> JSON.stringify({a: Symbol(), b: true})

'{"b":true}'

• Functions are not stringified:

> JSON.stringify(() => {})

undefined

45.3.2 JSON.parse(text, reviver?)

.parse() converts a JSON text to a JavaScript value. In this section, we are ignoring the
parameter reviver; it is explained §45.4 “Customizing stringification and parsing”.

This is an example of using .parse():

> JSON.parse('{"foo":["a","b"]}')
{ foo: [ 'a', 'b' ] }
45.4 Customizing stringification and parsing (advanced) 523

45.3.3 Example: converting to and from JSON

The following class implements conversions from (line A) and to (line B) JSON.
class Point {
static fromJson(jsonObj) { // (A)
return new Point(jsonObj.x, jsonObj.y);
}

constructor(x, y) {
this.x = x;
this.y = y;
}

toJSON() { // (B)
return {x: this.x, y: this.y};
}
}

• Converting JSON to a point: We use the static method Point.fromJson() to parse

JSON and create an instance of Point.
assert.deepEqual(
Point.fromJson(JSON.parse('{"x":3,"y":5}')),
new Point(3, 5) );

• Converting a point to JSON: JSON.stringify() internally calls the previously

mentioned method .toJSON().
assert.equal(
JSON.stringify(new Point(3, 5)),
'{"x":3,"y":5}' );

Exercise: Converting an object to and from JSON

exercises/json/to_from_json_test.mjs

45.4 Customizing stringification and parsing (advanced)

Stringification and parsing can be customized as follows:
• JSON.stringify(data, replacer?, space?)
The optional parameter replacer contains either:
– An Array with names of properties. If a value in data is stringified as an
object literal, then only the mentioned properties are considered. All other
properties are ignored.
– A value visitor, a function that can transform JavaScript data before it is stringi-
fied.
• JSON.parse(text, reviver?)
524 45 Creating and parsing JSON (JSON)

The optional parameter reviver contains a value visitor that can transform the
parsed JSON data before it is returned.

45.4.1 .stringfy(): specifying which properties of objects to stringify

If the second parameter of .stringify() is an Array, then only object properties, whose
names are mentioned there, are included in the result:

const obj = {
a: 1,
b: {
c: 2,
d: 3,
}
};
assert.equal(
JSON.stringify(obj, ['b', 'c']),
'{"b":{"c":2}}');

45.4.2 .stringify() and .parse(): value visitors

What I call a value visitor is a function that transforms JavaScript data:

• JSON.stringify() lets the value visitor in its parameter replacer transform

JavaScript data before it is stringified.
• JSON.parse() lets the value visitor in its parameter reviver transform parsed
JavaScript data before it is returned.

In this section, JavaScript data is considered to be a tree of values. If the data is atomic,
it is a tree that only has a root. All values in the tree are fed to the value visitor, one at a
time. Depending on what the visitor returns, the current value is omitted, changed, or
preserved.

A value visitor has the following type signature:

type ValueVisitor = (key: string, value: any) => any;

The parameters are:

• value: The current value.

• this: Parent of current value. The parent of the root value r is {'': r}.
– Note: this is an implicit parameter and only available if the value visitor is
an ordinary function.
• key: Key or index of the current value inside its parent. The key of the root value
is ''.

The value visitor can return:

• value: means there won’t be any change.

• A different value x: leads to value being replaced with x in the output tree.
• undefined: leads to value being omitted in the output tree.
45.4 Customizing stringification and parsing (advanced) 525

45.4.3 Example: visiting values

The following code shows in which order a value visitor sees values:

const log = [];

function valueVisitor(key, value) {
log.push({this: this, key, value});
return value; // no change
}

const root = {
a: 1,
b: {
c: 2,
d: 3,
}
};
JSON.stringify(root, valueVisitor);
assert.deepEqual(log, [
{ this: { '': root }, key: '', value: root },
{ this: root , key: 'a', value: 1 },
{ this: root , key: 'b', value: root.b },
{ this: root.b , key: 'c', value: 2 },
{ this: root.b , key: 'd', value: 3 },
]);

As we can see, the replacer of JSON.stringify() visits values top-down (root first, leaves
last). The rationale for going in that direction is that we are converting JavaScript values
to JSON values. And a single JavaScript object may be expanded into a tree of JSON-
compatible values.

In contrast, the reviver of JSON.parse() visits values bottom-up (leaves first, root last).
The rationale for going in that direction is that we are assembling JSON values into
JavaScript values. Therefore, we need to convert the parts before we can convert the
whole.

45.4.4 Example: stringifying unsupported values

JSON.stringify() has no special support for regular expression objects – it stringifies
them as if they were plain objects:

const obj = {
name: 'abc',
regex: /abc/ui,
};
assert.equal(
JSON.stringify(obj),
'{"name":"abc","regex":{}}');

We can fix that via a replacer:

526 45 Creating and parsing JSON (JSON)

function replacer(key, value) {

if (value instanceof RegExp) {
return {
__type__: 'RegExp',
source: value.source,
flags: value.flags,
};
} else {
return value; // no change
}
}
assert.equal(
JSON.stringify(obj, replacer, 2),
`{
"name": "abc",
"regex": {
"__type__": "RegExp",
"source": "abc",
"flags": "iu"
}
}`);

45.4.5 Example: parsing unsupported values

To JSON.parse() the result from the previous section, we need a reviver:

function reviver(key, value) {

// Very simple check
if (value && value.__type__ === 'RegExp') {
return new RegExp(value.source, value.flags);
} else {
return value;
}
}
const str = `{
"name": "abc",
"regex": {
"__type__": "RegExp",
"source": "abc",
"flags": "iu"
}
}`;
assert.deepEqual(
JSON.parse(str, reviver),
{
name: 'abc',
regex: /abc/ui,
});
45.5 FAQ 527

45.5 FAQ
45.5.1 Why doesn’t JSON support comments?
Douglas Crockford explains why in a Google+ post from 1 May 2012:
I removed comments from JSON because I saw people were using them to
hold parsing directives, a practice which would have destroyed interoper-
ability. I know that the lack of comments makes some people sad, but it
shouldn’t.
Suppose you are using JSON to keep configuration files, which you would
like to annotate. Go ahead and insert all the comments you like. Then pipe
it through JSMin [a minifier for JavaScript] before handing it to your JSON
parser.
528 45 Creating and parsing JSON (JSON)
 Part X

Miscellaneous topics

529
Chapter 46

Next steps: overview of web

development (bonus)

Contents
46.1 Tips against feeling overwhelmed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 531
46.2 Things worth learning for web development . . . . . . . . . . . . . 532
46.2.1 Keep an eye on WebAssembly (Wasm)! . . . . . . . . . . . . . 533
46.3 Example: tool-based JavaScript workflow . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 534
46.4 An overview of JavaScript tools . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 536
46.4.1 Building: getting from the JavaScript you write to the
JavaScript you deploy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 536
46.4.2 Static checking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 537
46.4.3 Testing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 538
46.4.4 Package managers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 538
46.4.5 Libraries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 538
46.5 Tools not related to JavaScript . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 538

You now know most of the JavaScript language. This chapter gives an overview of web
development and describes next steps. It answers questions such as:
• What should I learn next for web development?
• What JavaScript-related tools should I know about?

46.1 Tips against feeling overwhelmed

Web development has become a vast field: Between JavaScript, web browsers, server-
side JavaScript, JavaScript libraries, and JavaScript tools, there is a lot to know. Addi-
tionally, everything is always changing: some things go out of style, new things are
invented, etc.
How can you avoid feeling overwhelmed when faced with this constantly changing vast-
ness of knowledge?

531
532 46 Next steps: overview of web development (bonus)

• Focus on the web technologies that you work with most often and learn them well.
If you do frontend development, that may be JavaScript, CSS, SVG, or something
else.
• For JavaScript: Know the language, but also try out one tool in each of the follow-
ing categories (which are covered in more detail later).
– Compilers: compile future JavaScript or supersets of JavaScript to normal
JavaScript.
– Bundlers: combine all modules used by a web app into a single file (a script
or a module). That makes loading faster and enables dead code elimination.
– Static checkers. For example:
* Linters: check for anti-patterns, style violations, and more.
* Type checkers: type JavaScript statically and report errors.
– Test libraries and tools
– Version control (usually git)

Trust in your ability to learn on demand

It is commendable to learn something out of pure curiosity. But I’m wary of trying
to learn everything and spreading yourself too thin. That also induces an anxiety
of not knowing enough (because you never will). Instead, trust in your ability to
learn things on demand!

46.2 Things worth learning for web development

These are a few things worth learning for web development:
• Browser APIs such as the Document Object Model (DOM), the browsers’ represen-
tation of HTML in memory. They are the foundations of any kind of frontend
development.
• JavaScript-adjacent technologies such as HTML and CSS.
• Frontend frameworks: When you get started with web development, it can be
instructive to write user interfaces without any libraries. Once you feel more con-
fident, frontend frameworks make many things easier, especially for larger apps.
Popular frameworks include React, Angular, Vue, Ember, Svelte.
• Node.js is the most popular platform for server-side JavaScript. But it also lets you
run JavaScript in the command line. Most JavaScript-related tools (even compil-
ers!) are implemented in Node.js-based JavaScript and installed via npm. A good
way to get started with Node.js, is to use it for shell scripting.
• JavaScript tooling: Modern web development involves many tools. Later in this
chapter, there is an overview of the current tooling ecosystem.
• Progressive web apps: The driving idea behind progressive web apps is to give web
apps features that, traditionally, only native apps had – for example: native in-
stallation on mobile and desktop operating systems; offline operation; showing
notifications to users. Google has published a checklist detailing what makes a
web app progressive. The minimum requirements are:
46.2 Things worth learning for web development 533

– The app must be served over HTTPS (not the unsecure HTTP).
– The app must have a Web App Manifest file, specifying metadata such as app
name and icon (often in multiple resolutions). The file(s) of the icon must
also be present.
– The app must have a service worker: a base layer of the app that runs in the
background, in a separate process (independently of web pages). One of its
responsibilities is to keep the app functioning when there is no internet con-
nection. Among others, two mechanisms help it do that: It is a local proxy
that supervises all of the web resource requests of the app. And it has ac-
cess to a browser’s cache. Therefore, it can use the cache to fulfill requests
when the app is offline – after initially caching all critical resources. Other ca-
pabilities of service workers include synchronizing data in the background;
receiving server-sent push messages; and the aforementioned showing noti-
fications to users.

One good resource for learning web development – including and beyond JavaScript –
is MDN web docs.

46.2.1 Keep an eye on WebAssembly (Wasm)!

WebAssembly is a universal virtual machine that is built into most JavaScript engines.
You get the following distribution of work:

• JavaScript is for dynamic, higher-level code.

• WebAssembly is for static, lower-level code.

For static code, WebAssembly is quite fast: C/C++ code, compiled to WebAssembly,
is about 50% as fast as the same code, compiled to native (source). Use cases include
support for new video formats, machine learning, gaming, etc.

WebAssembly works well as a compilation target for various languages. Does this mean
JavaScript will be compiled to WebAssembly or replaced by another language?

46.2.1.1 Will JavaScript be compiled to WebAssembly?

JavaScript engines perform many optimizations for JavaScript’s highly dynamic features.
If you wanted to compile JavaScript to WebAssembly, you’d have to implement these
optimizations on top of WebAssembly. The result would be slower than current engines
and have a similar code base. Therefore, you wouldn’t gain anything.

46.2.1.2 Will JavaScript be replaced by another language?

Does WebAssembly mean that JavaScript is about to be replaced by another language?

WebAssembly does make it easier to support languages other than JavaScript in web
browsers. But those languages face several challenges on that platform:

• All browser APIs are based on JavaScript.

• The runtimes (standard library, etc.) of other languages incur an additional mem-
ory overhead, whereas JavaScript’s runtime is already built into web browsers.
• JavaScript is well-known, has many libraries and tools, etc.
534 46 Next steps: overview of web development (bonus)

Additionally, many parts of the WebAssembly ecosystem (e.g., debugging) are works in
progress.
For dynamic code, JavaScript is comparatively fast. Therefore, for the foreseeable future,
it will probably remain the most popular choice for high-level code. For low-level code,
compiling more static languages (such as Rust) to WebAssembly is an intriguing option.
Given that it is just a virtual machine, there are not that many practically relevant things
to learn about WebAssembly. But it is worth keeping an eye on its evolving role in web
development. It is also becoming popular as a stand-alone virtual machine; e.g., sup-
ported by the WebAssembly System Interface.

46.3 Example: tool-based JavaScript workflow

<script src="code.js">
<script src="library.js">

index.html

loads loads

code.js library.js

Figure 46.1: A classic, very simple web app: An HTML file refers to a JavaScript file
code.js, which imbues the former with interactivity. code.js uses the library li-
brary.js, which must also be loaded by the HTML file.

Fig. 46.1 depicts a classic web app – when web development was less sophisticated (for
better and for worse):
• index.html contains the HTML file that is opened in web browsers.
• code.js contains the JavaScript code loaded and used by index.html.
• That code depends on the library library.js, a file that was downloaded man-
ually and put next to code.js. It is accessed via a global variable. Note that the
HTML file needs to load the dependency library.js for code.js. code.js can’t
do that itself.
Since then, JavaScript workflows have become more complex. Fig. 46.2 shows such a
workflow – one that is based on the JavaScript bundler webpack.
Let’s examine the pieces (data, tools, technologies) involved in this workflow:
• The app itself consists of multiple modules, written in TypeScript – a language that
is a statically typed superset of JavaScript. Each file is an ECMAScript module,
plus static type annotations.
• The library used by the app is now downloaded and installed via the npm pack-
age manager. It also transparently handles transitive dependencies – if this package
46.3 Example: tool-based JavaScript workflow 535

Entry

Library via imports TypeScript imports TypeScript

npm module module

compiled to compiled to

JS code JS code
ad
de
d

added to
to

o
dt
de
ad
Output bundle.js

loads

index.html

<script src="bundle.js">

Figure 46.2: This is the workflow when developing a web app with the bundler webpack.
Our web app consists of multiple modules. We tell webpack, in which one execution
starts (the so-called entry point). It then analyzes the imports of the entry point, the im-
ports of the imports, etc., to determine what code is needed to run the app. All of that
code is put into a single script file.
536 46 Next steps: overview of web development (bonus)

depends on other packages, etc.

• All TypeScript files are compiled to plain JS via a loader, a plugin for webpack.
• The tool webpack combines all plain JavaScript files into a single JavaScript script
file. This process is called bundling. Bundling is done for two reasons:
– Downloading a single file is usually faster in web browsers.
– During bundling, you can perform various optimizations, such as leaving
out code that isn’t used.
The basic structure is still the same: the HTML file loads a JavaScript script file via a
<script> element. However:

• The code is now modular without the HTML file having to know the modules.
• bundle.js only includes the code that is needed to run the app (vs. all of li-
brary.js).
• We used a package manager to install the libraries that our code depends on.
• The libraries aren’t accessed via global variables but via ES module specifiers.
In modern browsers, you can also deliver the bundle as a module (vs. as a script file).

46.4 An overview of JavaScript tools

Now that we have seen one workflow, let’s look at various categories of tools that are
popular in the world of JavaScript. You’ll see categories of tools and lots of names of
specific tools. The former are much more important. The names change, as tools come
into and out of style, but I wanted you to see at least some of them.

46.4.1 Building: getting from the JavaScript you write to the JavaScript
you deploy
Building JavaScript means getting from the JavaScript you write to the JavaScript you
deploy. The following tools are often involved in this process:
• Transpilers: A transpiler is a compiler that compiles source code to source code.
Two transpilers that are popular in the JavaScript community are:
– Babel compiles upcoming and modern JavaScript features to older versions
of the language. That means you can use new features in your code and still
run it on older browsers.
– TypeScript is a superset of JavaScript. Roughly, it is the latest version of
JavaScript plus static typing.
• Minifiers: A minifier compiles JavaScript to equivalent, smaller (as in fewer charac-
ters) JavaScript. It does so by renaming variables, removing comments, removing
whitespace, etc.
For example, given the following input:
let numberOfOccurrences = 5;
if (Math.random()) {
// Math.random() is not zero
46.4 An overview of JavaScript tools 537

numberOfOccurrences++
}

A minifier might produce:

let a=5;Math.random()&&a++;

– Popular minifiers include: UglifyJS, babel-minify, Terser, and Closure Com-

piler.

• Bundlers: compile and optimize the code of a JavaScript app. The input of a
bundler is many files – all of the app’s code plus the libraries it uses. A bundler
combines these input files to produce fewer output files (which tends to improve
performance).

A bundler minimizes the size of its output via techniques such as tree-shaking. Tree-
shaking is a form of dead code elimination: only those module exports are put in
the output that are imported somewhere (across all code, while considering tran-
sitive imports).

It is also common to perform compilation steps such as transpiling and minifica-

tion while bundling. In these cases, a bundler relies on the previously mentioned
tools, packaged as libraries.

– Popular bundlers include webpack, browserify, Rollup, and Parcel.

All of these tools and build steps are usually coordinated via so-called task runners (think
“make” in Unix). There are:

• Dedicated task runners: grunt, gulp, broccoli, etc.

• Tools that can be used as simple task runners: npm (via its “scripts”) and webpack
(via plugins).

46.4.2 Static checking

Static checking means analyzing source code statically (without running it). It can be used
to detect a variety of problems. Tools include:

• Linters: check the source code for problematic patterns, unused variables, etc. Lin-
ters are especially useful if you are still learning the language because they point
out if you are doing something wrong.
– Popular linters include JSLint, JSHint, ESLint
• Code style checkers: check if code is formatted properly. They consider indenta-
tion, spaces after brackets, spaces after commas, etc.
– Example: JSCS (JavaScript Code Style checker)
• Code formatters: automatically format your code for you, according to rules that
you can customize.
– Example: Prettier
• Type checkers: add static type checking to JavaScript.
– Popular type checkers: TypeScript (which is also a transpiler), Flow.
538 46 Next steps: overview of web development (bonus)

46.4.3 Testing
JavaScript has many testing frameworks – for example:

• Unit testing: Jasmine, Mocha, AVA, Jest, Karma, etc.

• Integration testing: Jenkins, Travis CI, etc.
• User interface testing: CasperJS, Protractor, Nightwatch.js, TestCafé, etc.

46.4.4 Package managers

The most popular package manager for JavaScript is npm. It started as a package man-
ager for Node.js but has since also become dominant for client-side web development
and tools of any kind.

There are alternatives to npm, but they are all based in one way or another on npm’s
software registry:

• Yarn is a different take on npm; some of the features it pioneered are now also
supported by npm.
• pnpm focuses on saving space when installing packages locally.

46.4.5 Libraries
• Various helpers: lodash (which was originally based on the Underscore.js library)
is one of the most popular general helper libraries for JavaScript.
• Data structures: The following libraries are two examples among many.
– Immutable.js provides immutable data structures for JavaScript.
– Immer is an interesting lightweight alternative to Immutable.js. It also
doesn’t mutate the data it operates on, but it works with normal objects and
Arrays.
• Date libraries: JavaScript’s built-in support for dates is limited and full of pitfalls.
The chapter on dates lists libraries that you can use instead.
• Internationalization: In this area, ECMAScript’s standard library is complemented
by the ECMAScript Internationalization API (ECMA-402). It is accessed via the
global variable Intl and available in most modern browsers.
• Implementing and accessing services: The following are two popular options that
are supported by a variety of libraries and tools.
– REST (Representative State Transfer) is one popular option for services and
based on HTTP(S).
– GraphQL is more sophisticated (for example, it can combine multiple data
sources) and supports a query language.

46.5 Tools not related to JavaScript

Given that JavaScript is just one of several kinds of artifacts involved in web develop-
ment, more tools exist. These are but a few examples:

• CSS:
– Minifiers: reduce the size of CSS by removing comments, etc.
46.5 Tools not related to JavaScript 539

– Preprocessors: let you write compact CSS (sometimes augmented with con-
trol flow constructs, etc.) that is expanded into deployable, more verbose
CSS.
– Frameworks: provide help with layout, decent-looking user interface com-
ponents, etc.
• Images: Automatically optimizing the size of bitmap images, etc.
540 46 Next steps: overview of web development (bonus)
 Part XI

Appendices

541
Chapter 47

Index

!x, 123 AMD module, 247

++x, 128 anonymous function expression, 226
x++, 128 argument, 233
+x, 128 argument vs. parameter, 233
, (comma operator), 109 Array, 323
--x, 128 Array hole, 333
x--, 128 Array index, 332
-x, 128 Array literal, 324
x && y, 122 Array, dense, 333
x + y, 102 Array, multidimensional, 331
x - y, 127 Array, roles of an, 324
x / y, 127 Array, sparse, 333
x << y, 139 Array-destructuring, 401
x === y, 105 Array-like object, 328
x >>> y, 139 ArrayBuffer, 356
x >> y, 139 arrow function, 229
x ?? d, 107 ASI (automatic semicolon insertion), 53
x & y, 139 assert (module), 67
x ** y, 127 assertion, 65
x * y, 127 assignment operator, 103
x ^ y, 139 async, 463
x ¦ y, 139 async function, 461
x ¦¦ y, 123 async function*, 474
x ٪ y, 127 async-await, 461
=, 103 asynchronous generator, 474
c ? t : e, 121 asynchronous iterable, 471
__proto__, 294 asynchronous iteration, 471
~x, 139 asynchronous iterator, 471
asynchronous programming, 421
accessor (object literal), 269 attribute of a property, 291
addition, 102 automatic semicolon insertion (ASI), 53

543
544

await (async function), 465 conditional operator, 121

await (asynchronous generator), 475 console, 59
console.error(), 63
big endian, 360 console.log(), 62
bigint, 155 const, 78
BigInt64Array, 356 constant, 77
BigUint64Array, 356 constructor function (role of an
binary integer literal, 126 ordinary function), 227
binding (variable), 78 continue, 209
bitwise And, 139 Converting to [type], 117
bitwise Not, 139 Coordinated Universal Time (UTC),
bitwise Or, 139 512
bitwise Xor, 139 copy object deeply, 271
boolean, 117 copy object shallowly, 271
Boolean(), 117
bound variable, 88 dash case, 47
break, 208 DataView, 356
bundler, 536 date, 511
bundling, 536 date time format, 513
decimal floating point literal, 127
call stack, 424 decimal integer literal, 126
callback (asynchronous pattern), 431 decrementation operator (prefix), 128
callback function, 233 decrementation operator (suffix), 128
camel case, 47 deep copy of an object, 271
case, camel, 47 default export, 251
case, dash, 47 default value (destructuring), 405
case, kebab, 47 default value (parameter), 234
case, snake, 47 default value operator (??), 107
case, underscore, 47 delete, 284
catch, 221 deleting a property, 284
class, 299 dense Array, 333
class, 299 descriptor of a property, 291
class declaration, 299 destructive operation, 335
class definition, 299 destructuring, 397
class expression, 299 destructuring an Array, 401
class, mixin, 311 destructuring an object, 400
classes, private data for, 303 dictionary (role of an object), 267
closure, 88 direct method call, 310
code point, 167 dispatched method call, 310
code unit, 167 divided by operator, 127
coercion, 98 division, 127
combinator, Promise, 446 do-while, 214
comma operator, 109 dynamic this, 230
CommonJS module, 247 dynamic vs. static, 81
comparing by identity, 95
comparing by value, 94 early activation, 85
computed property key, 283 Ecma, 32
concatenating strings, 175 ECMA-262, 32
 545

ECMAScript, 32 garbage collection, 95

ECMAScript module, 248 generator, asynchronous, 474
Eich, Brendan, 31 generator, synchronous, 409
endianness (Typed Arrays), 360 getter (object literal), 269
enumerability, 285 global, 83
enumerable (property attribute), 285 global object, 82
equality operator, 105 global scope, 82
ES module, 248 global variable, 82
escaping HTML, 197 globalThis, 82
eval(), 237 GMT (Greenwich Mean Time), 512
evaluating an expression, 50 grapheme cluster, 170
event (asynchronous pattern), 429 Greenwich Mean Time (GMT), 512
event loop, 425
exception, 219 heap, 95
exercises, getting started with, 71 hexadecimal integer literal, 126
exponentiation, 127 hoisting, 87
export, 249 hole in an Array, 333
export default, 251
export, default, 251 identifier, 47
export, named, 249 identity of an object, 94
expression, 50 if, 210
extends, 305 IIFE (immediately invoked function
external iteration, 415 expression), 246
extracting a method, 275 immediately invoked function
expression (IIFE), 246
false, 117 import, 250
falsiness, 118 import(), 260
falsy, 118 import, named, 250
finally, 222 import, namespace, 251
flags (regular expression), 484 in, 284
Float32Array, 356 incrementation operator (prefix), 128
Float64Array, 356 incrementation operator (suffix), 128
floating point literal, 127 index of an Array, 332
for, 214 Infinity, 132
for-await-of, 474 inheritance, multiple, 311
for-in, 217 inheritance, single, 311
for-of, 215 instanceof, 95, 302
free variable, 88 Int16Array, 356
freezing an object, 291 Int32Array, 356
fulfilled (Promise state), 435 Int8Array, 356
function declaration, 226 integer numbers, 135
function expression, anonymous, 226 integer, safe, 137
function expression, named, 226 internal iteration, 415
function, arrow, 229 iterable (asynchronous), 471
function, ordinary, 225 iterable (synchronous), 318
function, roles of an ordinary, 227 iteration, asynchronous, 471
function, specialized, 225 iteration, external, 415
function*, 409 iteration, internal, 415
546

iteration, synchronous, 317 NaN, 131

iterator (asynchronous), 471 node_modules, 256
iterator (synchronous), 318 npm, 255
npm package, 255
JSON (data format), 519 null, 113
JSON (namespace object), 519 nullish coalescing operator (??), 107
number, 125
kebab case, 47 Number(), 130
keyword, 49
object, 265
label, 209
object literal, 267
left shift operator, 139
object vs. Map, 381
let, 78
object vs. primitive value, 93
lexical this, 230
Object(), 99
listing properties, 284
object, copy deeply, 271
little endian, 360
object, copy shallowly, 271
logical And, 122
object, freezing an, 291
logical Not, 123
object, identity of an, 94
logical Or, 123
object, roles of an, 267
Map, 371 object-destructuring, 400
Map, 371 Object.is(), 106
Map vs. object, 381 octal integer literal, 126
Math (namespace object), 147 ones’ complement, 139
method, 272 operator, assignment, 103
method (object literal), 269 operator, comma, 109
method (role of an ordinary function), operator, default value (??), 107
227 operator, equality, 105
method call, direct, 310 operator, nullish coalescing (??), 107
method call, dispatched, 310 operator, void, 109
method, extracting a, 275 ordinary function, 225
minification, 536 ordinary function, roles of an, 227
minifier, 536 override a property, 296
minus operator (binary), 127
minus operator (unary), 128 package, npm, 255
mixin class, 311 package.json, 255
module specifier, 258 parameter, 233
module, AMD, 247 parameter default value, 234
module, CommonJS, 247 parameter vs. argument, 233
multidimensional Array, 331 passing by identity, 94
multiple inheritance, 311 passing by value, 93
multiple return values, 403 pattern (regular expression), 484
multiplication, 127 pending (Promise state), 435
plus operator (binary), 102
named export, 249 plus operator (unary), 128
named function expression, 226 polyfill, 264
named import, 250 polyfill, speculative, 264
named parameter, 235 ponyfill, 264
namespace import, 251 primitive value, 93
 547

primitive value vs. object, 93 roles of an object, 267

private data for classes, 303 roles of an ordinary function, 227
progressive web app, 532 run-to-completion semantics, 428
prollyfill, 264
Promise, 433 safe integer, 137
Promise combinator, 446 scope of a variable, 79
Promise, states of a, 435 script, 245
Promise.all(), 447 self, 83
Promise.allSettled(), 453 sequence (role of an Array), 324
Promise.race(), 450 Set, 387
properties, listing, 284 Set, 387
property (object), 267 setter (object literal), 269
property attribute, 291 settled (Promise state), 435
property descriptor, 291 shadowing, 81
property key, 284 shallow copy of an object, 271
property key, computed, 283 shim, 264
property key, quoted, 282 signed right shift operator, 139
property name, 284 single inheritance, 311
property symbol, 284 sloppy mode, 55
property value shorthand, 268 snake case, 47
property, deleting a, 284 sparse Array, 333
prototype, 294 specialized function, 225
prototype chain, 294 specifier, module, 258
publicly known symbol, 202 speculative polyfill, 264
spreading (...) into a function call, 236
quizzes, getting started with, 71 spreading into an Array literal, 326
quoted property key, 282 spreading into an object literal, 270
statement, 50
real function (role of an ordinary states of a Promise, 435
function), 227 static, 302
receiver, 269 static vs. dynamic, 81
record (role of an object), 267 strict mode, 55
RegExp, 483 string, 173
regular expression, 483 String(), 175
regular expression literal, 484 subclass, 305
rejected (Promise state), 435 subtraction, 127
remainder operator, 127 switch, 211
REPL, 61 symbol, 199
replica, 264 symbol, publicly known, 202
RequireJS, 247 synchronous generator, 409
reserved word, 49 synchronous iterable, 318
rest element (Array-destructuring), 402 synchronous iteration, 317
rest parameter (function call), 234 synchronous iterator, 318
rest property (object-destructuring), syntax, 44
401
return values, multiple, 403 tagged template, 191
revealing module pattern, 246 task queue, 425
roles of an Array, 324 task runner, 536
548

TC39, 33 underscore case, 47

TC39 process, 33 Unicode, 167
TDZ (temporal dead zone), 84 Unicode Transformation Format (UTF),
Technical Committee 39, 33 168
template literal, 190 unit test, 72
temporal dead zone, 84 unsigned right shift operator, 139
ternary operator, 121 UTC (Coordinated Universal Time),
this, 269 512
this, dynamic, 230 UTF (Unicode Transformation Format),
this, lexical, 230 168
this, pitfalls of, 278 UTF-16, 169
this, values of, 278 UTF-32, 168
throw, 220 UTF-8, 169
time value, 515
times operator, 127 variable, bound, 88
to the power of operator, 127 variable, free, 88
transpilation, 536 variable, scope of a, 79
void operator, 109
transpiler, 536
tree-shaking, 536
Wasm (WebAssembly), 533
true, 117
WeakMap, 383
truthiness, 118
WeakMap, 383
truthy, 118
WeakSet, 395
try, 221
WeakSet, 395
tuple (role of an Array), 324
Web Worker, 427
type, 91
WebAssembly, 533
type hierarchy, 92
while, 213
type signature, 21
window, 83
Typed Array, 355
wrapper types (for primitive types), 98
typeof, 95
TypeScript, 536 yield (asynchronous generator), 475
yield (synchronous generator), 410
Uint16Array, 356 yield* (asynchronous generator), 475
Uint32Array, 356 yield* (synchronous generator), 413
Uint8Array, 356
Uint8ClampedArray, 356 Z (Zulu Time Zone), 512
undefined, 113 Zulu Time Zone (Z), 512