Object-Oriented JavaScript: An Introduction to Core Concepts - Working with objects in JavaScript : introducing the key concepts
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In order to introduce you to object-based programming in JavaScript, let’s go over the basics quickly. First, let me refresh some core concepts that play a crucial role when working with objects. Specifically, JavaScript conceives objects as a collection of properties, even when this collection can also contain functions (known as methods) or other objects.
Widely known, JavaScript has a lot of built-in objects, which you’ve probably used many times. “Window”, “document”, and “Array” are good examples of the predefined objects available in the JavaScript universe, which should be familiar to you. However, as I mentioned earlier, the ability of JavaScript to create user-defined objects is actually where I’ll focus my attention. Therefore let me illustrate the process for defining custom objects. To begin with, I’ll use a sample “createDivs()” function, handy for building DIV elements on the fly, and later I’ll show you how to use the skeleton of this function for creating DIV objects. Here’s the definition for this function:
function createDiv(w,h,t,l,p,bg){
var div=document.createElement('div');
div.style.width=w+'px';
div.style.height=h+'px';
div.style.position='absolute';
div.style.top=t+'px';
div.style.left=l+'px';
div.style.padding=p+'px';
div.style.border='1px solid #000';
div.style.backgroundColor='#'+bg;
document.getElementsByTagName('body')[0].appendChild(div);
}
As you can see, the above function takes a few incoming parameters, such as “width”, “height”, “top” and “left” coordinates, background color, and builds up a DIV element, by appending it to the document tree. Eventually, this function might be called as follows:
createDiv(200,100,10,10,5,'0f0');
Probably, you’ve used a similar function dozen of times, so I won’t stop on it for long. However, the interesting thing about it is that I’ll use its basic structure for creating DIV objects, instead of simply working with regular functions.
The question that comes now is: how can a custom Div object be created? Well, take a closer look at the function listed below:
function Div(w,h,t,l,p,bg){
// define object properties
this.div=document.createElement('div');
this.w=w+'px';
this.h=h+'px';
this.pos='absolute';
this.top=t+'px';
this.left=l+'px';
this.pad=p+'px';
this.bord='1px solid #000';
this.bg='#'+bg;
// define 'display()' method
this.display=display;
}
In simple terms, what I’ve done above is define a “Div” object by utilizing a similar syntax to the one used to define regular functions. After defining the “Div” function, which in this case is called a “constructor” function, I’ve specified the object properties, by utilizing the “this” keyword.
For anyone who has worked with an object-based language like Java or a simpler one, such as PHP, the use of the “this” keyword should be pretty straightforward. If its meaning is a rather foreign concept to you, the “this” pointer in question is used to point to the current instance of the object being utilized. Bearing in mind this idea, you can spawn as many Div objects as needed, and each of them can hold a different value for the same property, because each object really acts as an independent data structure within the context of an application.
Now, by returning to the definition for Div objects, notice the “display” property is defined as a method of the object. This condition is telling us that all Div objects also expose a “display” method. So, maybe you’re wondering…how do I tie this method to the object itself? The answer is simply by defining it as an ordinary function, like this:
function display(){
this.div.style.width=this.w;
this.div.style.height=this.h;
this.div.style.position=this.pos;
this.div.style.top=this.top;
this.div.style.left=this.left;
this.div.style.padding=this.pad;
this.div.style.border=this.bord;
this.div.style.background=this.bg;
document.getElementsByTagName('body')[0].appendChild(this.div);
}
Here, I’ve linked the above method to the constructor function for Div objects, so it uses all the properties declared within the constructor for displaying a DIV element on a web page. As you can see, the concept and the notation used above are quite simple to grasp, so I’ll instantiate a new Div object and insert it iinto the web document:
var div=new Div(300,250,50,50,5,'f00');
// display div
div.display();
The above snippet uses the “new” keyword to create a new “Div” object, by calling the corresponding constructor, (the “Div” function), and executing the block of instructions contained in it. After a “Div” object has been instantiated, its “display()” method is called, using the values assigned to its properties. In accordance with the parameters passed to the constructor, a red div element will be absolutely positioned on the web document, and its dimensions will be of 300px X 250px respectively.
As a matter of fact, the above approximation for tying methods to objects looks unintuitive, because methods are declared outside the constructor, and sometimes it’s pretty hard to see the relationship between objects and their methods. That said, let’s look at an alternative syntax for coupling methods to objects inside the corresponding constructor.
Next: Coupling methods to objects: defining self-contained constructors >>
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