How to extend $scope globally? - angularjs

I would like that all my $scope objects contain a specific helper method that I use to retrieve data like $scope.getData('member.submember.othermember') otherwise I would have to do $scope['member']['submember']['othermember'].
The idea is to add this .getData method to all the created $scope objects by default.
Is there any extensibility point where I may add that?

Angular scopes use JS prototypal inheritance, it is possible to add custom method to all scopes (in addition to existing $ methods) with
$rootScope.constructor.prototype.$getData = function () { ... };

Related

Storing data in $rootScope

Is it advisable to store data in $rootScope.
I have a cordova app which uses sensor data which is coming every 100ms. For me to use that data in multiple controller I am using $rootScope.sensorData variable which is being refreshed every 100ms. Is it alright to use it this way? Is there a better way to do it?
Thank you
You can store it in factory. In AngularJS factory is singleton, so only instance is created.
myApp.factory('SensorSrv', function SensorSrv() {
var sensorData;
return {
setData: setData,
getData: getData
};
function setData(data) {
sensorData = data;
}
function getData() {
return sensorData;
}
});
You can also user local-storage if you want to persist the data.
I think this is not good idea to use $rootScope in entire code logic , There are lot of reasons behind that ... Instead of that you can create code login in services it is more flexible ... and also you can see this link
Best practice for using $rootscope in an Angularjs application?
From the Official Docs:
$rootScope exists, but it can be used for evil
Scopes in Angular form a hierarchy, prototypally inheriting from a root scope at the top of the tree. Usually this can be ignored, since most views have a controller, and therefore a scope, of their own.
Occasionally there are pieces of data that you want to make global to the whole app. For these, you can inject $rootScope and set values on it like any other scope. Since the scopes inherit from the root scope, these values will be available to the expressions attached to directives like ng-show just like values on your local $scope.
Of course, global state sucks and you should use $rootScope sparingly, like you would (hopefully) use with global variables in any language. In particular, don't use it for code, only data. If you're tempted to put a function on $rootScope, it's almost always better to put it in a service that can be injected where it's needed, and more easily tested.
Conversely, don't create a service whose only purpose in life is to store and return bits of data.
--AngularJS Miscellaneous FAQ
I recommend using app.value app.value('test', 20);
Because by using $rootScope you are exposing that value to all the services which might be a security threat. By using value you can make sure where do you want to use that variable according to your requirement.

Is there a way to get a scope of a DOM element when debug info is disabled?

I'm writing an directive which need to retrieve a scope of current DOM element. using the non public api angular.element().scope();
It works well until angular 1.3 introduces a new feature $compileProvider.debugInfoEnabled(false); which mainly aims to improve performance to avoid bind data in DOM element. But when debugInfoEnabled() is set to false, angular.element().scope() will return undefined. So I must find another way to get the scope of an DOM element or I have to redesign my code logic.
Is there a way to make this possible?
I just faced a similar problem in our application after compiling our app with $compileProvider.debugInfoEnabled(false);. I needed to later access some of our directive's isolate scope but couldn't use the isolateScope() method. To get around the problem, I created a helper function in a Utils service that looks like this:
this.setElementIsolateScope = function(element, scope) {
element[0].isolateScope = function() {
return scope;
};
};
Then inside any directive where I needed to be able to later access the isolate scope I called this function inside the link() function: Since element is a jqLite object, you need to set the isolateScope() function on element[0]. You should already have the jqLite wrapped element and scope already passed into your link function, which you then just pass to your service method.
Utils.setElementIsolateScope(element, scope);
To then access the isolate scope later, you would get a reference to your element and then do this (assuming child_element is the reference to your element/directive):
var child_iso_scope = _.isFunction(child_element.isolateScope) && child_element.isolateScope();
Depending on how you are getting the reference to your element, you may need to wrap it a jqLite wrapper like this:
child_element = angular.element(child_element);
And then just use the same way as above to get the isolate scope. Hope this helps!

Angular JS function use $scope or not

According to the Angular docs:
Scope is the glue between application controller and the view. During the template linking phase the directives set up $watch expressions on the scope. The $watch allows the directives to be notified of property changes, which allows the directive to render the updated value to the DOM.
Now my Question is : if my function is not connected to the view, should we use $scope or not?
I assume that you mean if you should do $scope.functionName = function(), even if the function isn't connected to the view.
No you shouldn't, why would you expose a function to the view, which isn't needed to the view? Also you get a better overview which functions is internally when only using function funcName().
You shouldn't use the $scope to declare every function you are using, especially if it's not connected to the view.
However, there are some cases you need to use the $scope in a function not connected to view, for example if you want to emit/receive/broadcast a message on the scope tree or access something on a parent scope (although it's not necessarly a good practice).

How to output data from a directive to a controller, and should I?

Use case
For use in a form, I created a directive that tracks changes in an array. It allows changes to be reverted and deletions and additions to be stored separately. It allows for an array (one to many mapping in the database) to be updated incrementally (rather than requiring the server to either diff, or rewrite the entire list).
Problem?
My question is about the way I expose the functionality to the controller's scope. I currently use an two-way databound attribute on the directive's scope. This works, and it seems reliable (of course you can easily break it by reassigning the scope's value, but intentionally you can break anything).
Code
You can see this plunk to see this in action. It allows methods on the directive's controller to be called from the view and the view's controller. (I am using the directive controller intentionally because that's what I do in my actual code for the directive to directive communication, but this could also just be placed in the linking function.)
Question
Is this way of doing it bad design? Am I completely throwing AngularJS out of the window now and hacking in my own code. Are there any better ways to expose functions from a directive (keep in mind that there'll be multiple of these in a single form).
It's very easy to pass in my-attribute="someFunction()" to have the directive be a consumer of the view controller. I can't find a better way to do the opposite and have the view controller consume from the directive.
Alternative?
I've been thinking about using a service here, in which the service will provide an object that is instanciated in the view, passed to the directive, and have the directive blurp out it's results to that object. Then in turn have the view controller consume the information from that service's object. Would this be a better approach?
There's nothing wrong with your approach. In fact built-in angular directives such as ng-form use this approach to store the controller in the scope (see the name property of ng-form) http://docs.angularjs.org/api/ng.directive:ngForm
For more re-usability though I would put the api methods on the controller and then put the controller itself in the api:
this.getChanges = function () {};
this.resetChanges = function(){};
$scope.api = this;
In directives, the main purpose of the controller is to serve as an api for other directives (if you didn't need an api for other directives you could just do everything in the link function). Doing it this way ensures the api is available both on the scope as well as to any directive that 'requires' the oneToMany directive.

Is it ok to use $controller inside a controller?

I don't want to repeat the same code that I have in one of my controllers, so I have two options:
use $controller service inside other controller to have some kind of inheritance
use multiple ng-controller on the same element - but I don't know if this is possible?
What is the best solution to implement some kind of controllers inheritance ?
To quote Angular Docs: Controller Inheritance Example:
Controller inheritance in Angular is based on Scope inheritance.
In terms of the example in the docs, you could put your common methods on the $scope inside ChildCtrl, then those methods will automatically be available in the $scope inside BabyCtrl.
Although personally, I prefer adding common code into a service and injecting that service into multiple controllers.
There is no problem in mixing controllers. You can't use ng-controller twice in the same element though, so you would need to inject $controller or create a directive that binds to the controller.
It doesn't make much sense to inject $controller inside the main controller of the element, instead, create a directive that is bound to the componentized controller, and this way, you will have componentized a behavior. Please refer to this answer When to write a directive? to understand what I say.
Controllers are meant to control the $scope, and you don't have a way to extend the controllers. There is no problem in have multiple controllers changing a single scope and using it as a medium of communication between them.
Only use a service if you have a repetitive operation that you do not need a scope necessarily, just like fetching data, manipulating objects, calculating and etc.
You could also consider isolating the common functionality into a service.

Resources