ease.js

ease.js is a basic collection of CommonJS modules intended to "ease" the transition into JavaScript from other Object-Oriented languages. It provides an intuitive means of achieving classical inheritance and has planned support traits/mixins.

Current support includes:

• Simple and intuitive class definitions
• Classical inheritance
• Abstract classes and methods
• Interfaces
• Visibility (public, protected and private members)

While the current focus of the project is Object-Oriented design, it is likely that ease.js will expand to other paradigms in the future.

This project is still under development. Please read the manual for more information.

Why ease.js?

There are already plenty of other means of achieving each of this project's goals, so what's the point of ease.js? The aim of the project is to provide a lightweight library in a CommonJS format which also addresses ES5 issues and is an all-inclusive solution to OO techniques. It satisfies primarily a personal itch.

How to Use

Please note that, as the project is under active development, the API may change until the first release.

ease.js uses the CommonJS module format. In the examples below, Node.js is used.

Defining Classes

The constructor is provided as the __construct() method (influenced by PHP).

var Class = require( 'easejs' ).Class;

// anonymous class definition
var Dog = Class(
{
    'private _name': '',

    'public __construct': function( name )
    {
        this._name = name;
    },

    'public bark': function()
    {
        console.log( 'Woof!' );
    },

    'public getName': function()
    {
        return this._name;
    }
});

The above creates an anonymous class and stores it in the variable Dog. You have the option of naming class in order to provide more useful error messages and toString() output:

var Dog = Class( 'Dog',
{
    // ...
});

Extending Classes

Classes may inherit from one-another. If the supertype was created using Class.extend(), a convenience extend() method has been added to it. Classes that were not created via Class.extend() can still be extended by passing it as the first argument to Class.extend().

Multiple inheritance is not supported. ease.js is very generous with the options it provides to developers as alternatives, so pick whichever flavor your are most comfortable with: interfaces, traits or mixins. Multiple inheritance will not be added in the future due to its problems which have been addressed by interfaces and traits.

Note that interfaces, traits and mixins are not yet available. They are planned features and should be available shortly.

var SubFoo = Foo.extend(
{
    'public anotherMethod': function()
    {
    },
});

// if Foo was not created via Class.extend(), this option may be used (has
// the same effect as above, even if Foo was created using Class.extend())
var SubFoo = Class.extend( Foo,
{
    'public anotherMethod': function()
    {
    },
});

Abstract Classes

Abstract classes require that their subtypes implement certain methods. They cannot be instantiated. Classes are automatically considered to be abstract if they contain one or more abstract methods.

var Class = require( 'easejs' ).Class;

var AbstractFoo = Class(
{
    // a function may be provided if you wish the subtypes to implement a
    // certain number of arguments
    'abstract public fooBar': [ 'arg' ],

    // alternatively, you needn't supply implementation details
    'abstract public fooBar2': [],
});

If the abstract method provides implementation details (as shown by fooBar(), subtypes must implement at least that many arguments or an exception will be thrown. This ensures consistency between supertypes and their subtypes.

Abstract classes can be extended from just as an other class. In order for its subtype to be instantiated, it must provide concrete implementations of each abstract method. If any methods are left as abstract, then the subtype too will be considered abstract.

// can be instantiated because concrete methods are supplied for both
// abstract methods
var ConcreteFoo = AbstractFoo.extend(
{
    'public fooBar': function( arg )
    {
    },

    'public fooBar2': function()
    {
    },
});

// cannot be instantiated because one abstract method remains
var StillAbstractFoo = AbstractFoo.extend(
{
    'public fooBar': function( arg )
    {
    },
});

You may determine if a class is abstract by calling its isAbstract() method. The abstract methods are available as a read-only abstractMethods property.

Foo.isAbstract();              // false
SubFoo.isAbstract();           // false
AbstractFoo.isAbstract();      // true
Concretefoo.isAbstract();      // false
StillAbstractFoo.isAbstract(); // true

Interfaces

Interfaces can be declared in a very similar manner to classes. All members of an interface must be declared as abstract.

var MyType = Interface(
{
    'abstract public foo': []
});

To implement an interface, use the implement() class method:

var ConcreteType = Class.implement( MyType ).extend(
{
    'public foo': function() {}
});

Use of Reserved Words

Though JavaScript doesn't currently implement classes, interfaces, etc, it does reserve the keywords. In an effort to ensure that ease.js will not clash, the following precautions are taken:

• Class is used with a capital 'C'
• Interface is used with a capital 'I'
• Reserved keywords are quoted when used (e.g. in property strings)