By Vishal Basumatary in javascript — Mar 24, 2023

Modules: Remember All Strings Will Now Have a Property After You Use Require

If you are working with JavaScript, you must have come across the term "modules". In simple terms, modules are reusable pieces of code that can be imported and used in other files. Using modules can help you write cleaner, more organized and efficient code.

Using Require in Modules

In JavaScript, you can use the "require" function to import modules. When you use "require", it returns an object that contains all the exports of the module. For example:


var myModule = require('./myModule');
console.log(myModule.myFunction());

In this example, we are importing a module called "myModule" and calling a function called "myFunction" that is exported from that module.

Strings with a Property After Using Require

When you use "require" to import a module, all the strings in that module will now have a property. This is because the "require" function wraps the module code in a function and passes in a few arguments, one of which is the "module" object. This "module" object has a property called "exports" which is used to export things from the module.

So, when you export a string from your module, it becomes an object with a property. For example:


// myModule.js
module.exports = 'Hello World';

// app.js
var myString = require('./myModule');
console.log(myString.length); // Outputs: 11

In this example, we are exporting a string "Hello World" from our module and then importing it into another file called "app.js". Notice that when we log the length of the string, it outputs 11 instead of 5 (which is the length of the actual string). This is because the string is now an object with a property "length".

Multiple Ways to Export from a Module

There are multiple ways to export things from your module. You can export a single function, multiple functions or objects. Here are a few examples:

Exporting a Single Function


// myModule.js
function myFunction() {
  return 'Hello World';
}
module.exports = myFunction;

In this example, we are exporting a single function called "myFunction". We can then import this function and use it in another file.

Exporting Multiple Functions


// myModule.js
function myFunction1() {
  return 'Hello World';
}
function myFunction2() {
  return 'Goodbye World';
}
module.exports.myFunction1 = myFunction1;
module.exports.myFunction2 = myFunction2;

In this example, we are exporting two functions called "myFunction1" and "myFunction2". We can then import these functions and use them in another file.

Exporting Objects


// myModule.js
module.exports = {
  myFunction1: function() {
    return 'Hello World';
  },
  myFunction2: function() {
    return 'Goodbye World';
  }
};

In this example, we are exporting an object that contains two functions called "myFunction1" and "myFunction2". We can then import this object and use its functions in another file.

Conclusion

Modules are an essential part of modern JavaScript development. Using modules can help you write cleaner, more organized and efficient code. Remember that all the strings in a module will now have a property after you use require. Also, there are multiple ways to export things from your module, including exporting a single function, multiple functions or objects.