Using Lodash in JavaScript

Table of Contents

1. Introduction
2. Why Lodash
3. Installation
4. Array Manipulation
5. Object Manipulation
6. Function Utilities
7. Additional Resources

Introduction

Lodash is a powerful JavaScript utility library that simplifies the handling of arrays, numbers, objects, strings, etc. It’s designed to make JavaScript easier by taking the hassle out of working with arrays, numbers, objects, and strings.Lodash makes JavaScript easier by taking the hassle out of working with arrays, numbers, objects, strings, etc. Lodash’s modular methods are great for:

• Iterating arrays, objects, & strings
• Manipulating & testing values
• Creating composite functions

Why use Lodash

1. Enhanced Readability:
   • Intuitive Function Names: Lodash’s functions have descriptive, intuitive names, making code easier to understand at a glance.
   • Consistent Syntax: The consistent syntax in Lodash promotes a uniform coding style that is easy to follow.
2. Improved Maintainability:
   • Modularity: Lodash allows you to import only the functions you need, keeping your codebase lightweight and focused.
   • Chainable Methods: By chaining methods, you can write sequences of operations in a clear and logical manner, which simplifies future code modifications.
3. Enhanced Performance:
   • Optimized Operations: Lodash is optimized for performance, particularly with large datasets and complex manipulations. Some tests in this article
   • Efficiency in Data Handling: Offers efficient handling of collections and deep object manipulation, often outperforming equivalent native JavaScript.

While Lodash is a powerful utility library for JavaScript, modern JavaScript (ES6) has introduced many features that Lodash was originally designed to provide. There are other library like Ramda and Lazy offer similar functionalities. If your project has already setup with ES6, this overlap can lead to redundant code and unnecessary increase in project size.

Also in terms of performance, while Lodash is optimized for a variety of scenarios, native JavaScript methods are often more efficient for simple tasks. If your project doesn’t requrie complex operation in array, object or function in javascript, native JavaScript is enough for the project.

Improved readability and maintainability

Installation

Lodash can be added to your JavaScript project in a few different ways. Here are the most common methods:

• Using npm: Run npm install lodash in your project directory.
• Using a CDN: Include a script tag in your HTML: <script src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/npm/lodash/lodash.min.js"></script>
• In nodejs: ```javascript // Load the full build. var _ = require(‘lodash’); // Load the core build. var _ = require(‘lodash/core’); // Load the FP build for immutable auto-curried iteratee-first data-last methods. var fp = require(‘lodash/fp’);

// Load method categories. var array = require(‘lodash/array’); var object = require(‘lodash/fp/object’);

## Array Manipulation
Lodash provides a variety of functions to work with arrays efficiently. Here are some common methods:

- `_.chunk(array, [size=1])`: Creates an array of elements split into groups the length of `size`. If array can't be split evenly, the final chunk will be the remaining elements.

- `_.difference(array, [values])`: Creates an array excluding all given values.

### Example Usage Array
```javascript
import _ from 'lodash';

//chunk 
let array = [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6];
let chunked = _.chunk(array, 2);
console.log(chunked); // Outputs: [[1, 2], [3, 4], [5, 6]]

//difference 
const array1 = [2, 1, 3];
const array2 = [3, 4];
const result = _.difference(array1, array2);
console.log(result);
// Output: [2, 1]

Object-manipulation

Object manipulation is a common task in JavaScript, and Lodash offers a variety of functions to simplify these operations. Below are some examples of how you can use Lodash to work with objects.

_.assign is used to copy the values of all enumerable own properties from one or more source objects to a target object.

_.cloneDeep creates a deep clone of the value.

_.merge is used to merge own and inherited enumerable string keyed properties of source objects into the destination object.

Example Usage Object

import _ from 'lodash';

//assign 
const object = { 'a': 1 };
const other = { 'b': 2, 'c': 3 };
_.assign(object, other);
console.log(object);
// Output: { 'a': 1, 'b': 2, 'c': 3 }

//cloneDeep 
const objects = [{ 'a': 1 }, { 'b': 2 }];
const deep = _.cloneDeep(objects);
console.log(deep[0] === objects[0]);

//merge 
const object1 = {
  'a': [{ 'b': 2 }, { 'd': 4 }]
};

const object2 = {
  'a': [{ 'c': 3 }, { 'e': 5 }]
};

_.merge(object1, object2);
console.log(object1);
// Output: { 'a': [{ 'b': 2, 'c': 3 }, { 'd': 4, 'e': 5 }] }

Those method helps you

Function Utilities in Lodash

Lodash provides a variety of utilities to enhance and control the behavior of functions. Below are examples of some of these utilities.

_.once creates a function that is restricted to invoking the provided function only once.

_.memoize creates a function that memoizes the result of the provided function. The result is cached based on the arguments provided to the memoized function. In react, it is similar with UseMemo()

_.partial creates a function that invokes the provided function with any additional partial arguments prepended to those provided to the new function.

Example Usage function

import _ from 'lodash';
// debounce
const onlyOnce = _.once(() => {
  console.log('This will be logged only once!');
});

onlyOnce(); // 'This will be logged only once!'
onlyOnce(); // No output, as the function has already been called once.

// memoize
const computeExpensiveValue = (a, b) => {
  console.log('Computing...');
  return a + b;
};

// partial 
const memoizedCompute = _.memoize(computeExpensiveValue);
console.log(memoizedCompute(1, 2)); // 'Computing...' and then 3
console.log(memoizedCompute(1, 2)); // Directly 3, without 'Computing...' as it's cached

Additional Resources

For more in-depth learning and advanced usage of Lodash, the following resources can be highly beneficial:

1. Lodash Official Documentation: This is the primary resource for understanding Lodash’s API. It provides detailed documentation on every function available in the library. Lodash Documentation

2. GitHub Repository: The Lodash GitHub repository is a great place to understand the development of the library, contribute to its codebase, and view issues and discussions. Lodash GitHub

3. Tutorials and Articles: Various tutorials and articles are available online that provide practical examples and use cases of Lodash. Websites like Medium, Dev.to, and personal blogs of JavaScript developers often have insightful content. Lodash Medium