JavaScript¶
While most of Django core is Python, the admin
and gis
contrib apps
contain JavaScript code.
Please follow these coding standards when writing JavaScript code for inclusion in Django.
Code style¶
- Please conform to the indentation style dictated in the
.editorconfig
file. We recommend using a text editor with EditorConfig support to avoid indentation and whitespace issues. Most of the JavaScript files use 4 spaces for indentation, but there are some exceptions. - When naming variables, use
camelCase
instead ofunderscore_case
. Different JavaScript files sometimes use a different code style. Please try to conform to the code style of each file. - Use the ESLint code linter to check your code for bugs and style errors. ESLint will be run when you run the JavaScript tests. We also recommended installing a ESLint plugin in your text editor.
- Where possible, write code that will work even if the page structure is later
changed with JavaScript. For instance, when binding a click handler, use
$('body').on('click', selector, func)
instead of$(selector).click(func)
. This makes it easier for projects to extend Django’s default behavior with JavaScript.
JavaScript patches¶
Django’s admin system leverages the jQuery framework to increase the capabilities of the admin interface. In conjunction, there is an emphasis on admin JavaScript performance and minimizing overall admin media file size. Serving compressed or “minified” versions of JavaScript files is considered best practice in this regard.
To that end, patches for JavaScript files should include both the original
code for future development (e.g. foo.js
), and a compressed version for
production use (e.g. foo.min.js
). Any links to the file in the codebase
should point to the compressed version.
Compressing JavaScript¶
To simplify the process of providing optimized JavaScript code, Django includes a handy Python script which should be used to create a “minified” version. To run it:
$ python django/contrib/admin/bin/compress.py
...\> py django\contrib\admin\bin\compress.py
Behind the scenes, compress.py
is a front-end for Google’s
Closure Compiler which is written in Java. The Closure Compiler library is
not bundled with Django, but will be installed automatically by npm
. The
Closure Compiler library requires Java 7 or higher.
Please don’t forget to run compress.py
and include the diff
of the
minified scripts when submitting patches for Django’s JavaScript.
JavaScript tests¶
Django’s JavaScript tests can be run in a browser or from the command line.
The tests are located in a top level js_tests
directory.
Writing tests¶
Django’s JavaScript tests use QUnit. Here is an example test module:
QUnit.module('magicTricks', {
beforeEach: function() {
const $ = django.jQuery;
$('#qunit-fixture').append('<button class="button"></button>');
}
});
QUnit.test('removeOnClick removes button on click', function(assert) {
const $ = django.jQuery;
removeOnClick('.button');
assert.equal($('.button').length, 1);
$('.button').click();
assert.equal($('.button').length, 0);
});
QUnit.test('copyOnClick adds button on click', function(assert) {
const $ = django.jQuery;
copyOnClick('.button');
assert.equal($('.button').length, 1);
$('.button').click();
assert.equal($('.button').length, 2);
});
Please consult the QUnit documentation for information on the types of assertions supported by QUnit.
Running tests¶
The JavaScript tests may be run from a web browser or from the command line.
Testing from a web browser¶
To run the tests from a web browser, open up js_tests/tests.html
in your
browser.
To measure code coverage when running the tests, you need to view that file over HTTP. To view code coverage:
- Execute
python -m http.server
from the root directory (not from insidejs_tests
). - Open http://localhost:8000/js_tests/tests.html in your web browser.
Testing from the command line¶
To run the tests from the command line, you need to have Node.js installed.
After installing Node.js
, install the JavaScript test dependencies by
running the following from the root of your Django checkout:
$ npm install
...\> npm install
Then run the tests with:
$ npm test
...\> npm test