Create PubSub
A tiny Event Emitter and Observable Store for JavaScript apps.
Supported environments: Browser, Node and Deno.
It's a Vanilla JavaScript library, so it's framework-agnostic. But if you're using React, check out the built-in support for it in the examples. And if you're planning to store immutable data, check also the built-in support for Immer.
Install
npm install create-pubsubImport
// Import as an ES Module.
import { createPubSub } from "create-pubsub";// Or require as a CommonJS Module.
const { createPubSub } = require("create-pubsub");// Or import it from URL.
import { createPubSub } from "https://esm.sh/create-pubsub";<!-- Or use it directly in the browser. -->
<script src="https://unpkg.com/create-pubsub"></script>
<script>
const { createPubSub } = window["create-pubsub"];
</script>Usage
As Emitter/Listener
For each event you want to track, create a new PubSub.
const [pub, sub] = createPubSub<Type>();As Store
To store a value, pass an initial value and set a third element while destructuring it.
const [pub, sub, get] = createPubSub(initialValue);Examples
Example: Getting Started
const [pub, sub] = createPubSub<string>();
sub((data) => console.log(`Hello ${data}!`));
pub("World"); // Prints "Hello World!".Example: Naming Functions
Name the 'pub' and 'sub' functions as you wish. The idea is to avoid relying on strings representing the events names. The following snippet shows different ways to name an event which indicates the game started:
const [publishGameStarted, subscribeToGameStarted] = createPubSub();
const [gameStarted, onGameStarted] = createPubSub();
const [dispatchGameStarted, listenGameStartedEvent] = createPubSub();Example: Signalling
You can also publish events with no data, just for signalling:
const [emitPageIsReady, whenPageIsReady] = createPubSub();
whenPageIsReady(() => {
// Do something with the page, which is now ready.
});
emitPageIsReady();Example: Unsubscribing
And you can unsubscribe at any moment, by invoking the function returned when you subscribe:
const [publish, subscribe] = createPubSub();
const unsubscribe = subscribe((numberReceived) => {
console.log(numberReceived);
if (numberReceived === 2) unsubscribe();
});
publish(1); // Prints 1.
publish(2); // Prints 2 and unsubscribe.
publish(3); // Nothing is printed.Example: Chaining Events
const [emitAssetsLoaded, onAssetsLoaded] = createPubSub();
const [emitGameStarted, onGameStarted] = createPubSub();
onGameStarted(() => {
// Setup world, characters, etc. And possibly chain more events.
});
onAssetsLoaded(() => {
// Initializes the game, load last saved session, etc.
emitGameStarted();
});
emitAssetsLoaded();Example: Storing Data
const [set, sub, get] = createPubSub("red");
console.log(get()); // Prints "red".
set("blue"); // Sets the store to "blue", but nothing is printed.
sub((state) => console.log(state)); // Subscribe to next store updates.
set("green"); // Sets the store to "green" and prints it.
console.log(get()); // Prints "green".Example: Action & Reaction
You also receive the value to the previous value stored there, so you can check if the value has changed or not since last time it was set, for example:
const [updatePlayer, onPlayerChanged, getPlayer] = createPubSub({
name: "Player1",
level: 5,
hp: 33,
mana: 92,
});
onPlayerChanged((playerState, previousPlayerState) => {
if (playerState.level > previousPlayerState.level) {
// Player leveled up! Let's display the level-up dialog.
}
});
updatePlayer({ ...getPlayer(), level: 6, hp: 40, mana: 100 });Example: State Management
Using it as a store and reacting to other events:
const [setValue, watchValue, getValue] = createPubSub(0);
const [dispatchIncremented, onIncremented] = createPubSub();
const [dispatchDecremented, onDecremented] = createPubSub();
onIncremented(() => setValue(getValue() + 1));
onDecremented(() => setValue(getValue() - 1));
watchValue((state) => console.log(state));
dispatchIncremented(); // Prints 1.
dispatchIncremented(); // Prints 2.
dispatchDecremented(); // Prints 1.Example: Working with Immutable Data
For creating a PubSub instance that makes use of Immer, import the createImmerPubSub
function from create-pubsub/immer and the Publish function will then provide the draft
which you can mutate to generate the new state.
import { createImmerPubSub } from "create-pubsub/immer";
const [updateColorsList, onColorsListUpdated, getColorsList] =
createImmerPubSub([
{ name: "White", code: { r: 255, g: 255, b: 255 } },
{ name: "Gray", code: { r: 128, g: 128, b: 128 } },
]);
onColorsListUpdated((currentColorsList, previousColorsList) => {
console.log(currentColorsList);
// Prints:
// [
// { name: "White", code: { r: 255, g: 255, b: 255 } },
// { name: "Green", code: { r: 0, g: 128, b: 0 } },
// ]
console.log(previousColorsList);
// Prints:
// [
// { name: "White", code: { r: 255, g: 255, b: 255 } },
// { name: "Gray", code: { r: 128, g: 128, b: 128 } },
// ]
});
updateColorsList((colorsList) => {
const color = colorsList.find((color) => color.name === "Gray");
if (color) {
color.name = "Green";
color.code.r = 0;
color.code.b = 0;
}
});
console.log(getColorsList());
// Prints:
// [
// { name: "White", code: { r: 255, g: 255, b: 255 } },
// { name: "Green", code: { r: 0, g: 128, b: 0 } },
// ]Example: React Hook
For linking a PubSub instance with a React element, import the usePubSub hook
from create-pubsub/react and use it inside the component, similar to React's
useState.
import { createPubSub } from "create-pubsub";
import { usePubSub } from "create-pubsub/react";
const counterPubSub = createPubSub(0);
const ReactButton = () => {
const [count, setCount] = usePubSub(counterPubSub);
return <button onClick={() => setCount(count + 1)}>Count: {count}</button>;
};