Guide to organizing controllers in separate files in AngularJS

After searching around for a solution that aligns with my current scenario, I have come across an app.js file:

'use strict';

var demoApp = angular.module('demoApp', [
    // Dependencies of the "module" <-- demoApp
    'ngRoute',
    'routeAppControllers',
    'todoList'
]);

demoApp.config(['$routeProvider', '$locationProvider',
    function($routeProvider, $locationProvider) { 

        // Routing system
        $routeProvider
        .when('/home', {
            templateUrl: 'views/home.html',
            controller: 'homeCtrl'
        })
        .when('/contact/:msg?', {
            templateUrl: 'views/contact.html',
            controller: 'contactCtrl'
        })
        .when('/todolist', {
            templateUrl: 'views/todolist.html',
            controller: 'listeCtrl'
        })
        .when('/testfiltre', {
            templateUrl: 'views/testfiltre.html',
            controller: 'demoFiltreCtrl'
        })
        .when('/testCreationfiltre', {
            templateUrl: 'views/testcreationfiltre.html',
            controller: 'demoCreationFiltreCtrl'
        })
        .otherwise({
            redirectTo: '/home'
        });
    }
]);



var routeAppControllers = angular.module('routeAppControllers', []);

routeAppControllers.controller('homeCtrl', ['$scope',
    function($scope){
        $scope.message = "Welcome to the homepage";
    }
]);

routeAppControllers.controller('contactCtrl', ['$scope','$routeParams',
    function($scope, $routeParams){
        $scope.message = "Leave us a message on the contact page!";
        $scope.msg = $routeParams.msg || "Good luck with this new app!";
    }
]);

routeAppControllers.controller('listeCtrl', [function(){}]);

In addition, I also have a todolist module in todolist_controller.js:

var todoList=angular.module('todoList',[]);

todoList.controller('todoCtrl', ['$scope',
    function ($scope) {

        var todos = $scope.todos = [];

        $scope.addTodo = function () {
            var newTodo = $scope.newTodo.trim();
            if (!newTodo.length) {
                return;
            }
            todos.push({
                title: newTodo,
                completed: false
            });

            $scope.newTodo = '';
        };

        $scope.removeTodo = function (todo) {
            todos.splice(todos.indexOf(todo), 1);
        };

        $scope.markAll = function (completed) {
            todos.forEach(function (todo) {
                todo.completed = completed;
            });
        };

        $scope.clearCompletedTodos = function () {
            $scope.todos = todos = todos.filter(function (todo) {
                return !todo.completed;
            });
        };
    }
]);

Lastly, in my index.html page:

<!DOCTYPE html>
    <html lang="fr" ng-app="demoApp">
        <head>
            <meta charset="utf-8" />
            <title>Demo App</title>        
            <link rel="stylesheet" href="styles/style.css">
            <script src="https://ajax.googleapis.com/ajax/libs/angularjs/1.4.2/angular.js"></script>
            <script src="https://ajax.googleapis.com/ajax/libs/angularjs/1.4.2/angular-route.js"></script>
            <script src="https://cdnjs.cloudflare.com/ajax/libs/angular-i18n/1.4.2/angular-locale_fr-ca.min.js"></script>
            <script src="scripts/controllers/app.js"></script>
            <script src="scripts/controllers/todolist_controllers.js"></script>
        </head>
        <body>
            <div ng-view>
            </div>
            <nav>
                <a href="#/home" class="btn btn-primary">Home Page</a>
                <a href="#/contact" class="btn btn-success">Contact Page</a>
                <a href="#/todolist" class="btn btn-primary">To-Do List</a>
                <a href="#/testfiltre" class="btn btn-success">Filter Test</a>
                <a href="#/testCreationfiltre" class="btn btn-primary">Create Filter Test</a>
            </nav>
        </body>
    </html>

I have learned about keeping modularity by naming my main module 'App' and starting all other module files as: angular.module('App').controller(...)

This way, if I ever decide to change the name of my app from 'app' to 'my_app', I will only need to update it in the dependencies of my 'App' module without going through each controller individually.

Answer №1

Structuring Your Angular Project

When developing an angular application, it is important to organize your code in a way that enhances readability. One recommended approach is to create a separate module for each page or component of your web app.

Example Implementation

Here is an example showcasing this structure, which serves as a solid foundation for building angular apps.

Understanding the Folder Structure

The 'app' folder acts as a container for all your components and routes.

Routes Configuration (routes.js)

This file defines the states of your project and functions as its standalone module.

Main Angular Module (app.js)

The base file where you can list all other modules as dependencies.

var app = angular.module("myApp",   [
                                    'ui.bootstrap',
                                    'ngAnimate',
                                    ...
                                ]);

You can observe how each module is listed and added within the main angular module called 'myApp'. This name is then referenced in the HTML file using the attribute 'ng-app.'

Organizing Components

The 'components' directory should house specific features like 'home' and 'contact', each containing self-contained HTML files, controllers, and services.

Controller Module Creation

To add a new module for a controller, follow these steps:

angular.module('myAppHomeCtrl', []).controller('homeCtrl', ['$scope', 'homeContent', function($scope, homeContent){
    ...
}]);

Service Factory Setup

In the same directory, define a factory like so:

angular.module('myAppHomeService', [])
.factory('homeContent', function(){
  return {
    ...
  };
});

Including Modules in index.html

In the index file, include all modules within <script> tags:

<!-- Angular Modules -->
<script type="text/javascript" src="app/app.module.js"></script>
...

In production, all scripts will be minified, but during development, they can be linked individually as shown above.

Final Thoughts

To summarize, ensure you have followed these steps to effectively structure your angular modules:

  1. Add the module name to your main angular file.
  2. Create new modules for components in the 'components' directory.
  3. Link the new modules in the index.html file using script tags.
  4. Now you can utilize the controllers and components as needed.

We hope this guide on structuring angular applications proves helpful in your development endeavors. Best of luck!

Answer №2

Instead of initializing the app as

var app = angular.module('myApp', []);
, simply use angular.module('myApp', []); without assigning it to a variable. Then, in separate files such as somethingCtrl.js, you can define controllers like this:

angular.module('myApp')
    .controller('somethingCtrl', ['$scope', function ($scope) {
    }]);

Next, add the script tags in the correct order on your html file. Begin with defining the module first. Follow the Angular style guidelines found here.

Alternatively, OPTION 2:

Start by defining your initial module. Then, you can create and include other modules as dependencies like so:

index.js:

angular.module('mainApp', ['otherApp']);

other.js

angular.module('otherApp', []);

This approach allows you to organize your controllers into one module and directives into another. By utilizing modules as dependencies, you have the flexibility to mix functionalities. Remember to ensure that mainApp is loaded first in the script tag order.

Answer №3

If you're not familiar with requirejs or browserify, they can be extremely helpful in situations like this. However, if you prefer using plain JavaScript, you can achieve a similar result.

For instance, consider your app.js file. Create a global config object and use it to reference the app name throughout your code. This way, you can easily change the app name in the config object without affecting other components.

var config = {
    app : "myApp"
}

angular.module(config.app, ["ngAnimate"]);

Now, a controller in controller.js can utilize the same config object.

angular.module(config.app)
       .controller("myController", function($scope) { ... }

Just make sure to load app.js first so that the config object is accessible.

<script src="/js/app.js"></script>
<script src="/js/controller.js"></script>

While this solution may not be the most elegant, I recommend considering browserify, requirejs, or similar tools for future front-end development projects to avoid relying on global objects/variables.

Answer №4

Consider this as your folder structure:

├── controllers
│   └── home.js
├── directives
└── index.html

To declare your controller in home.js, you can include it in index.html like so:


...
<script src="./controllers/home.js"></script>
...

Note: It is recommended to use the script tag for this purpose, but if you prefer using Require.js, check out the impressive library angularAMD

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