Changing ContentChildren models on QueryList.changes - javascript

Suppose I have a parent component with #ContentChildren(Child) children. Suppose that each Child has an index field within its component class. I'd like to keep these index fields up-to-date when the parent's children change, doing something as follows:
this.children.changes.subscribe(() => {
this.children.forEach((child, index) => {
child.index = index;
})
});
However, when I attempt to do this, I get an "ExpressionChangedAfter..." error, I guess due to the fact that this index update is occurring outside of a change cycle. Here's a stackblitz demonstrating this error: https://stackblitz.com/edit/angular-brjjrl.
How can I work around this? One obvious way is to simply bind the index in the template. A second obvious way is to just call detectChanges() for each child when you update its index. Suppose I can't do either of these approaches, is there another approach?

As stated, the error comes from the value changing after the change cycle has evaluated <div>{{index}}</div>.
More specifically, the view is using your local component variable index to assign 0... which is then changed as a new item is pushed to the array... your subscription sets the true index for the previous item only after, it has been created and added to the DOM with an index value of 0.
The setTimout or .pipe(delay(0)) (these are essentially the same thing) work because it keeps the change linked to the change cycle that this.model.push({}) occurred in... where without it, the change cycle is already complete, and the 0 from the previous cycle is changed on the new/next cycle when the button is clicked.
Set a duration of 500 ms to the setTimeout approach and you will see what it is truly doing.
ngAfterContentInit() {
this.foos.changes.pipe(delay(0)).subscribe(() => {
this.foos.forEach((foo, index) => {
setTimeout(() => {
foo.index = index;
}, 500)
});
});
}
It does indeed allow the value to be set after the element is rendered on
the DOM while avoiding the error however, you will not have the value
available in the component during the constructor or ngOnInit if
you need it.
The following in FooComponent will always result in 0 with the setTimeout solution.
ngOnInit(){
console.log(this.index)
}
Passing the index as an input like below, will make the value
available during the constructor or ngOnInit of FooComponent
You mention not wanting to bind to the index in the template, but it unfortunately would be the only way to pass the index value prior to the element being rendered on the DOM with a default value of 0 in your example.
You can accept an input for the index inside of the FooComponent
export class FooComponent {
// index: number = 0;
#Input('index') _index:number;
Then pass the index from your loop to the input
<foo *ngFor="let foo of model; let i = index" [index]="i"></foo>
Then use the input in the view
selector: 'foo',
template: `<div>{{_index}}</div>`,
This would allow you to manage the index at the app.component level via the *ngFor, and pass it into the new element on the DOM as it is rendered... essentially avoiding the need to assign the index to the component variable, and also ensuring the true index is provided when the change cycle needs it, at the time of render / class initialization.
Stackblitz
https://stackblitz.com/edit/angular-ozfpsr?embed=1&file=src/app/app.component.html

One way is update the index value using a Macro-Task. This is essentially a setTimeout, but bear with me.
This makes your subscription from your StackBlitz look like this:
ngAfterContentInit() {
this.foos.changes.subscribe(() => {
// Macro-Task
setTimeout(() => {
this.foos.forEach((foo, index) => {
foo.index = index;
});
}, 0);
});
}
Here is a working StackBlitz.
So the javascript event loop is coming into play. The reason for the "ExpressionChangedAfter..." error is highlighting the fact that changes are being made to other components which essentially mean that another cycle of change detection should run otherwise you can get inconsistent results in the UI. That's something to avoid.
What this boils down to is that if we want to update something, but we know it shouldn't cause other side-effects, we can schedule something in the Macro-Task queue. When the change detection process is finished, only then will the next task in the queue be executed.
Resources
The whole event loop is there in javascript because there is only a single-thread to play with, so it's useful to be aware of what's going on.
This article from Always Be Coding explains the Javascript Event Loop much better, and goes into the details of the micro/macro queues.
For a bit more depth and running code samples, I found the post from Jake Archibald very good: Tasks, microtasks, queues and schedules

The problem here is that you are changing something after the view generation process is further modifying the data it is trying to display in the first place. The ideal place to change would be in the life-cycle hook before the view is displayed, but another issue arises here i.e., this.foos is undefined when these hooks are called as QueryList is only populated before ngAfterContentInit.
Unfortunately, there aren't many options left at this point. #matt-tester detailed explanation of micro/macro task is a very helpful resource to understand why the hacky setTimeout works.
But the solution to an Observable is using more observables/operators (pun intended), so piping a delay operator is a cleaner version in my opinion, as setTimeout is encapsulated within it.
ngAfterContentInit() {
this.foos.changes.pipe(delay(0)).subscribe(() => {
this.foos.forEach((foo, index) => {
foo.index = index;
});
});
}
here is the working version

use below code, to make that changes in the next cycle
this.foos.changes.subscribe(() => {
setTimeout(() => {
this.foos.forEach((foo, index) => {
foo.index = index;
});
});
});

I really don't know the kind of application, but to avoid playing with ordered indexes , it is often a good idea to use uid's as index.
Like this, there is no need to renumber indexes when you add or remove components since they are unique.
You maintain only a list of uids in the parent.
another solution that may solve your problem , by dynamically creating your components and thus maintain a list of these childs components in the parent .
regarding the example you provided on stackblitz (https://stackblitz.com/edit/angular-bxrn1e) , it can be easily solved without monitoring changes :
replace with the following code :
app.component.html
<hello [(model)]="model">
<foo *ngFor="let foo of model;let i=index" [index]="i"></foo>
</hello>
hello.component.ts
remove changes monitoring
added foocomponent index parameter
import { ContentChildren, ChangeDetectorRef, Component, Input, Host, Inject, forwardRef, QueryList } from '#angular/core';
#Component({
selector: 'foo',
template: `<div>{{index}}</div>`,
})
export class FooComponent {
#Input() index: number = 0;
constructor(#Host() #Inject(forwardRef(()=>HelloComponent)) private hello) {}
getIndex() {
if (this.hello.foos) {
return this.hello.foos.toArray().indexOf(this);
}
return -1;
}
}
#Component({
selector: 'hello',
template: `<ng-content></ng-content>
<button (click)="addModel()">add model</button>`,
})
export class HelloComponent {
#Input() model = [];
#ContentChildren(FooComponent) foos: QueryList<FooComponent>;
constructor(private cdr: ChangeDetectorRef) {}
addModel() {
this.model.push({});
}
}
I forked this working implementation : https://stackblitz.com/edit/angular-uwad8c

Related

Conditional Rendering of Arrays in React: For vs Map

I'm new to React and building a calendar application. While playing around with state to try understand it better, I noticed that my 'remove booking' function required a state update for it to work, while my 'add booking' function worked perfectly without state.
Remove bookings: requires state to work
const [timeslots, setTimeslots] = useState(slots);
const removeBookings = (bookingid) => {
let newSlots = [...timeslots];
delete newSlots[bookingid].bookedWith;
setTimeslots(newSlots);
}
Add bookings: does not require state to work
const addBookings = (slotid, tutorName) => {
timeslots[slotid].bookedWith = tutorName;
}
I think that this is because of how my timeslot components are rendered. Each slot is rendered from an item of an array through .map(), as most tutorials online suggest is the best way to render components from an array.
timeslots.map(slot => {
if (!slot.bookedWith) {
return <EmptyTimeslot [...props / logic] />
} else {
return <BookedTimeslot [...props / logic]/>
}
})
So, with each EmptyTimeslot, the data for a BookedTimeslot is available as well. That's why state is not required for my add bookings function (emptyTimeslot -> bookedTimeslot). However, removing a booking (bookedTimeslot -> emptyTimeslot) requires a rerender of the slots, since the code cannot 'flow upwards'.
There are a lot of slots that have to be rendered each time. My question is therefore, instead of mapping each slot (with both and information present in each slot), would it be more efficient to use a for loop to only render the relevant slot, rather than the information for both slots? This I assume would require state to be used for both the add booking and remove booking function. Like this:
for (let i=0;i<timeslots.length;i++) {
if (!timeslot[i].bookedWith) {
return <EmptyTimeslot />
} else {
return <BookedTimeslot />
}
}
Hope that makes sense. Thank you for any help.
Your addBooking function is bad. Even if it seems to "work", you should not be mutating your state values. You should be using a state setter function to update them, which is what you are doing in removeBookings.
My question is therefore, instead of mapping each slot (with both and information present in each slot), would it be more efficient to use a for loop to only render the relevant slot, rather than the information for both slots?
Your map approach is not rendering both. For each slot, it uses an if statement to return one component or the other depending on whether the slot is booked. I'm not sure how the for loop you're proposing would even work here. It would just return before the first iteration completed.
This I assume would require state to be used for both the add booking and remove booking function.
You should be using setTimeslots for all timeslot state updates and you should not be mutating your state values. That is true no matter how you render them.

Angular ngOnChanges in child doesn't trigger after subscribe manipulates data

I have a problem with ngOnChanges not being fired for a child component after data is being manipulated in parent via subscribe method.
Basically my main component looks like this:
public imageGroups: IImageGroup[];
public status$: Observable<ModelStatusesModel>;
public ngOnChanges(changes: SimpleChanges): void {
if (Boolean(this.treeData)) {
this.imageGroups = this.treeDataService.convertImageGroups(this.treeData);
this.status$ = this.updateStatus();
this.status$.subscribe((status: ModelStatusesModel) => {
this.treeDataService.updateStatus(this.imageGroups, status); // this function makes changes to this.imageGroups
console.log('subscribe happened');
});
}
}
HTML:
...
<ul class="treeview-nodes-wrapper">
<treeview-branch *ngFor="let group of (imageGroups)"
[group]="group"></treeview-branch>
</ul>
...
The branch has also ngOnChnages:
public ngOnChanges(): void {
this._currentNodeDisabled = this.group.isDisabled;
console.log(this.group); //returns isDisables as true
console.log(this.group.isDisabled); //returns false
console.log(this._currentNodeDisabled); //returns false
}
When I run my application this is the result in the console:
{ ... isDisabled: true ...},
false
false
subscribe happened
I was also trying to surround the call inside my subscription in a ngZone.run but without any success. Do you have any idea how to tell angular that ngOnChanges in the child triggered?
EDIT: What works for me is creating a property in the parent component (public change = false;) then toggling this property inside my subscribe method and giving it as an input to my children elements. That gets picked up as a change. Even though this solves my problem, it looks more like a very hacky way of writing the code.
This is a result of ngOnChanges being triggered when an input value changes, and with objects that are passed by reference the modification of their properties does not explicitly change the thing being passed down. The solution is often times to do a clone, ...spread operator, or reassign to the property that is being passed down in the parent's [input].
Your solution of having an additional input that changes to a new value to trigger ngOnChanges works as well, it's a bit of a workaround but that's web dev. just remember if you set the property to true then true again it won't trigger, so a count variable may work better (it's kinda hacky).
Doing a clone via JSON.parse solved my problem in a cleaner way than toggling a variable :
...
this.status$.subscribe((status: ModelStatusesModel) => {
this.treeDataService.updateStatus(this.imageGroups, status);
triggerChange();
});
...
private triggerChange() {
this.imageGroups = JSON.parse(JSON.stringify(this.imageGroups));
}

Angular 2: How to detect changes in an array? (#input property)

I have a parent component that retrieves an array of objects using an ajax request.
This component has two children components: One of them shows the objects in a tree structure and the other one renders its content in a table format. The parent passes the array to their children through an #input property and they display the content properly. Everything as expected.
The problem occurs when you change some field within the objects: the child components are not notified of those changes. Changes are only triggered if you manually reassign the array to its variable.
I'm used to working with Knockout JS and I need to get an effect similar to that of observableArrays.
I've read something about DoCheck but I'm not sure how it works.
OnChanges Lifecycle Hook will trigger only when input property's instance changes.
If you want to check whether an element inside the input array has been added, moved or removed, you can use IterableDiffers inside the DoCheck Lifecycle Hook as follows:
constructor(private iterableDiffers: IterableDiffers) {
this.iterableDiffer = iterableDiffers.find([]).create(null);
}
ngDoCheck() {
let changes = this.iterableDiffer.diff(this.inputArray);
if (changes) {
console.log('Changes detected!');
}
}
If you need to detect changes in objects inside an array, you will need to iterate through all elements, and apply KeyValueDiffers for each element. (You can do this in parallel with previous check).
Visit this post for more information: Detect changes in objects inside array in Angular2
You can always create a new reference to the array by merging it with an empty array:
this.yourArray = [{...}, {...}, {...}];
this.yourArray[0].yourModifiedField = "whatever";
this.yourArray = [].concat(this.yourArray);
The code above will change the array reference and it will trigger the OnChanges mechanism in children components.
Read following article, don't miss mutable vs immutable objects.
Key issue is that you mutate array elements, while array reference stays the same. And Angular2 change detection checks only array reference to detect changes. After you understand concept of immutable objects you would understand why you have an issue and how to solve it.
I use redux store in one of my projects to avoid this kind of issues.
https://blog.thoughtram.io/angular/2016/02/22/angular-2-change-detection-explained.html
You can use IterableDiffers
It's used by *ngFor
constructor(private _differs: IterableDiffers) {}
ngOnChanges(changes: SimpleChanges): void {
if (!this._differ && value) {
this._differ = this._differs.find(value).create(this.ngForTrackBy);
}
}
ngDoCheck(): void {
if (this._differ) {
const changes = this._differ.diff(this.ngForOf);
if (changes) this._applyChanges(changes);
}
}
It's work for me:
#Component({
selector: 'my-component',
templateUrl: './my-component.component.html',
styleUrls: ['./my-component.component.scss']
})
export class MyComponent implements DoCheck {
#Input() changeArray: MyClassArray[]= [];
private differ: IterableDiffers;
constructor(private differs: IterableDiffers) {
this.differ = differs;
}
ngDoCheck() {
const changes = this.differ.find(this.insertedTasks);
if (changes) {
this.myMethodAfterChange();
}
}
This already appears answered. However for future problem seekers, I wanted to add something missed when I was researching and debugging a change detection problem I had. Now, my issue was a little isolated, and admittedly a stupid mistake on my end, but nonetheless relevant.
When you are updating the values in the Array or Object in reference, ensure that you are in the correct scope. I set myself into a trap by using setInterval(myService.function, 1000), where myService.function() would update the values of a public array, I used outside the service. This never actually updated the array, as the binding was off, and the correct usage should have been setInterval(myService.function.bind(this), 1000). I wasted my time trying change detection hacks, when it was a silly/simple blunder. Eliminate scope as a culprit before trying change detection solutions; it might save you some time.
Instead of triggering change detection via concat method, it might be more elegant to use ES6 destructuring operator:
this.yourArray[0].yourModifiedField = "whatever";
this.yourArray = [...this.yourArray];
You can use an impure pipe if you are directly using the array in your components template. (This example is for simple arrays that don't need deep checking)
#Pipe({
name: 'arrayChangeDetector',
pure: false
})
export class ArrayChangeDetectorPipe implements PipeTransform {
private differ: IterableDiffer<any>;
constructor(iDiff: IterableDiffers) {
this.differ = iDiff.find([]).create();
}
transform(value: any[]): any[] {
if (this.differ.diff(value)) {
return [...value];
}
return value;
}
}
<cmp [items]="arrayInput | arrayChangeDetector"></cmp>
For those time travelers among us still hitting array problems here is a reproduction of the issue along with several possible solutions.
https://stackblitz.com/edit/array-value-changes-not-detected-ang-8
Solutions include:
NgDoCheck
Using a Pipe
Using Immutable JS NPM github

Angular2 Child component destroyed unexpectedly in ngFor

So i have this Component of a from with an #Output event that trigger on submit, as follows:
#Component({
selector: 'some-component',
templateUrl: './SomeComponent.html'
})
export class SomeComponent{
#Input() data: any;
#Output() onSubmit: EventEmitter<void> = new EventEmitter<void>();
constructor(private someService: SomeService) {}
submitForm(): void{
this.someService.updateBackend(this.data, ()=>{
this.onSubmit.emit();
});
}
}
I'm using an ngFor to create multiple elements of this Component :
<template let-data ngFor [ngForOf]="dataCollection">
<some-component [data]="data" (onSubmit)="doSomthing()"></some-component>
</template>
The last missing part is the service used on submitting:
#Injectable()
export class SomeService{
constructor() {}
updateBackend(data: any, callback: () => void): void{
/*
* updating the backend
*/.then((result) => {
const { errors, data } = result;
if (data) {
callback();
}
})
}
}
At the beginning of the submitForm() function, the this.onSubmit.observers is an Array containing one observer, like it should be.
As soon as it reaches the callback method, where the this.onSubmit.emit() is invoked, the this.onSubmit.observers is an Array containing ZERO observers.
I'm experiencing two very weird behaviors:
If i remove the actual calling to update the backend in SomeService.updateBackend it works perfectly fine, and the observers still is an Array containing one observer!
If i keep the actual calling to the backend BUT not using ngFor and displaying only one <some-element> it also works perfectly fine, keeping one observer in the this.onSubmit.observers within the callback scope!
Any idea what am i doing wrong?
Thanks in advance!
Update:
Thanks to #StevenLuke's comment about logging the ngOnDestroy of SomeComponent I found out that it is being destroyed before the emit.
Actually, the first thing it is doing when the SomeService.updateBackend finishes is Destroying all the instances of this component and recreate them!
This is what makes the observers change! Why would that happen?
If you provide a trackBy function in your *ngFor to identify items in your dataCollection, it will not destroy and init. Your template would be:
<some-component *ngFor="let data of dataCollection;trackBy:trackByFunction"
[data]="data" (onSubmit)="doSomthing()"></some-component>
And the trackByFunction would look like:
trackByFunction(index, item) {
return item ? item.id : undefined;
}
So even though an item in your dataCollection is a fresh object, if its id matches an id in the previous collection, *ngFor will update [data] but not destroy and init the component.
Thanks to #GünterZöchbauer comments I found out the case was that the data the ngFor is bound to was being replaced by a new instance as I updated the backend, hence, it rerendered it's child Components causing reinitializing (destory + init) of them, which made the instance of the Component to be overwritten.
In order to solve this issue i had to place the dataCollection in a separate service, getting it for the parent component ngOnInit, saving it from causing a rerender of the ngFor, and fetch its data again only after the execution of the Child Components ended
Hope it'll be helpful to somebody!

Angular2 change detection not working after callback

I am quite new to angular2 and I have a problem with the change detection.
At the loading of my page, I need to call some API in order to get the information to construct my web page. What I do is that when I receive this information (which is contained in an array) I want to iterate through it using *ngFor. This is my code for a course component.
import {Component,Input} from 'angular2/core';
import {courseCompDiagram, sepExInWeeks} from "../js/coursesTreatment.js";
import {getSampleWeeks} from "../js/courseMng.js";
#Component({
selector: 'course',
directives:[Exercises],
template: `
<div class="course">
<h2>{{aCourse.name}}</h2>
<div class='diag-container row'>
<div id="Completion{{aCourse.name}}"></div>
<div *ngFor="#week of weeks"> {{week.weekNb}} </div>
</div>
</div>`
})
export class Course{
//This is inputed from a parent component
#Input() aCourse;
this.weeks = [];
ngAfterViewInit(){
//I call this method and when the callbacks are finished,
//It does the following lines
courseCompDiagram(this.aCourse, function(concernedCourse){
//When my API call is finished, I treat the course, and store the results in weeks
this.weeks = sepExInWeeks(concernedCourse.course.exercises);
});
//This is not supposed to stay in my code,
//but is here to show that if I call it here,
//the weeks will effectively change
this.weeks = getSampleWeeks();
}
}
So first of all, I would like to know if it's normal that angular2 doesnt detect the fact that this.weeks changed.
Then I don't know if I should us the ngAfterViewInit function to do my work in. The problem is that I began doing that because in my courseCompDiagram I need to use jquery to find the div containing the id Completion[...] and modify it (using highcharts on it). But maybe I should do all this at some other point of the loading of the page ?
I tried using ngZone and ChangeDetectionStrategy as stated in this topic but I didn't manage to make it work on my case.
Any help is appreciated, even if it doesn't completely solves the problem.
export class Course{
//This is inputed from a parent component
#Input() aCourse;
this.weeks = [];
constructor(private _zone:NgZone) {}
ngAfterViewInit(){
//I call this method and when the callbacks are finished,
//It does the following lines
courseCompDiagram(this.aCourse, (concernedCourse) => {
//When my API call is finished, I treat the course, and store the results in weeks
this._zone.run(() => {
this.weeks = sepExInWeeks(concernedCourse.course.exercises);
});
});
//This is not supposed to stay in my code,
//but is here to show that if I call it here,
//the weeks will effectively change
this.weeks = getSampleWeeks();
}
}
You should use arrow functions to be able to use lexical this, as described below:
courseCompDiagram(this.aCourse, (concernedCourse) => {
// When my API call is finished, I treat the course,
// and store the results in weeks
this.weeks = sepExInWeeks(concernedCourse.course.exercises);
});
As a matter with raw callbacks, the this keyword doesn't correspond to your component instance.
See this link for more hints about the lexical this of arrow functions: https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/JavaScript/Reference/Functions/Arrow_functions.
Otherwise I have a sample comment regarding your code. You should leverage observables for your HTTP calls. It doesn't seem the case in your code as far as I can see...

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