Develop Reference

Determine if a JavaScript function is a bound function

Is there a way to determine if a JavaScript function is a bound function?
Example:
var obj = {
x:1
};
function printX() {
document.write(this.x);
}
function takesACallback(cb) {
// how can one determine if this is a bounded function
// not just a function?
if (typeof cb === 'function') {
cb();
}
}
takesACallback(printX.bind(obj)); // 1
takesACallback(printX); // undefined
Perhaps this is an important point. I am not asking why the second call prints undefined.

Both bound functions and arrow functions do not have a prototype property:
typeof (function() {}).prototype // 'object' as usual
typeof (function() {}).bind(null).prototype // 'undefined'!
typeof (() => {}).prototype // 'undefined'!
This is not 100% safe since you could still manually assign this property (although that'd be weird).
As such, a simple way to check for bindability would be the following:
// ES5
function isBindable(func) {
return func.hasOwnProperty('prototype');
}
// ES6
const isBindable = func => func.hasOwnProperty('prototype');
Usage:
isBindable(function () {}); // true
isBindable(() => {}); // false
isBindable(
(function () {}).bind(null)
); // false
This way you can make sure that the function that has been passed can deal with a dynamic this.
Here is an example usage for which the above fails:
const arrowFunc = () => {};
arrowFunc.prototype = 42;
isBindable(arrowFunc); // true :(
Interestingly, while bound functions do not have a prototype property they can still be used as constructors (with new):
var Animal = function(name) {
this.name = name;
};
Animal.prototype.getName = function() {
return this.name;
};
var squirrel = new Animal('squirrel');
console.log(squirrel.getName()); // prints "squirrel"
var MutatedAnimal = Animal.bind({}); // Radiation :)
console.log(MutatedAnimal.hasOwnProperty('prototype')); // prints "false"
var mutatedSquirrel = new MutatedAnimal('squirrel with two heads');
console.log(mutatedSquirrel.getName()); // prints "squirrel with two heads"
In that case, the original function prototype (Animal) is used instead.
See JS Bin, code and link courtesy of Dmitri Pavlutin.
This of course won't work with arrow functions since they can't be used as constructors.
Unfortunately, I don't know if there is a way to distinguish a bound function (usable as constructor) from an arrow function (not usable as constructor) without trying them out with new and checking if it throws (new (() => {}) throws a "is not a constructor" error).

In environments that support ES6, you can check whether the name of the function starts with "bound " (the word "bound" followed by a space).
From the spec:
19.2.3.2 Function.prototype.bind ( thisArg , ...args)
[...]
15. Perform SetFunctionName(F, targetName, "bound").
Of course that could result in false positives if the name of the function was manually changed.

One could override the existing prototype bind, tagging functions that have been bound.
A simple solution. This will likely kill certain optimizations in V8 (and possibly other runtimes) because of hidden classes, though.
(function (bind) {
Object.defineProperties(Function.prototype, {
'bind': {
value: function (context) {
var newf = bind.apply(this, arguments);
newf.context = context;
return newf;
}
},
'isBound': {
value: function () {
return this.hasOwnProperty('context');
}
}
});
}(Function.prototype.bind));
In motion:
(function (bind) {
Object.defineProperties(Function.prototype, {
'bind': {
value: function (context) {
var newf = bind.apply(this, arguments);
newf.context = context;
return newf;
}
},
'isBound': {
value: function () {
return this.hasOwnProperty('context');
}
}
});
}(Function.prototype.bind));
var a = function () {
console.log(this);
};
var b = {
b: true
};
var c = a.bind(b);
console.log(a.isBound())
console.log(c.isBound())
console.log(c.context === b);
a();
c();

You would need to write your own bind function on the prototype. That function would build an index of what has been bound.
You could then have another function to perform a lookup against the object where that index is stored.

Based on previous answers, I create a function to determine:
function isBoundFunction(func) {
if(typeof func.prototype === 'object') return false
try {
new func()
}
catch(e) {
return false
}
return true
}
This function determine three type of functions: 1. original function, whose prototype is object, 2. arrow function, which can not be used as constructor, 3. bound function.

There is a module that can help you solve this problem : bind2.
Here's a use case :
const bind2 = require('bind2');
function testFunc() {
return this.hello;
}
const context = { hello: 'world' };
const boundFunc = bind2(testFunc, context);
console.log(boundFunc.bound); // true
Full disclosure : I wrote this module.

Pass array into google.maps.LatLng via apply() [duplicate]

In JavaScript, I want to create an object instance (via the new operator), but pass an arbitrary number of arguments to the constructor. Is this possible?
What I want to do is something like this (but the code below does not work):
function Something(){
// init stuff
}
function createSomething(){
return new Something.apply(null, arguments);
}
var s = createSomething(a,b,c); // 's' is an instance of Something
The Answer
From the responses here, it became clear that there's no built-in way to call .apply() with the new operator. However, people suggested a number of really interesting solutions to the problem.
My preferred solution was this one from Matthew Crumley (I've modified it to pass the arguments property):
var createSomething = (function() {
function F(args) {
return Something.apply(this, args);
}
F.prototype = Something.prototype;
return function() {
return new F(arguments);
}
})();

With ECMAScript5's Function.prototype.bind things get pretty clean:
function newCall(Cls) {
return new (Function.prototype.bind.apply(Cls, arguments));
// or even
// return new (Cls.bind.apply(Cls, arguments));
// if you know that Cls.bind has not been overwritten
}
It can be used as follows:
var s = newCall(Something, a, b, c);
or even directly:
var s = new (Function.prototype.bind.call(Something, null, a, b, c));
var s = new (Function.prototype.bind.apply(Something, [null, a, b, c]));
This and the eval-based solution are the only ones that always work, even with special constructors like Date:
var date = newCall(Date, 2012, 1);
console.log(date instanceof Date); // true
edit
A bit of explanation:
We need to run new on a function that takes a limited number of arguments. The bind method allows us to do it like so:
var f = Cls.bind(anything, arg1, arg2, ...);
result = new f();
The anything parameter doesn't matter much, since the new keyword resets f's context. However, it is required for syntactical reasons. Now, for the bind call: We need to pass a variable number of arguments, so this does the trick:
var f = Cls.bind.apply(Cls, [anything, arg1, arg2, ...]);
result = new f();
Let's wrap that in a function. Cls is passed as argument 0, so it's gonna be our anything.
function newCall(Cls /*, arg1, arg2, ... */) {
var f = Cls.bind.apply(Cls, arguments);
return new f();
}
Actually, the temporary f variable is not needed at all:
function newCall(Cls /*, arg1, arg2, ... */) {
return new (Cls.bind.apply(Cls, arguments))();
}
Finally, we should make sure that bind is really what we need. (Cls.bind may have been overwritten). So replace it by Function.prototype.bind, and we get the final result as above.

Here's a generalized solution that can call any constructor (except native constructors that behave differently when called as functions, like String, Number, Date, etc.) with an array of arguments:
function construct(constructor, args) {
function F() {
return constructor.apply(this, args);
}
F.prototype = constructor.prototype;
return new F();
}
An object created by calling construct(Class, [1, 2, 3]) would be identical to an object created with new Class(1, 2, 3).
You could also make a more specific version so you don't have to pass the constructor every time. This is also slightly more efficient, since it doesn't need to create a new instance of the inner function every time you call it.
var createSomething = (function() {
function F(args) {
return Something.apply(this, args);
}
F.prototype = Something.prototype;
return function(args) {
return new F(args);
}
})();
The reason for creating and calling the outer anonymous function like that is to keep function F from polluting the global namespace. It's sometimes called the module pattern.
[UPDATE]
For those who want to use this in TypeScript, since TS gives an error if F returns anything:
function construct(constructor, args) {
function F() : void {
constructor.apply(this, args);
}
F.prototype = constructor.prototype;
return new F();
}

If your environment supports ECMA Script 2015's spread operator (...), you can simply use it like this
function Something() {
// init stuff
}
function createSomething() {
return new Something(...arguments);
}
Note: Now that the ECMA Script 2015's specifications are published and most JavaScript engines are actively implementing it, this would be the preferred way of doing this.
You can check the Spread operator's support in few of the major environments, here.

Suppose you've got an Items constructor which slurps up all the arguments you throw at it:
function Items () {
this.elems = [].slice.call(arguments);
}
Items.prototype.sum = function () {
return this.elems.reduce(function (sum, x) { return sum + x }, 0);
};
You can create an instance with Object.create() and then .apply() with that instance:
var items = Object.create(Items.prototype);
Items.apply(items, [ 1, 2, 3, 4 ]);
console.log(items.sum());
Which when run prints 10 since 1 + 2 + 3 + 4 == 10:
$ node t.js
10

In ES6, Reflect.construct() is quite convenient:
Reflect.construct(F, args)

#Matthew
I think it's better to fix the constructor property also.
// Invoke new operator with arbitrary arguments
// Holy Grail pattern
function invoke(constructor, args) {
var f;
function F() {
// constructor returns **this**
return constructor.apply(this, args);
}
F.prototype = constructor.prototype;
f = new F();
f.constructor = constructor;
return f;
}

You could move the init stuff out into a separate method of Something's prototype:
function Something() {
// Do nothing
}
Something.prototype.init = function() {
// Do init stuff
};
function createSomething() {
var s = new Something();
s.init.apply(s, arguments);
return s;
}
var s = createSomething(a,b,c); // 's' is an instance of Something

An improved version of #Matthew's answer. This form has the slight performance benefits obtained by storing the temp class in a closure, as well as the flexibility of having one function able to be used to create any class
var applyCtor = function(){
var tempCtor = function() {};
return function(ctor, args){
tempCtor.prototype = ctor.prototype;
var instance = new tempCtor();
ctor.prototype.constructor.apply(instance,args);
return instance;
}
}();
This would be used by calling applyCtor(class, [arg1, arg2, argn]);

This answer is a little late, but figured anyone who sees this might be able to use it. There is a way to return a new object using apply. Though it requires one little change to your object declaration.
function testNew() {
if (!( this instanceof arguments.callee ))
return arguments.callee.apply( new arguments.callee(), arguments );
this.arg = Array.prototype.slice.call( arguments );
return this;
}
testNew.prototype.addThem = function() {
var newVal = 0,
i = 0;
for ( ; i < this.arg.length; i++ ) {
newVal += this.arg[i];
}
return newVal;
}
testNew( 4, 8 ) === { arg : [ 4, 8 ] };
testNew( 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 ).addThem() === 15;
For the first if statement to work in testNew you have to return this; at the bottom of the function. So as an example with your code:
function Something() {
// init stuff
return this;
}
function createSomething() {
return Something.apply( new Something(), arguments );
}
var s = createSomething( a, b, c );
Update: I've changed my first example to sum any number of arguments, instead of just two.

I just came across this problem, and I solved it like this:
function instantiate(ctor) {
switch (arguments.length) {
case 1: return new ctor();
case 2: return new ctor(arguments[1]);
case 3: return new ctor(arguments[1], arguments[2]);
case 4: return new ctor(arguments[1], arguments[2], arguments[3]);
//...
default: throw new Error('instantiate: too many parameters');
}
}
function Thing(a, b, c) {
console.log(a);
console.log(b);
console.log(c);
}
var thing = instantiate(Thing, 'abc', 123, {x:5});
Yeah, it's a bit ugly, but it solves the problem, and it's dead simple.

if you're interested in an eval-based solution
function createSomething() {
var q = [];
for(var i = 0; i < arguments.length; i++)
q.push("arguments[" + i + "]");
return eval("new Something(" + q.join(",") + ")");
}

This works!
var cls = Array; //eval('Array'); dynamically
var data = [2];
new cls(...data);

See also how CoffeeScript does it.
s = new Something([a,b,c]...)
becomes:
var s;
s = (function(func, args, ctor) {
ctor.prototype = func.prototype;
var child = new ctor, result = func.apply(child, args);
return Object(result) === result ? result : child;
})(Something, [a, b, c], function(){});

This constructor approach works both with and without the new keyword:
function Something(foo, bar){
if (!(this instanceof Something)){
var obj = Object.create(Something.prototype);
return Something.apply(obj, arguments);
}
this.foo = foo;
this.bar = bar;
return this;
}
It assumes support for Object.create but you could always polyfill that if you're supporting older browsers. See the support table on MDN here.
Here's a JSBin to see it in action with console output.

Solution without ES6 or polyfills:
var obj = _new(Demo).apply(["X", "Y", "Z"]);
function _new(constr)
{
function createNamedFunction(name)
{
return (new Function("return function " + name + "() { };"))();
}
var func = createNamedFunction(constr.name);
func.prototype = constr.prototype;
var self = new func();
return { apply: function(args) {
constr.apply(self, args);
return self;
} };
}
function Demo()
{
for(var index in arguments)
{
this['arg' + (parseInt(index) + 1)] = arguments[index];
}
}
Demo.prototype.tagged = true;
console.log(obj);
console.log(obj.tagged);
output
Demo {arg1: "X", arg2: "Y", arg3: "Z"}
... or "shorter" way:
var func = new Function("return function " + Demo.name + "() { };")();
func.prototype = Demo.prototype;
var obj = new func();
Demo.apply(obj, ["X", "Y", "Z"]);
edit:
I think this might be a good solution:
this.forConstructor = function(constr)
{
return { apply: function(args)
{
let name = constr.name.replace('-', '_');
let func = (new Function('args', name + '_', " return function " + name + "() { " + name + "_.apply(this, args); }"))(args, constr);
func.constructor = constr;
func.prototype = constr.prototype;
return new func(args);
}};
}

You can't call a constructor with a variable number of arguments like you want with the new operator.
What you can do is change the constructor slightly. Instead of:
function Something() {
// deal with the "arguments" array
}
var obj = new Something.apply(null, [0, 0]); // doesn't work!
Do this instead:
function Something(args) {
// shorter, but will substitute a default if args.x is 0, false, "" etc.
this.x = args.x || SOME_DEFAULT_VALUE;
// longer, but will only put in a default if args.x is not supplied
this.x = (args.x !== undefined) ? args.x : SOME_DEFAULT_VALUE;
}
var obj = new Something({x: 0, y: 0});
Or if you must use an array:
function Something(args) {
var x = args[0];
var y = args[1];
}
var obj = new Something([0, 0]);

Matthew Crumley's solutions in CoffeeScript:
construct = (constructor, args) ->
F = -> constructor.apply this, args
F.prototype = constructor.prototype
new F
or
createSomething = (->
F = (args) -> Something.apply this, args
F.prototype = Something.prototype
return -> new Something arguments
)()

function createSomething() {
var args = Array.prototype.concat.apply([null], arguments);
return new (Function.prototype.bind.apply(Something, args));
}
If your target browser doesn't support ECMAScript 5 Function.prototype.bind, the code won't work. It is not very likely though, see compatibilty table.

modified #Matthew answer. Here I can pass any number of parameters to function as usual (not array). Also 'Something' is not hardcoded into:
function createObject( constr ) {
var args = arguments;
var wrapper = function() {
return constr.apply( this, Array.prototype.slice.call(args, 1) );
}
wrapper.prototype = constr.prototype;
return new wrapper();
}
function Something() {
// init stuff
};
var obj1 = createObject( Something, 1, 2, 3 );
var same = new Something( 1, 2, 3 );

This one-liner should do it:
new (Function.prototype.bind.apply(Something, [null].concat(arguments)));

While the other approaches are workable, they're unduly complex. In Clojure you generally create a function that instantiates types/records and use that function as the mechanism for instantiation. Translating this to JavaScript:
function Person(surname, name){
this.surname = surname;
this.name = name;
}
function person(surname, name){
return new Person(surname, name);
}
By taking this approach you avoid the use of new except as described above. And this function, of course, has no issues working with apply or any number of other functional programming features.
var doe = _.partial(person, "Doe");
var john = doe("John");
var jane = doe("Jane");
By using this approach, all of your type constructors (e.g. Person) are vanilla, do-nothing constructors. You just pass in arguments and assign them to properties of the same name. The hairy details go in the constructor function (e.g. person).
It is of little bother having to create these extra constructor functions since they are a good practice anyhow. They can be convenient since they allow you to potentially have several constructor functions with different nuances.

It's also intresting to see how the issue of reusing the temporary F() constructor, was addressed by using arguments.callee, aka the creator/factory function itself:
http://www.dhtmlkitchen.com/?category=/JavaScript/&date=2008/05/11/&entry=Decorator-Factory-Aspect

Any function (even a constructor) can take a variable number of arguments. Each function has an "arguments" variable which can be cast to an array with [].slice.call(arguments).
function Something(){
this.options = [].slice.call(arguments);
this.toString = function (){
return this.options.toString();
};
}
var s = new Something(1, 2, 3, 4);
console.log( 's.options === "1,2,3,4":', (s.options == '1,2,3,4') );
var z = new Something(9, 10, 11);
console.log( 'z.options === "9,10,11":', (z.options == '9,10,11') );
The above tests produce the following output:
s.options === "1,2,3,4": true
z.options === "9,10,11": true

Here is my version of createSomething:
function createSomething() {
var obj = {};
obj = Something.apply(obj, arguments) || obj;
obj.__proto__ = Something.prototype; //Object.setPrototypeOf(obj, Something.prototype);
return o;
}
Based on that, I tried to simulate the new keyword of JavaScript:
//JavaScript 'new' keyword simulation
function new2() {
var obj = {}, args = Array.prototype.slice.call(arguments), fn = args.shift();
obj = fn.apply(obj, args) || obj;
Object.setPrototypeOf(obj, fn.prototype); //or: obj.__proto__ = fn.prototype;
return obj;
}
I tested it and it seems that it works perfectly fine for all scenarios. It also works on native constructors like Date. Here are some tests:
//test
new2(Something);
new2(Something, 1, 2);
new2(Date); //"Tue May 13 2014 01:01:09 GMT-0700" == new Date()
new2(Array); //[] == new Array()
new2(Array, 3); //[undefined × 3] == new Array(3)
new2(Object); //Object {} == new Object()
new2(Object, 2); //Number {} == new Object(2)
new2(Object, "s"); //String {0: "s", length: 1} == new Object("s")
new2(Object, true); //Boolean {} == new Object(true)

Yes we can, javascript is more of prototype inheritance in nature.
function Actor(name, age){
this.name = name;
this.age = age;
}
Actor.prototype.name = "unknown";
Actor.prototype.age = "unknown";
Actor.prototype.getName = function() {
return this.name;
};
Actor.prototype.getAge = function() {
return this.age;
};
when we create an object with "new" then our created object INHERITS getAge(), But if we used apply(...) or call(...) to call Actor, then we are passing an object for "this" but the object we pass WON'T inherit from Actor.prototype
unless, we directly pass apply or call Actor.prototype but then.... "this" would point to "Actor.prototype" and this.name would write to: Actor.prototype.name. Thus affecting all other objects created with Actor...since we overwrite the prototype rather than the instance
var rajini = new Actor('Rajinikanth', 31);
console.log(rajini);
console.log(rajini.getName());
console.log(rajini.getAge());
var kamal = new Actor('kamal', 18);
console.log(kamal);
console.log(kamal.getName());
console.log(kamal.getAge());
Let's try with apply
var vijay = Actor.apply(null, ["pandaram", 33]);
if (vijay === undefined) {
console.log("Actor(....) didn't return anything
since we didn't call it with new");
}
var ajith = {};
Actor.apply(ajith, ['ajith', 25]);
console.log(ajith); //Object {name: "ajith", age: 25}
try {
ajith.getName();
} catch (E) {
console.log("Error since we didn't inherit ajith.prototype");
}
console.log(Actor.prototype.age); //Unknown
console.log(Actor.prototype.name); //Unknown
By passing Actor.prototype to Actor.call() as the first argument, when the Actor() function is ran, it executes this.name=name, Since "this" will point to Actor.prototype, this.name=name; means Actor.prototype.name=name;
var simbhu = Actor.apply(Actor.prototype, ['simbhu', 28]);
if (simbhu === undefined) {
console.log("Still undefined since the function didn't return anything.");
}
console.log(Actor.prototype.age); //simbhu
console.log(Actor.prototype.name); //28
var copy = Actor.prototype;
var dhanush = Actor.apply(copy, ["dhanush", 11]);
console.log(dhanush);
console.log("But now we've corrupted Parent.prototype in order to inherit");
console.log(Actor.prototype.age); //11
console.log(Actor.prototype.name); //dhanush
Coming back to orginal question how to use new operator with apply, here is my take....
Function.prototype.new = function(){
var constructor = this;
function fn() {return constructor.apply(this, args)}
var args = Array.prototype.slice.call(arguments);
fn.prototype = this.prototype;
return new fn
};
var thalaivar = Actor.new.apply(Parent, ["Thalaivar", 30]);
console.log(thalaivar);

since ES6 this is possible through the Spread operator, see https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/JavaScript/Reference/Operators/Spread_operator#Apply_for_new
This answer was already, sort of given in comment https://stackoverflow.com/a/42027742/7049810, but seems to have been missed by most

Actually the simplest method is:
function Something (a, b) {
this.a = a;
this.b = b;
}
function createSomething(){
return Something;
}
s = new (createSomething())(1, 2);
// s == Something {a: 1, b: 2}

A revised solution from #jordancpaul's answer.
var applyCtor = function(ctor, args)
{
var instance = new ctor();
ctor.prototype.constructor.apply(instance, args);
return instance;
};

Make an anonymous prototype and apply the Something prototype to it using the arguments and then create a new instance of that anonymous prototype. The one disadavantage of this is it will not pass the s instanceof Something check, though it is identical, it is basically an instance of a clone.
function Something(){
// init stuff
}
function createSomething(){
return new (function(){Something.apply(this, arguments)});
}
var s = createSomething(a,b,c); // 's' is an instance of Something

function FooFactory() {
var prototype, F = function(){};
function Foo() {
var args = Array.prototype.slice.call(arguments),
i;
for (i = 0, this.args = {}; i < args.length; i +=1) {
this.args[i] = args[i];
}
this.bar = 'baz';
this.print();
return this;
}
prototype = Foo.prototype;
prototype.print = function () {
console.log(this.bar);
};
F.prototype = prototype;
return Foo.apply(new F(), Array.prototype.slice.call(arguments));
}
var foo = FooFactory('a', 'b', 'c', 'd', {}, function (){});
console.log('foo:',foo);
foo.print();

javascript class inherit from Function class

I like that in javascript, I can create a function, and then add further methods and attributes to that function
myInstance = function() {return 5}
myInstance.attr = 10
I would like to create a class to generate these objects. I assume I have to inherit from the Function base class.
In other words, I would like to:
var myInstance = new myFunctionClass()
var x = myInstance()
// x == 5
But I don't know how to create the myFunctionClass. I have tried the following, but it does not work:
var myFunctionClass = function() {Function.call(this, "return 5")}
myFunctionClass.prototype = new Function()
myInstance = new myFunctionClass()
myInstance()
// I would hope this would return 5, but instead I get
// TypeError: Property 'myInstance' of object #<Object> is not a function
I also tried the more complicated (and more proper?) inheritance method found here: How to "properly" create a custom object in JavaScript?, with no more luck. I have also tried using the util.inherits(myFunctionClass, Function) found in node.js. Still no luck
I have exhausted Google, and therefore feel that I must be missing something fundamental or obvious. Help would be greatly appreciated.

Your trying to inherit from Function. This is a right pain to do. I suggest you do the following instead
Live Example
var Proto = Object.create(Function.prototype);
Object.extend(Proto, {
constructor: function (d) {
console.log("construct, argument : ", d);
this.d = d;
// this is your constructor logic
},
call: function () {
console.log("call", this.d);
// this get's called when you invoke the "function" that is the instance
return "from call";
},
method: function () {
console.log("method");
// some method
return "return from method";
},
// some attr
attr: 42
});
You want to create a prototype object that forms the basis of your "class". It has your generic methods/attributes. It also has a constructor that gets invoked on object construction and a call method that gets invoked when you call the function
var functionFactory = function (proto) {
return function () {
var f = function () {
return f.call.apply(f, arguments);
};
Object.keys(proto).forEach(function (key) {
f[key] = proto[key];
});
f.constructor.apply(f, arguments);
return f;
}
}
A function factory takes a prototype object and returns a factory for it. The returned function when called will give you a new function object that "inherits" from your prototype object.
var protoFactory = functionFactory(proto);
var instance = protoFactory();
Here you create your factory and then create your instance.
However this isn't proper prototypical OO. we are just shallow copying properties of a prototype into a new object. So changes to the prototype will not reflect back to the original object.
If you want real prototypical OO then you need to use a hack.
var f = function () {
// your logic here
};
f.__proto__ = Proto;
Notice how we use the non-standard deprecated .__proto__ and we are mutating the value of [[Prototype]] at run-time which is considered evil.

JS does not allow a constructor to return a function, even though functions are objects. So you cant have an instantiation of a prototype that is itself executable. (Am I right in this? please correct if I'm not, it's an interesting question).
Though you could do a factory function:
var makeCoolFunc = function() {
var f = function() { return 5 };
f.a = 123;
f.b = 'hell yes!'
return f;
};
var func = makeCoolFunc();
var x = func();

You can extend Function and pass the wanted function body as String to the super constructor. The context of the function can be accessed with arguments.callee.
Example for an observable Attribute class:
export default class Attribute extends Function {
constructor(defaultValue){
super("value", "return arguments.callee.apply(arguments);");
this.value = defaultValue;
this.defaultValue = defaultValue;
this.changeListeners = [];
}
apply([value]){
if(value!==undefined){
if(value!==this.value){
var oldValue = this.value;
this.value=value;
this.changeListeners.every((changeListener)=>changeListener(oldValue, value));
}
}
return this.value;
}
clear(){
this.value=undefined;
}
reset(){
this.value=this.defaultValue;
}
addChangeListener(listener){
this.changeListeners.push(listener);
}
removeChangeListener(listener){
this.changeListeners.remove(listener);
}
clearChangeListeners(){
this.changeListeners = [];
}
}
Example usage:
import Attribute from './attribute.js';
var name= new Attribute();
name('foo'); //set value of name to 'foo'
name.addChangeListener((oldValue, newValue)=>{
alert('value changed from ' +oldValue+ ' to ' +newValue);
});
alert(name()); //show value of name: 'foo'
name('baa'); //set value of name to new value 'baa' and trigger change listener

Javascript inherance and use of super: is this possible?

if (typeof Object.create !== 'function') {
Object.create = function (o) {
function F() {
}
F.prototype = o;
var f = new F();
if(f.init){
f.init();
};
return f;
};
}
var inherit = function(P, C) {
var i;
for(i in P) {
// if is the current parent
if(P.hasOwnProperty(i) === false) {
continue;
};
// define the uper property
C.uper = {};
// methods
if(typeof P[i] === 'function') {
// set as super
C.uper[i] = P[i];
// if child already defined, skip
if(typeof C[i] === 'function') {
continue;
};
C[i] = P[i];
}
// properties
else {
// if child already defined a property, skip
if(!(typeof C[i] === 'undefined')) {
continue;
};
C[i] = P[i];
}
}
return C;
}
var Parent1 = (function(){
var that = {};
// private var
var _name = 'Parent1';
// public var
that.lastName = 'LastName';
// public method
that.getName = function(){
// if this.uper.getName.call(this)
return _name + this.lastName;
// else
// return _name + that.lastName;
}
// return the literal object
return that;
}());
var Parent2 = {
// fake private var
_name: 'Parent2',
// public method
getName: function(){
// as we call this method with the call method
// we can use this
return this._name;
}
}
var Child1 = inherit(Parent1, (function(){
var that = {};
// overriden public method
that.getName = function(){
// how to call the this.uper.getName() like this?
return 'Child 1\'s name: ' + this.uper.getName.call(this);
}
that.init = function(){
console.log('init');
}
// return the literal object
return that;
}()));
var Child2 = inherit(Parent2, {
getName: function(){
// how to call the this.uper.getName() like this?
return 'Child 2\'s name: ' + this.uper.getName.call(this);
}
});
var child1 = Object.create(Child1);
// output: Child 1's name: Parent1LastName
console.log(child1.getName());
var child2 = Object.create(Child2);
// output: Child 2's name: Parent2
console.log(child2.getName());
// how to call the this.uper.getName() like this?
how to call the this.uper.getName() like this?

Yes
Javascript uses Prototypal inheritance. So essentially objects inherit Objects (and everything is an Object)
Here are a couple links that should help get the point across.
Javascript Module Pattern
Module Pattern In-depth
Here's the basic module pattern:
var MODULE = (function (my) {
my.anotherMethod = function () {
// added method...
};
return my;
}(MODULE));
Then you can do something like this to mimic inheritance:
var MODULE_TWO = (function (old) {
var my = {},
key;
for (key in old) {
if (old.hasOwnProperty(key)) {
my[key] = old[key];
}
}
var super_moduleMethod = old.moduleMethod;
my.moduleMethod = function () {
// override method on the clone, access to super through super_moduleMethod
};
return my;
}(MODULE));
This style of coding takes a bit of getting used to, but I definitely prefer it to classical inheritance at this point. If this code isn't making sense, check out the Douglas Crockford lectures and it should clarify most of it.
addressing the edit:
You can create different instantiations of these objects by using the new operator.
OR
I'd recommend using this little method which extends the Object Prototype (again if this doesn't make sense see the Douglas Crockford video). I forget the exact reasons why this is so heavily recommended by him, but at the very least it eliminates some confusion in that the new operator is a bit different than in classical languages. Needless to say using only using the new operator is insufficient.
What this function does is extends the Object prototype with a method create. It then...
Defines function F in a contained namespace.
Assigns the function F's prototype to the object that is passed
returns the newly constructed Object.
(outlined better by douglas crockford himself in the prototypal inheritance link)
if (typeof Object.create !== 'function') {
Object.create = function (o) {
function F() {}
F.prototype = o;
return new F();
};
}
newObject = Object.create(oldObject);
So using your code...
var a = Object.create(MODULE_TWO),
var b = Object.create(MODULE_TWO);

Answering based on your last edit, you could use something like this:
function Class(ctor, parent) {
var c = Function.prototype.call;
function clas() {
// expose the parent as super
this.super = parent;
ctor.apply(this, arguments);
}
// save the constructor
clas.constructor = ctor;
// provide a static constructor
clas.init = function() {
c.apply(parent.constructor, arguments);
};
// Setup the prototype
clas.prototype = parent ? parent.prototype : {};
// provide an extend method
clas.extend = function(methods) {
for(var i in methods) {
if (methods.hasOwnProperty(i)) {
clas.prototype[i] = methods[i];
}
}
return clas;
};
return clas;
}
Examples:
var Animal = Class(function(name) {
this.name = name;
});
var Cat = Class(function(name) {
this.super(name);
}, Animal).extend({
meow: function() {
console.log('Meow! My name is ' + this.name + '.');
}
});
new Cat('Neko').meow();
There are at least a trillion different ways to implement "Classes" in JavaScript, the more you want to hide the internals the more "magical" the code becomes, the above is very simple though.
You can (and probably need) customize this to fit your needs. But always keep in mind that there might be situations where a full blown Class emulation approach might not be the best one.
I already posted it as a comment, but in case you want to have everything hidden away for you, I've written a pretty feature rich, but still fast, Class library my own:
https://github.com/BonsaiDen/neko.js

How do I compute a variable in JavaScript if and only if it is used?

This is what I'm doing right now.
var foo = function() {
var x = someComplicatedComputationThatMayTakeMoreTime();
this.foo = function() { return x; };
return x;
}
It works but only if foo is called as a function like so
foo();
But what if I want to call it as a normal variable with a value? I could modify the code to be
var foo = function() {
var x = someComplicatedComputationThatMayTakeMoreTime();
this.foo = x;
return x;
}
That would allow me to only call it once as a function and after that as a regular variable. But it's still not what I want. Plus it gets complicated if it accidentally gets called as a function again, returning an error.
Is this even possible in JavaScript?
BTW, this is for a Chrome/Firefox extension, so IE compatibility does not matter.
Ended up using toString because getters don't allow me to redefine the whole attribute, a function must be associated with it. And toString has cleaner syntax.

How about using toString?
var foo = function() {
function someComplicatedComputationThatMayTakeMoreTime() {
//your calculations
}
return {
toString: function() {
return someComplicatedComputationThatMayTakeMoreTime();
}
}
}
More about Object-to-Primitive Conversions in JavaScript
EDIT based on comment. Use a singleton (I think it's called):
myObject.prop = (function(){
function someComplicatedComputationThatMayTakeMoreTime() {
//your calculations
}
return {
toString: function() {
return someComplicatedComputationThatMayTakeMoreTime();
}
}
})()

If only Internet Explorer didn't exist, you could use getters and setters as described by John Resig in this blog article:
John Resig: JavaScript Getters and Setters
... They allow you to bind special functions to an object that look like normal object properties, but actually execute hidden functions instead.

Using a function is your best option for now, however the new JavaScript standard (ECMAScript 5th Ed.) which is being implemented now by all major browser vendors, gives you a method to create accessor properties, where you can define a property with a get and set functions that will be internally called, without worrying to treat this properties as functions, e.g.:
var obj = {};
Object.defineProperty(obj, 'foo', {
get: function () { // getter logic
return 'foo!';
},
set: function (value) {
// setter logic
}
});
obj.foo; // "foo!", no function call
This new standard will take some time to be implemented for all browsers, (the IE9 preview version really disappointed me), and I wouldn't recommend you to use it for production, unless you have total control on the environment where your application will be used.

What I think you want is a lazily instantiated variable, which can be implemented like this.
var myProperty = null;
function getMyProperty() {
return (myProperty = myProperty || builder());
}

This is not practical on the web because IE does not support it, but you can look at
https://developer.mozilla.org/en/defineGetter for examples how to do this.
There are a couple ways to do it, here is one example:
var data = {};
data.__defineGetter__("prop",
(function () {
var value = null;
return function () {
if (null == value) {
value = getYourValueHere();
}
return value;
};
})());
and now you can use it like:
var a = data.prop;
var b = data.prop;

I would recommend a variation on ChaosPandion's answer, but with a closure.
var myProperty = (function () {
var innerProperty = null;
return function() {
return (innerProperty = innerProperty || someComplicatedComputationThatMayTakeMoreTime());
};
})();
and then use myProperty() every time you need to access the variable.

You could define a JavaScript getter. From the Apple JavaScript Coding Guidelines:
myObject.__defineGetter__( "myGetter", function() { return this.myVariable; } );
var someVariable = myObject.myGetter;
See John Resig's post, JavaScript Getters and Setters, and the Defining Getters and Setters page at the Mozilla Developer Centre for more information.

I would use explicit lazy evaluation. Here's my implementation of it based on Scheme's take:
var delay, lazy, force, promise, promiseForced, promiseRunning;
(function () {
var getValue = function () {
return this.value;
};
var RUNNING = {};
var DelayThunk = function (nullaryFunc) {
this.value = nullaryFunc;
};
DelayThunk.prototype.toString = function () {
return "[object Promise]";
};
DelayThunk.prototype.force = function () {
if (promiseRunning (this)) {
throw new Error ("Circular forcing of a promise.");
}
var nullaryFunc = this.value;
this.value = RUNNING;
this.value = nullaryFunc ();
this.force = getValue;
return this.value;
};
var LazyThunk = function (nullaryFunc) {
DelayThunk.call (this, nullaryFunc);
};
LazyThunk.prototype = new DelayThunk (null);
LazyThunk.prototype.constructor = LazyThunk;
LazyThunk.prototype.force = function () {
var result = DelayThunk.prototype.force.call (this);
while (result instanceof LazyThunk) {
result = DelayThunk.prototype.force.call (result);
}
return force (result);
};
delay = function (nullaryFunc) {
return new DelayThunk (nullaryFunc);
};
lazy = function (nullaryFunc) {
return new LazyThunk (nullaryFunc);
};
force = function (expr) {
if (promise (expr)) {
return expr.force ();
}
return expr;
};
promise = function (expr) {
return expr instanceof DelayThunk;
};
promiseForced = function (expr) {
return expr.force === getValue || !promise (expr);
};
promiseRunning = function (expr) {
return expr.value === RUNNING || !promise (expr);
};
}) ();
Example Syntax:
var x = lazy (function () { return expression; });
var y = force (x);
var z = delay (function () { return expression; });
var w = force (z);
Note values are stored once evaluated, so repeated forcing will not do extra computations.
Example usage:
function makeThunk (x, y, z) {
return lazy (function () {
// lots of work done here
});
}
var thunk = makeThunk (arg1, arg2, arg3);
if (condition) {
output (force (thunk));
output (force (thunk)); // no extra work done; no extra side effects either
}

You can use the javascript Proxy class for creating such functionality.
var object = {};
var handler = {
resolvers: {},
get ( target, property, proxy ) {
if ( ! target.hasOwnProperty( property ) && this.resolvers.hasOwnProperty( property ) ) {
// execute the getter for the property;
target[ property ] = this.resolvers[ property ]();
}
return target[ property ];
},
set ( target, property, value, receiver ) {
// if the value is function set as a resolver
if ( typeof value === 'function' ) {
this.resolvers[property] = value;
// otherwise set value to target
} else {
target.property = value;
}
},
has ( target, property, receiver ) {
//true when proxy handler has either a resolver or target has a value;
return this.resolvers.hasOwnProperty( property ) || target.hasOwnProperty( property );
}
};
var lazyObject = new Proxy( object, handler );
Now you can use it like this:
'exampleField' in lazyObject; //returns false
lazyObject.exampleField = function(){ return 'my value' }; // add a resolver function
'exampleField' in lazyObject; //returns true
lazyObject.exampleField; //executes your resolver function and returns 'my value'
This example is to demonstrate the working. You can change after your needs.
Here is a fiddle with a demonstration