Virtual Coffee npm Resume

A workshop showing making your own npx-runnable npm package. 🎁

We'll cover:

1. (topic: node/npm) How to set up a very straightforward npm package (just a single .js file)
2. (topic: core JS) Logging some things in the file
3. (topic: node/npm) Adding a dependency on chalk to get nice colors
4. (topic: core JS) Wrapping those logs with | etc. characters to make a table
5. (delighter) Using arbitrary math to make a gradient with chalk

https://www.npmjs.com/package/vc-npm-resume

Steps we took

1. Create an index.js file
2. Add a console.log to that file
3. node index.js: it runs!
   • node --watch index.js: it runs in watch mode
4. npm init
   • Add a bin: "index.js"
   • If you're not Josh, change the name
5. Add #!/usr/bin/env node ("hashbang comment) to the top of index.js
6. Make an npm account (https://www.npmjs.com/signup)
7. npm login
   • Verify with npm whoami
8. npm publish
9. npx vc-npm-resume@latest
10. Make some changes to the file
11. npm version patch
    • This creates a Git commit with a tag
    • This updates your package.json
12. Fancify the table in index.js
13. npm install chalk
14. Add node_modules to gitignore
15. Add "type": "module" to package.json
16. Add import chalk from "chalk"
    • Fun fact: "ANSI Escape codes" is what they're called
    • https://stackoverflow.com/questions/4842424/list-of-ansi-color-escape-sequences
17. npm install strip-ansi
18. Use stripAnsi in index.js to ease line length computations with chalk
19. Use fancy schmancy math to randomize colors

Debugging

403 Error in npm publish

You do not have permission to publish "vc-npm-resume". Are you logged in as the correct user?

Change the name in your package.json.

You cannot publish over the previously published versions

Try changing the version in package.json.

Otherwise, try npm login to make sure you're logged in.

npm ERR! could not determine executable to run

Add a bin entry in package.json. And don't feel to bad about it, I totally forgot during the workshop 😉.

Cannot use import statement outside a module

Either:

• Add "type": "module" to your package.json
• Rename the file to .mjs

https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/JavaScript/Guide/Modules

Error [ERR_REQUIRE_ESM]: require() of ES Module...

Switch from CJS (require) to ESM (import)

https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/JavaScript/Guide/Modules