Functions

Functions in JavaScript

Functions

Functions (or function objects) are defined by the function keyword. This can be skipped by using the name of a function when creating an arrow function, however.

function say() {
  console.log("Hi!");
}
 // OR
 const say = () => {
  console.log("Hi!");
 }

To reduce ambiguity we say we are "invoking a function" rather than "calling a function".

Arguments and Parameters

When we invoke a function we are passing arguments from outside the function's scope so the function can use the data. The arguments are objects or primitive values.

When defining a function, we declare any parameters the function accepts. Parameters are local variables initialized when the function is invoked. Therefore, when the function is complete, the parameters are destroyed.

You can pass more arguments than a function has parameters; they will be ignored. However, passing fewer arguments than a function requires causes an error as those missing parameters are assigned undefined.

function add(left, right) { // left & right are parameters here
  let sum = left + right;   // left & right are arguments here
  return sum;
}

console.log(add(3, 6, 5)); // 5 is ignored; prints 9
console.log(add(3));       // second argument missing; prints NaN
                           // 3 + undefined is NaN

Return values

The return statement returns a result to the code that called a function. Without a return statement, a JavaScript function will return undefined as the implicit return value. Functions that always return a boolean value (true or false only) are predicates.

Default parameters

You can set default parameters for functions invoked without any arguments provided by setting the parameter to a default value:

function say(text = "hello") {
  console.log(text + "!");
}

say("Howdy"); // => Howdy!
say();        // => hello!

Nested functions

Functions can be nested within other functions. Once the inner function completes, it and all of its local data, is destroyed.

Function scope

Global variables are available to all code in a program, so any function has access to them. Functions can modify global variables.

Local variables defined inside of a function are only accessible within that function.

Functions vs. methods

Functions pass arguments within their parenthesis. So too do methods, but methods are pre-defined functions on objects so you have to call a method on an object using the period.

Function composition

JavaScript lets a function call as an argument to another function via function composition. This is because function calls always return a value.

Examples of passing a function call as an argument to the console.log() function:

console.log(add(20, 45)); // => 65
console.log(subtract(80, 10)); // => 70

Defining a function (three ways)

1. Create a function declaration and call the function.
2. Create a function expression by setting a variable name equal to a function declaration.
3. Use an arrow function, which is similar to option 2 but more concise. Arrow functions have implicit returns so you don't need a return statement for a single expression. Example:

let add = (a, b) => a + b; // this returns the value of a + b

Note that function expressions are saved to a variable so they can't be invoked before definition.

First-class functions

All JavaScript functions are considered to be objects so they can be assigned to variables, passed as arguments and returned from function calls.