expose rawParse to use minimist/commander

[Downchuck]

Vorpal could expose rawParse(process.argv, { command: true|false}) to run a string through minimist or commander. This may be a special case.

I have an existing app, it's just using minimist for cli arguments in the usual form (app.js --arg items), and I'm working on the interactive CLI via vorpal. Trying to reduce redundancy when I can.

I am still working out how best to switch between command line (single commands) and interactive command line. But that's a different issue.

[dthree]

You mean in addition to vorpal.parse? I suppose I could literally map it to minimist if that helps.

[Downchuck]

That's the idea, you'd map to minimist by default, with an optional second argument that'd run commander.js parse -- which would use your vorpal command list to return an object. Both are meant to be maps over to minimist/commander just in case it's needed.

Related to using this: on vorpal.parse -- how do I detect whether or not a command was found? Is there a default callback, like parse(argv, notFoundFn)?

[dthree]

It is meant to do exactly what you app does if you run it first. So it would technically display the help command.

Check out the .catch command (it's new, maybe I didn't document it yet): here's an example I pulled out of wat, which im working on:

  vorpal
    .catch('[commands...]')
    .option('-d, --detail', 'View detailed markdown on item.')
    .option('-i, --install', 'View installation instructions.')
    .autocompletion(function (text, iteration, cb) {
      const self = this;
      const index = parent.clerk.indexer.index();
      let result = util.autocomplete(text, iteration, index, function (word, options) {
        const res = self.match(word, options);
        return res;
      });
      if (_.isArray(result)) {
        result.sort();
      }
      cb(undefined, result);
    })
    .action(function (args, cb) {
      const self = this;

      args = args || {};
      args.options = args.options || {};

      // Handle humans.
      if (String(args.commands[0]).toLowerCase() === 'wat') {
        args.commands.shift();
      }

       // ...

      cb();
    });

Catch basically is called if you don't match on any other command, so it overrides help as the default function if no command is met. By adding in a [variadicArg...], you can pretty much do anything you want.

[dthree]

On the parse, I think im gonna do this:

var args = vorpal.parse(process.argv, { use: 'minimist' });
var args = vorpal.parse(process.argv, { use: 'commander' });

[Downchuck]

I like it.

[dthree]

:)

Does the catch thing make sense?

[Downchuck]

Yes, it makes sense, does just what I want.

[dthree]

Perfect.

[dthree]

@Downchuck Added this. Coming out in a release today.