as_a_logger.md

Console logging

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Bracket Print help pages

• Contributor code of conduct
• Guidelines for contributing
• Synopsis
• Media and statistics
  • Benchmarking
  • Screeenshots of output
• Specification
  • License information
  • Package information
  • Unit test output
• Usage and examples
  • As a callback
  • As a logger
  • As a string
  • Controlling the behaviour via option data
  • How the level correlates to styling
  • Advanced usage
    • Accessing the style map

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Logging the stored strings

The output mechanism itelf is controlled with the log_output option value. The default value of the function simply applies the passed in array of strings to a console.log call. Note: The defualt value of log_output can be found in the options documentation. Any function which is set to the log_output option will need to join the argumemt array together or ouput it with a loop. See the example below for usage of a log_output function. Note: The array will only be of length 1 unless the browser platform is used or a custom plaftorm style was added that uses format array complementing.

function(output) {
	//Method 1:
	document.write.apply(document, output)
	//Method 2: (which is the default)
	console.log.apply(console, output)
	//Method 3:
	document.body.innerHtml += output.join()
}

Practice

The greatest strength of software logging lies within tracing steps to diagnose problems. This can be boosted when using a logger which passes down into other scrips and functions with the initial options and data intact. The example below demonstrates this simple methodology by using a function inside of another function. The logger is able to keep all of the initial settings while altering the title and level for use in the secondary function.

Note: passing in incorrect option keys will result in an message printed with the currently available option listed. This may not show depending if the internal_level option value as well.

var cnt = 0
var up = require("bracket_print")({log_title: "Main", level: 1, title_stamp: function() {  return "#"+ cnt++ }})
;(function() {

	up.s("In function main with level set to", 1).log()
	up.log("Calling internal function:")

	;(function(up) {

		up = up.spawn({level: 2, log_title: up.log_title + " -> " + "Internal Funtion"})
		up.l("Inside internal function").l("Which has the level set to").s(2).log()
		up.log("Note that the title_stamp is still incrementing globally")

	})(up)

	up.log("Ending with a final message.")

})(up)

/*
Output of above script:

[Main - #0] In function main with level set to 1
[Main - #1] Calling internal function:                                            
[Main -> Internal Funtion - #2] Inside internal function
Which has the level set to 2
[Main -> Internal Funtion - #3] Note that the title_stamp is still incrementing globally
[Main - #4] Ending with a final message.
*/