cherrypie.js

cherrypie.js is a dead simple, yet powerful JSON-to-rich-model converter which helps you to convert your incoming JSON object into a more convenient model object and vice versa with the help of a so called model-description.

With cherrypie.js you're able to get the primitive "namespaced" object values as well as "computed" properties which depend on a number of values from the received JSON, as well as reduce/desolate the "rich" model object back to the object which is expected at the backend.

There are a few "switches" and "directives" which are unique to each modelDescription and can be used to instruct cherrypie how to process the incoming JSON object. All model descriptions are nestable (as each model description could have a infinite number of nested __children).

Directive	Type	Description
__namespace	String	The "namespace" of the incoming JSON (if the values you want are "nested") - __namespace can be nested
__children	Object	An object which holds at least one child model description - __children can be nested
__inject ✨	Object	An object of properties which should be injected "as is" during model population
__serializable	[String]	The list of serializable properties when model.serialize is called
__transferKeys	Boolean	Tell cherrypie.js to only process the described properties and take others "as is"
__ignoredKeys	[String]	Use this directive in conjunction with __transferKeys so that you don't have to declare and endless amount of properties only to have 1 or 2 properties skipped

JSON-to-Rich-Model Examples

Simple usage

Received JSON (to "parse")

{
  "name": "Bruce Wayne",
  "nick": "Batman"
}

Model Description ("parse" information)

{
  pseudonym: 'name',
  superheroName: 'nickname'
}

Populated Model ("parsed")

{
  pseudonym: 'Bruce Wayne',
  superheroName: 'Batman'
}

Inject Properties during "population" time

Received JSON (to "parse")

{
  "name": "Bruce Wayne",
  "nick": "Batman"
}

Injections (properties which should get added to the populated object - no need to touch the populated model anymore)

var injectedFriends = ['Alfred'];

Model Description ("parse" information)

{
  pseudonym: 'name',
  superheroName: 'nickname',
  __inject: {
    friends: injectedFriends
  }
}

Populated Model ("parsed")

{
  pseudonym: 'Bruce Wayne',
  superheroName: 'Batman',
  friends: ['Alfred']
}

Parse values from JSON

Received JSON:

{
  "session": {
    "user": {
      "name": "Bruce Wayne",
      "nick": "Batman"
    }
  }
}

Model Description:

{
  __namespace: 'session.user',
  name: 'name',
  nick: 'nick',
  __serializable: ['name', 'nick']
}

Populated Model:

{
  name: 'Bruce Wayne',
  nick: 'Batman',
  __serializable: ['name', 'nick']
}

Parse computed values from JSON

Received JSON:

{
  "session": {
    "user": {
      "firstName": "Bruce",
      "lastName": "Wayne",
      "nick": "Batman",
      "comments": [
        {
          commentId: 'c01',
          commentText: 'some text'
        },
        {
          commentId: 'c02',
          commentText: 'another text'
        }
      ]
    }
  }
}

Model Description:

{
  __namespace: 'session.user',
  firstName: 'firstName',
  lastName: 'lastName',
  name: function () {
    return this.firstName + ' ' + this.lastName;
  },
  comments: function (preparedOrigin, namespaceExtractor, populate) {
    var comments = preparedOrigin.comment,
        commentDescription = {
          id: 'commentId',
          text: 'commentText'
        },
        preparedComments = [];

        if(comments && comment.length > 0) {
          comments.forEach(function (comment) {
            preparedComments.push(populate(commentDescription, comment);
          });
        }

        return preparedComments;
  }
  nick: 'nick',
  __serializable: ['firstName', 'lastName', 'nick']
}

Populated Model:

{
  firstName: 'Bruce',
  lastName: 'Wayne',
  name: 'Bruce Wayne',
  nick: 'Batman',
  comments: [
    {
      id: 'c01',
      text: 'some text'
    },
    {
      id: 'c02',
      text: 'another text'
    }
  ]
  __serializable: ['firstName', 'lastName', 'nick']
}

Parse computed values from JSON with minimal model description

Received JSON:

{
  "session": {
    "user": {
      "firstName": "Bruce",
      "lastName": "Wayne",
      "nick": "Batman"
    }
  }
}

Model Description:

{
  firstName: 'firstName',
  lastName: 'lastName',
  name: function () {
    return this.firstName + ' ' + this.lastName;
  },
  nick: 'nick',
}

Populated Model:

{
  firstName: 'Bruce',
  lastName: 'Wayne',
  name: 'Bruce Wayne',
  nick: 'Batman'
}

Parse properties using child model-descriptions from JSON

Received JSON:

{
  "session": {
    "user": {
      "firstName": "Bruce",
      "lastName": "Wayne",
      "nick": "Batman",
      "userComments": [
        {
          commentId: 'c01',
          commentText: 'some text'
        },
        {
          commentId: 'c02',
          commentText: 'another text'
        }
      ]
    }
  }
}

Model Description:

// be aware that the `__children` property names must match the "new" property names of the model
// and not the one of the original JSON!
{
  __namespace: 'session.user',
  firstName: 'firstName',
  lastName: 'lastName',
  name: function () {
    return this.firstName + ' ' + this.lastName;
  },
  comments: 'userComments',
  __children: {
    comments: {
      id: 'commentId',
      text: 'commentText'
    }
  },
  nick: 'nick',
  __serializable: ['firstName', 'lastName', 'nick']
}

Populated Model:

{
  firstName: 'Bruce',
  lastName: 'Wayne',
  name: 'Bruce Wayne',
  nick: 'Batman',
  comments: [
    {
      id: 'c01',
      text: 'some text'
    },
    {
      id: 'c02',
      text: 'another text'
    }
  ]
  __serializable: ['firstName', 'lastName', 'nick']
}

Parse and process only the described properties and take the others "as is"

Make use of the __transferKeys switch in order to tell cherrypie.js to process the descriptions given by the modelDescription and transfer the keys which are not explicitly described "as is" from the origin object.

Received JSON:

{
  "session": {
    "user": {
      "firstName": "Bruce",
      "lastName": "Wayne",
      "nick": "Batman",
      "userComments": [
        {
          commentId: 'c01',
          commentText: 'some text'
        },
        {
          commentId: 'c02',
          commentText: 'another text'
        }
      ]
    }
  }
}

Model Description:

{
  __namespace: 'session.user',
  __transferKeys: true,
  fullName: function (preparedOrigin) {
    return preparedOrigin.firstName + ' ' + preparedOrigin.lastName;
  },
  comments: 'userComments',
  __children: {
    comments: {
      __transferKeys,
      id: 'commentId'
    }
  }
}

Populated Model:

{
  firstName: 'Bruce',
  lastName: 'Wayne',
  fullName: 'Bruce Wayne',
  nick: 'Batman',
  comments: [
    {
      id: 'c01',
      commentText: 'some text'
    },
    {
      id: 'c02',
      commentText: 'another text'
    }
  ]
}

Rich-Model-to-JSON Examples

Reduce a "rich" model

Model Description:

{
  firstName: 'firstName',
  lastName: 'lastName',
  name: function () {
    return this.firstName + ' ' + this.lastName;
  },
  nick: 'nick',
  __serializable: ['firstName', 'lastName', 'nick']
}

Reduced/desolated Model:

{
  firstName: 'Bruce',
  lastName: 'Wayne',
  nick: 'Batman'
}

Contribute

If you want to contribute, feel free to raise an issue or open a pull request - I'm glad if my idea fits your needs ;)