How to call a custom function from html with angularjs?

Question

I'd like to define separate methods within my js controllers as follows:

    angular.module('test').controller('mycontroller', mycontroller);
    function mycontroller() {
        //do sth
    };

    function test(value) {
        console.log(value); //this is never written
    };

This way I'd have a clean structure and each method separated in its own block.

But when I try to use it as follows, there is not output.

<div ng-controller='mycontroller'>
    {{test('printme')}}
</div>

Why?

When you set mycontroller as the controller to use, the scope gets bound to the components. test doesn't exist on this scope. Therefore you're better off putting function test(value) {} onto a scope variable, say $scope.test — Callum Linington
– Callum Linington, Commented Dec 1, 2015 at 11:31

Ágoston Székely · Accepted Answer · 2015-12-01 11:32:01Z

3

Try putting your test function inside your controller, and change it to

$scope.test = function(value){
    console.log(value)
};

Also add $scope dependency to your controller

answered Dec 1, 2015 at 11:32

Ágoston Székely

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1 Comment

membersound Over a year ago

That works. But is there also a way to define the function block outside of the controller function, and just settings the reference to that function to the scope?

Callum Linington · Accepted Answer · 2015-12-01 13:13:34Z

If you want to keep you files looking clean you can follow John Papa's style guide: https://github.com/johnpapa/angular-styleguide

Here is how I fixed your question and applied a clean approach to it: http://plnkr.co/edit/tYYvssVWUfvHyXE8ilD8?p=preview

angular.module('testApp', [])
  .controller('ctrl', ctrl);

function ctrl($scope) {
  /* -- Public Properties & Methods -- */

  $scope.test = test;


  /* -- Private Properties & Methods -- */

  function test(value) {
    console.log(value);
  }
}

Because my code is in an IIFE, you can actually have that function test anywhere inside of that block, instead of having it inside the controller function:

angular.module('testApp', [])
  .controller('ctrl', ctrl);

function ctrl($scope) {
  /* -- Public Properties & Methods -- */

  $scope.test = test; 
}

/* -- Private Properties & Methods -- */
function test(value) {
    console.log(value);
}

http://plnkr.co/edit/VXbOuOvHaIhRFBVZD16p?p=preview

I just had a thought about doing this according to the second way. A fair amount of times we create variables we wish to bind to the DOM: $scope.showOptions. If we have the function outside of the controller we no longer have access to this $scope.showOptions so you would have "difficulty" interrogating it. You could easily get around this by either requesting the variables/scope through the function parameter. Or creating a small wrapper function that will dispatch out (almost like double dispatching).

$scope.test = function test() { testImpl($scope.showOptions); };

function testImpl(showOptions) {
    console.log(showOptions);
}

This will allow you to keep all of your main heavy lifting outside the controller but does introduce a new layer of complexity, one which I know I could certainly do without.

So the choice is yours.

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