Finder library for Firefox OS

This library is an interface to search and pick files from the DeviceStorages on Firefox OS devices. It provides an easy-to-use asynchronous interface for other Firefox OS apps to search for files on Firefox OS devices. The library is based on an event-based architecture, letting developers build beautiful asynchronous API for their apps.

The Finder library is best used by developers looking to pick a file from sdcard for their apps.

This library depends on EventEmitter by Wolfy87, included with the package.

Install

Copy the minified script ./applait.finder.min.js to your app's directory, e.g. in the js subdirectory. Add the script to the HTML page:

<script type="text/javascript" src="js/applait.finder.min.js"></script>

The minified version includes its dependencies, so you need to add just this one file to get started.

Usage

1. Create an instance

Create an instance of Applait.Finder. The constructor takes an options object which can have the following options. All options are optional:

• type : Can be one of sdcard, pictures, music, videos. Default: sdcard.
• minSearchLength : A number representing the minimum length of the search string without which search will not be triggered. Default: 3.
• hidden : If set to true, excludes hidden files from search. Default: false.
• caseSensitive : If set to true, makes search case sensitive. Default: false.
• debugMode : If set to true, enables the debug mode, which prints all activities by the library on the browser console. Default: false.

var finder = new Applait.Finder({ type: "sdcard", debugMode: true });

Note: for production use, keep debugMode turned off to save memory.

1.1 Set permissions in manifest.webapp

In your app's manifest, add permission for the type of DeviceStorage access you need. For details, see Device Storage Permissions.

2. Trigger search

Trigger a search by calling finder.search() and passing it the search string.

finder.search(searchterm);

From this point onwards, Finder raises events for each action.

The search method will return null only if the search string is smaller in length than minSearchLength or if no storage mediums are found on the device for the given storage type. But is not necessary because Finder raises an event in either case.

3. Listen to events

To listen to events, add an event listener with a callback using finder.on(). Each event gets a specific set of arguments depending on the event. For example, when search() finds a matching file, it raises the fileFound event with two arguments, the File object and a fileinfo object and the storage name in which it was found:

finder.on("fileFound", function (file, fileinfo, storageName) {
    console.log("Found file " + fileinfo.name + " at " + fileinfo.path + " in " + storageName, file);
}

List of events

The search method raises events depending on the stage and result of processing the search. When finder.search() is triggered, it raises the following events:

fileFound

This event is fired each time when a file is matched during the search. It provides the following arguments:

• file - the File object of the result matched.
• fileinfo - An object containing the name and path of the file with the following keys:
  • name: A string containing the file name and extension.
  • path: A string containing the path to the directory of the file.
• storageName - The internal name of the storage space.

Example:

finder.on("fileFound", function (file, fileinfo, storageName) {
    // Code goes here
});

searchBegin

This event is fired when search is started. It provides the following arguments:

• needle - The search string.

Example:

finder.on("searchBegin", function (needle) {
    // Code goes here
});

storageSearchBegin

This event is event when a search is begun for a particular DeviceStorage.

For instance, sdcard storage type can have multiple locations. Finder iterates over all available location of the provided storage type using navigator.getDeviceStorages.

This event provides the following arguments:

• storageName - The internal name of the storage space.
• needle - The search string.

Example:

finder.on("storageSearchBegin", function (storageName, needle) {
    // Code goes here
});

storageSearchComplete

This event is event when a search is completed for a particular DeviceStorage. It can be raised multiple times per search, depending on the number of storage locations available.

This event provides the following arguments:

• storageName - The internal name of the storage space.
• needle - The search string.

Example:

finder.on("storageSearchComplete", function (storageName, needle) {
    // Code goes here
});

searchComplete

This event is fired when the entire search has completed. It is raised only once for each search. It provides the following arguments:

• needle - The search string.
• filematchcount - The number of files matched in this search.

Note that searchComplete can be fired multiple times during a single search() if there are multiple storage locations.

Example:

finder.on("searchComplete", function (needle, filematchcount) {
    // Code goes here
});

searchCancelled

This event is fired when a search is cancelled. It provides the following arguments:

• message : A string describing the reason of the cancel.

Example:

finder.on("searchCancelled", function (message) {
    // Code goes here
});

empty

This event is fired when there is no storage medium available for the provided storage type. It provides the following arguments:

• needle - The search string.

Example:

finder.on("empty", function (needle) {
    // Code goes here
});

error

This event is fired when any error is faced by the search. It provides the following arguments:

• message : A string describing the reason of the cancel.
• error : The error object thrown.

Example:

finder.on("error", function (message, err) {
    // Code goes here
});

Properties

Here are some useful properties of the Applait.Finder class:

• this.filematchcount : Number of files matched in latest search.
• this.searchkey : Search key (needle) of latest search.
• this.storagesearchcount : Number of storage locations already searched in the current search.
• this.options : Options object passed to the constructor.

Contributing

What you need to start developing FinderJS:

• npm
• grunt
• git
• A text editor

Dev environment setup

Install npm and run:

$ npm install -g grunt-cli

$ npm install

Run tests and create builds

To run tests:

$ npm test

To create minified file and generate API docs:

$ npm run build

Credits and attribution

• EventEmitter by Oliver Caldwell. Used under the MIT License.

~~ Built with love by Applait. ~~