Create/implement separate hello.js for hello.html config

docs/labs/checker.js

@@ -9,6 +9,7 @@
 let correctRe = []; // Array of compiled regex of correct answer
 let expected = []; // Array of an expected (correct) answer
 let info = {}; // General info
+let info2 = {}; // Transitional info - if it exists, compare to info
 let hints = []; // Array of hint objects
 let page_definitions = {}; // Definitions used when preprocessing regexes
 
@@ -17,6 +18,9 @@ let user_gave_up = false; // True if user ever gave up before user solved it
 
 let startTime = Date.now();
 
+let BACKQUOTE = "`"; // Make it easy to use `${BACKQUOTE}`
+let DOLLAR = "$"; // Make it easy to use `${DOLLAR}`
+
 // Current language
 let lang;
 
@@ -91,7 +95,6 @@ function determine_locale() {
     return lang;
 }
 
-
 // This array contains the default pattern preprocessing commands, in order.
 // We process every pattern through these (in order) to create a final regex
 // to be used to match a pattern.
@@ -174,6 +177,38 @@ function setDifference(lhs, rhs) {
     return new Set(result);
 }
 
+/* Return differences between two objects
+ */
+function objectDiff(obj1, obj2) {
+    let diff = {};
+
+    function compare(obj1, obj2, path = '') {
+        for (const key in obj1) {
+          if (obj1.hasOwnProperty(key)) {
+            const newPath = path ? `${path}.${key}` : key;
+
+            if (!obj2.hasOwnProperty(key)) {
+              diff[newPath] = [obj1[key], undefined];
+            } else if (typeof obj1[key] === 'object' && typeof obj2[key] === 'object') {
+              compare(obj1[key], obj2[key], newPath);
+            } else if (obj1[key] !== obj2[key]) {
+              diff[newPath] = [obj1[key], obj2[key]];
+            }
+          }
+        }
+
+        for (const key in obj2) {
+          if (obj2.hasOwnProperty(key) && !obj1.hasOwnProperty(key)) {
+            const newPath = path ? `${path}.${key}` : key;
+            diff[newPath] = [undefined, obj2[key]];
+          }
+        }
+    }
+
+    compare(obj1, obj2);
+    return diff;
+}
+
 /*
  * Show debug output in debug region and maybe via alert box
  * @debugOutput - the debug information to show
@@ -546,10 +581,10 @@ function processHints(requestedHints) {
     return compiledHints;
 }
 
-/** Set global values based on info.
+/** Load and parse YAML data, return result to be placed in "info".
  * @info: String with YAML (including JSON) data to use
  */
-function processInfo(configurationInfo) {
+function processYamlToInfo(configurationInfo) {
     // This would only allow JSON, but then we don't need to load YAML lib:
     // let parsedJson = JSON.parse(configurationInfo);
 
@@ -563,9 +598,15 @@ function processInfo(configurationInfo) {
         throw e; // Rethrow, so containing browser also gets exception
     }
 
-    // Set global variable
-    info = parsedData;
+    return parsedData;
+}
 
+/** Set global values based on other than "correct" and "expected" values.
+ * The correct and expected values may come from elsewhere, but we have to set up the
+ * info-based values first, because info can change how those are interpreted.
+ * @info: String with YAML (including JSON) data to use
+ */
+function processInfo(configurationInfo) {
     const allowedInfoFields = new Set([
         'hints', 'successes', 'failures', 'correct', 'expected',
          'definitions', 'preprocessing', 'preprocessingTests', 'debug']);
@@ -603,14 +644,14 @@ function processInfo(configurationInfo) {
     };
 
     // Set up hints
-    if (parsedData && parsedData.hints) {
-        hints = processHints(parsedData.hints);
+    if (info && info.hints) {
+        hints = processHints(info.hints);
     };
 }
 
 /**
  * Run a simple selftest.
- * Run loadData *before* calling this, to set up globals like correctRe.
+ * Run setupInfo *before* calling this, to set up globals like correctRe.
  * This ensures that:
  * - the initial attempt is incorrect (as expected)
  * - the expected value is correct (as expected)
@@ -683,17 +724,36 @@ function runSelftest() {
 }
 
 /**
- * Load data from HTML page and initialize our local variables from it.
+ * Load "info" data and set up all other variables that depend on "info".
+ * The "info" data includes the regex preprocessing steps, hints, etc.
  */
-function loadData() {
-    // If there is info (e.g., hints), load it & set up global variable hints.
+function setupInfo() {
     // We must load info *first*, because it can affect how other things
     // (like pattern preprocessing) is handled.
+
+    // Deprecated approach: Load embedded "info" data in YAML file.
+    // If there is "info" data embedded in the HTML (e.g., hints),
+    // load it & set up global variable hints.
     let infoElement = document.getElementById('info');
     if (infoElement) {
-        processInfo(infoElement.textContent);
+        let configurationYamlText = infoElement.textContent;
+        // Set global variable "info"
+        info = processYamlToInfo(configurationYamlText);
     };
 
+    // If an "info2" exists, report any differences between it and "info".
+    // This makes it safer to change how info is recorded.
+    if (Object.keys(info2).length > 0) {
+        let differences = objectDiff(info, info2);
+        if (Object.keys(differences).length > 0) {
+            alert(`ERROR: info2 exists, but info and info2 differ: ${JSON.stringify(differences)}`);
+        }
+    };
+
+
+    // Set global values *except* correct and expected arrays
+    processInfo(info);
+
     // Set global correct and expected arrays
     let current = 0;
     while (true) {
@@ -732,7 +792,8 @@ function loadData() {
 }
 
 function initPage() {
-    loadData();
+    // Use configuration info to set up all relevant global values.
+    setupInfo();
 
     // Run a selftest on page load, to prevent later problems
     runSelftest();

docs/labs/create_checker.md

@@ -92,6 +92,19 @@ under the `docs/labs` directory.
 Simply fork the repository, add your proposed lab in the `docs/labs` directory,
 and create a pull request.
 
+### Transitioning away from YAML
+
+Configuration data was originally in an embedded YAML file.
+We are transitioning to using separate `.js` files to simplify
+translations and eliminate the need for the YAML library.
+E.g., `input1.html` will have a corresponding `input1.js`
+with configuration information that is shared between translations.
+That transition hasn't completed yet.
+
+To help, you can create a JavaScript file that sets info2
+instead of info. The checker will automatically report
+any differences between the two values.
+
 ### Quick aside: script tag requirements
 
 Data about the lab is embedded in the HTML in a
@@ -746,6 +759,25 @@ different markers for the text of various locales.
 E.g., `text` would be English, and `text_jp` would its Japanese translation.
 We'd love feedback on this idea.
 
+## Conversion of YAML to JavaScript files
+
+We have used embedded YAML in the HTML files for configuration.
+However, this creates a problem for translations: You want different
+HTML files for each translation (locale), yet the embedded YAML can't be shared.
+
+We have decided to move away from YAML for configuration to
+a lab-specific JavaScript file. That file can be loaded when the HTML
+is loaded, even when the HTML is loaded locally.
+
+You can start this conversion using the `yq` tool:
+
+~~~~sh
+yq eval hello.yaml -o=json -P > hello.js
+~~~~
+
+Prepend the result with `configurationInfo =` and suffix with `;`.
+Now load the JavaScript as a script (after the main library).
+
 ## Potential future directions
 
 Below are notes about potential future directions.

docs/labs/hello.html

@@ -7,6 +7,7 @@
 <link rel="stylesheet" href="checker.css">
 <script src="js-yaml.min.js"></script>
 <script src="checker.js"></script>
+<script src="hello.js"></script>
 <link rel="license" href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">
 
 <!-- See create_labs.md for how to create your own lab! -->
@@ -21,98 +22,6 @@
 \s* console \. log \( (["'`])Hello,\x20world!\1 \) ; \s*
 </script>
 
-<script id="info" type="application/yaml">
----
-hints:
-- absent: |-
-    ^ console \. log \(
-  text: ' Please use the form console.log("...");'
-  examples:
-  - - ""
-  - - "foo"
-- present: "Goodbye"
-  text: "You need to change the text Goodbye to something else."
-  examples:
-  - - 'console.log("Goodbye.");'
-- present: "hello"
-  text: "Please capitalize Hello."
-  examples:
-  - - 'console.log("hello.");'
-- present: "World"
-  text: "Please lowercase world."
-  examples:
-  - - 'console.log("Hello, World!");'
-- present: "Hello[^,]"
-  text: "Put a comma immediately after Hello."
-  examples:
-  - - 'console.log("Hello world.");'
-- present: "Hello"
-  absent: "[Ww]orld"
-  text: "There's a Hello, but you need to also mention the world."
-  examples:
-  - - 'console.log("Hello, ");'
-- present: |-
-             world[^\!]
-  text: "Put an exclamation point immediately after world."
-  examples:
-  - - 'console.log("Hello, world.");'
-- present: 'Hello,\s*world!'
-  absent: 'Hello,\x20world!'
-  text: "You need exactly one space between 'Hello,' and 'world!'"
-  examples:
-  - - 'console.log("Hello,     world!");'
-- present: |-
-              ^ console \. log \( Hello
-  text: |-
-          You must quote constant strings using ", ', or `
-  examples:
-  - - 'console.log(Hello, world'
-  - - 'console.log( Hello, world'
-- absent: " ; $"
-  text: >
-    Please end this statement with a semicolon. JavaScript does not
-    require a semicolon in this case,
-    but usually when modifying source code you should
-    follow the style of the current code.
-  examples:
-  - - '  console.log("Hello, world!")  '
-successes:
-- - ' console . log( "Hello, world!" ) ; '
-- - " console . log( 'Hello, world!' ) ; "
-- - " console . log( `Hello, world!` ) ; "
-failures:
-- - ' console . log( Hello, world! ) ; '
-- - ' console . log("hello, world!") ; '
-# ADVANCED use - define our own preprocessing commands.
-# I suggest using "|-" (stripping the trailing newlines)
-# preprocessing:
-#   -
-#     - |-
-#         [\n\r]+
-#     - ""
-#   -
-#     - |-
-#         (\\s\*)?\s+(\\s\*)?
-#     - "\\s*"
-# Here are tests for default preprocessing. You do not need this in
-# every lab, but it demonstrates how to do it.
-preprocessingTests:
-  -
-    - |-
-        \s* console \. log \( (["'`])Hello,\x20world!\1 \) ; \s*
-    - |-
-        \s*console\s*\.\s*log\s*\(\s*(["'`])Hello,\x20world!\1\s*\)\s*;\s*
-  -
-    - |-
-        \s* foo \s+ bar \\string\\ \s*
-    - |-
-        \s*foo\s+bar\s*\\string\\\s*
-# debug: true
-</script>
-<!--
-
--->
-
 </head>
 <body>
 <!-- For GitHub Pages formatting: -->