how to create and use a template helper

[TheBronx]

Building a custom theme based on vanilla:
I want to show the posts.index for each post in the topic.tpl template
The problem is that the first post is, obviously, #0, and I want it to display #1. Also the href should be /1, and not /0

Well, as far as I know, you can't just do {posts.index+1}, you need a template helper. How should a theme register and use a custom template helper? Should I edit public/src/helpers.js manually???

I can't find an example, hope you guys can help.
Thanks in advance, and great job with nodebb, it is clearly a next-generation forum platform.

[Oleksandr Pidlisnyi]

Hi

First you need to add some plugin-like functionality to your theme
Next you have to add hook for static:app.load
You have to require templates.js

var templates = module.parent.require('templates.js');

And last thing you have to do inside of static:app.load hook

templates.registerHelper('superCoolHelper', function(data) {
	// here your code
});

[TheBronx]

thank you @Oleksandr-Pidlisnyi
I've modified our plugin.json to add a hook:

{
    "hook": "static:app.load", "method": "appLoad"
}

then added that appLoad method in our theme lib js:

Theme.appLoad = function(params, callback) {

	templates.registerHelper('postIndexPlusOne', function(data) {
		return data.index+1;
	});

	callback();
};

this way, instead of using posts.index (there is a bug here, try to add {} and see what happens) in topic.tpl now we can use {function.postIndexPlusOne}

again, thank you!

[TheBronx]

not so fast

the function works, and prints post indexes starting at #1 instead of #0 BUT, there is a problem, a big one:
it only works if you load the topic from scratch, I mean, if you navigate from topic list to topic then it doesn`t work, and shows:

	#{function.postIndexPlusOne}

if you press F5, then it works again:

#1
#2
...

is that a bug or a feature? the template is the same, but it just works on page load, not on ajax loaded content.

should I open an issue?

[julian]

Ah, that'd be because you added the helper to the server-side portion of the code, but our template engine works on both sides, server and client.

Paging @psychobunny, the engine dev

[psychobunny]

@TheBronx all you have to do is run the same code on DOM ready for it to work on client side. Add this to your client-side JS:

$(document).ready(function() {
    templates.registerHelper('postIndexPlusOne', function(data) {
        return data.index+1;
    });
});

EDIT: this is how you add client-side JS files from your plugin.json:

https://github.com/NodeBB/nodebb-plugin-quickstart/blob/master/plugin.json#L21-L23

[TheBronx]

@psychobunny understood. now we understand a lot of things regarding templates. thank you too!

[mrazadar]

Use 'Benchpress' import instead of 'templates' in latest version(s).

library.js

var Benchpress = module.parent.require('benchpressjs');
var library = {};

library.init = function (params, callback) {
    Benchpress.registerHelper('someFunc', function (arg1) {
        return arg1*2;
    });
    callback();
};

[PitaJ]

@mrazadar using require.main.require is what I recommend for plugins and themes

[Yoann Aubry 0]

Does it still work? My helper functions don't seem to be recognize in my template files.