Inline Import

A tool that inlines custom file imports.

Use Case

Instead of loading external files during runtime, you may wish to integrate the raw file contents directly into your JavaScript files during build time. This tool allows you to use the native import syntax to include any data:

import data from "./data.png";

The type of the imported file can be anything. You only need to specify a preferred encoding for each file type.

Installation

npm install inline-import

Usage

Command Line Interface (CLI)

The command line tool can be invoked using the inline-import command. It requires a configuration in which the source paths and the options are specified. You can decide whether you want to provide the configuration via package.json or as a standalone file.

If there is no configuration in package.json, the tool will look for a configuration file with the default name .inline-import.json in the current working directory.

inline-import -c config/inline-import.json

Affected files will automatically be copied into a backup directory before they are modified. You can restore the original files by using the --restore option.

JavaScript API

The immediate inlining process is destructive. Affected files will be changed permanently.
To inline your file imports, you need to specify the path to the JavaScript file that should be modified. Additionally, you need to define the extensions of the relevant import statements.

text.txt

hello world

index.js

import component from "module";
import text from "./text.txt";

inline.js

import InlineImport from "inline-import";

InlineImport.transform("index.js", {

	extensions: {
		".txt": "utf8"
	}

}).then(modified => {

	console.log(modified ? "Success!" : "Nothing changed");

}).catch(console.error);

index.js (inlined)

import component from "module";
const text = "hello world";

Options

• Command line exclusive:
  • You must specify a source path or a list of paths under src. Glob patterns are supported.
  • An alternative backup path may be specified. The default path is .backup.
• You may define a specific encoding for the JavaScript files that will be processed. Use one of the possible encoding values specified in node's Buffer class. The default encoding is utf8.
• Only imports with matching file extensions will be considered. Each extension must define its own encoding.
• If, for some reason, you don't want to use the const statement, set useVar to true.

.inline-import.json

{
	"src": ["src/**/*.js"],
	"backup": "path/to/backup",
	"encoding": "utf8",
	"useVar": true,
	"extensions": {
		".html": "utf8",
		".png": "base64"
	}
}

package.json

{
	"inlineImport": {
		"src": "src/**/*.js",
		"extensions": {}
	}
}

inline.js

InlineImport.transform(filePath, {
	encoding: "utf8",
	useVar: true,
	extensions: {}
}).catch(e => console.error(e));

Build Tool Integration

• Inline Import Grunt plugin

Contributing

Maintain the existing coding style. Add unit tests for any new or changed functionality. Lint and test your code.