args

What is args?

The 'args' npm package is a lightweight library for parsing command-line arguments in Node.js applications. It provides a simple and intuitive API for defining and handling command-line options and arguments.

What are args's main functionalities?

Basic Argument Parsing

This feature allows you to define and parse basic command-line arguments. In this example, the 'name' option is defined, and the parsed value is used to print a greeting message.

const args = require('args');
args.option('name', 'Your name');
const flags = args.parse(process.argv);
console.log(`Hello, ${flags.name}!`);

Default Values

You can set default values for options. If the user does not provide a value for the 'name' option, 'Anonymous' will be used as the default.

const args = require('args');
args.option('name', 'Your name', 'Anonymous');
const flags = args.parse(process.argv);
console.log(`Hello, ${flags.name}!`);

Command Handling

The 'args' package supports defining commands. In this example, a 'greet' command is defined, which takes a name as an argument and prints a greeting message.

const args = require('args');
args.command('greet', 'Greet someone', (name) => {
  console.log(`Hello, ${name}!`);
});
args.parse(process.argv, { name: 'greet' });

Help Messages

The package can automatically generate help messages and usage examples. This example shows how to define an example usage for the 'name' option.

const args = require('args');
args.option('name', 'Your name');
args.example('node script.js --name John', 'Greet John');
args.parse(process.argv);

Other packages similar to args

commander

Commander is a popular and feature-rich library for building command-line interfaces. It offers a more extensive API compared to 'args', including support for subcommands, custom help messages, and more complex argument parsing.

yargs

Yargs is another powerful library for parsing command-line arguments. It provides a rich set of features, including command handling, argument validation, and automatic help generation. Yargs is known for its flexibility and ease of use.

minimist

Minimist is a lightweight library for parsing command-line arguments. It is simpler and more minimalistic compared to 'args', making it suitable for smaller projects or scripts where only basic argument parsing is needed.

README

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