ask-once

ask-once

Only ask a question one time and store the answer.

Install

Install with npm

$ npm i ask-once && question-cache --save

Usage

1. Pass an instance of question-cache

var questions = require('question-cache')();
var ask = require('ask-once')({questions: questions});

2. Ask a question!

ask('May I have your username?', function (err, answer) {
  console.log(answer);
});

The user's answer is saved, and the question won't be asked again unless:

• force: true is passed on the options, or
• the answer is deleted directly

FAQ

Where are the answers stored?

The user's answers are saved on a global config store that is uniquely identified to the application using ask-once.

Can I change where answers are stored?

Yes, you can pass your own instance of data-store with the cwd option set to whatever you want it to be. Here's an example:

var questions = require('question-cache')();
// pass your own instance of data-store, so you can use
// whatever storage location you want
var store = require('data-store')('foo', {cwd: 'bar'});

var ask = require('ask-once')({
  questions: questions,
  store: store
});

ask('May I have your username?' function (err, answer) {
  console.log(answer);
});

Docs

options

To re-ask questions or reset the stored values:

• options.force: will re-ask the given question or questions, regardless of whether or not previously stored values exists.
• options.init: will delete the entire store and start over again.

API

askOnce

Returns a question-asking function that only asks a question if the answer is not already stored.

Params

• questions {Object}: Pass your instance of [question-cache][] on the questions parameter.
• store {Object}: Pass your instance of data-store on the store parameter.
• returns {Function}: Function to use when asking questions.

Example

var ask = require('ask-once')(questions, store);

ask

Ask a question only if the answer is not stored.

Params

• question {String}: Key of the question in the questions cache to ask.
• options {Object}: Options to control re-initializing the answer or forcing the question.
• cb {Function}: Callback function with the err and answer parameters.

Example

ask('username', function (err, answer) {
  if (err) return console.error(err);
  console.log(answer);
  //=> doowb
});

Examples

First time the program is run, the user is prompted to answer a question:

Additional runs of the program will skip prompting the user:

Passing the init option will delete all the stored answers and prompt the user to answer the question again:

Additional runs after clearing the stop will return the newly saved answer:

Passing the force option will force the question to be asked:

Additional runs after forcing the question, will return the newly saved answer:

Related projects

• data-store: Easily get, set and persist config data. | homepage
• inquirer: A collection of common interactive command line user interfaces. | homepage
• question-cache: A wrapper around inquirer that makes it easy to create and selectively reuse questions. | homepage
• question-helper: Template helper that asks a question in the command line and resolves the template with… more | homepage

Running tests

Install dev dependencies:

$ npm i -d && npm test

Contributing

Pull requests and stars are always welcome. For bugs and feature requests, please create an issue.

Author

Brian Woodward

• github/doowb
• twitter/doowb

License

Copyright © 2015 Brian Woodward Released under the MIT license.

This file was generated by verb-cli on September 22, 2015.