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https://github.com/dwyl/useful

🇨🇭 A collection of useful functions for working in Elixir
https://github.com/dwyl/useful

elixir useful utility utils

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🇨🇭 A collection of useful functions for working in Elixir

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# `useful`

A collection of useful functions for building `Elixir` Apps.

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![swiss-army-knife](https://user-images.githubusercontent.com/194400/94815682-b646e300-03f2-11eb-8069-46b9e10fac7e.png)

# Why? 🤷

We found ourselves copy-pasting a few useful "helper" functions
across our Elixir projects ...

it wasn't
["DRY"](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Don%27t_repeat_yourself),
so we created this library.

# What? 💭

A library of useful functions
that we reach for
when building `Elixir` Apps.

# Who? 👤

This library is used in our various `Elixir` / `Phoenix` apps.

As with everything we do it's Open Source, Tested and Documented
so that _anyone_ can benefit from it.

# How? 💻

## Install ⬇️

Install by adding `useful` to your list of dependencies in `mix.exs`:

```elixir
def deps do
[
{:useful, "~> 1.14.0"}
]
end
```

## Function Reference

### `atomize_map_keys/1`

Converts a `Map` that has strings as keys (or mixed keys)
to have only atom keys. e.g:

```elixir
# map that has different types of keys:
my_map = %{"name" => "Alex", id: 1}
Useful.atomize_map_keys(my_map)
%{name: Alex, id: 1}
```

Works recursively for deeply nested maps:

```elixir
person = %{"name" => "Alex", id: 1, details: %{"age" => 17, height: 185}}
Useful.atomize_map_keys(person)
%{name: Alex, id: 1, details: %{age: 17, height: 185}}
```

### `flatten_map/1`

Flatten a `Map` of any depth/nesting:

```elixir
iex> map = %{name: "alex", data: %{age: 17, height: 185}}
iex> Useful.flatten_map(map)
%{data__age: 17, data__height: 185, name: "alex"}
```

**Note**: `flatten_map/1` converts all Map keys to `Atom`
as it's easier to work with atoms as keys
e.g: `map.person__name` instead of `map["person__name"]`.
We use the `__` (_double underscore_)
as the delimiter for the keys of nested maps,
because if we attempt to use `.` (_period character_)
we get an error:

```elixir
iex(1)> :a.b
** (UndefinedFunctionError) function :a.b/0 is undefined (module :a is not available)
:a.b()
```

### `get_in_default/1`

Get a deeply nested value from a map.
`get_in_default/3` Proxies `Kernel.get_in/2`
but allows setting a `default` value as the 3rd argument.

```elixir
iex> map = %{name: "alex", detail: %{age: 17, height: 185}}
iex> Useful.get_in_default(map, [:data, :age])
17
iex> Useful.get_in_default(map, [:data, :everything], "Awesome")
"Awesome"
iex> Useful.get_in_default(conn, [:assigns, :person, :id], 0)
0
```

We needed this for getting `conn.assigns.person.id`
in our [`App`](https://github.com/dwyl/mvp/)
without having to write a bunch of boilerplate!
e.g:

```elixir
person_id =
case Map.has_key?(conn.assigns, :person) do
false -> 0
true -> Map.get(conn.assigns.person, :id)
end
```

is just:

```elixir
person_id = Useful.get_in_default(conn, [:assigns, :person, :id], 0)
```

_Muuuuuuch cleaner/clearer_! 😍
If any of the keys in the list is not found
it doesn't _explode_ with errors,
simply returns the `default` value `0`
and continues!

> **Note**: Code inspired by:
> [stackoverflow.com/questions/48781427/optional-default-value-for-get-in](https://stackoverflow.com/questions/48781427/optional-default-value-for-get-in-access-behavior-elixir/48781493#48781493)

> All credit to [**`@PatNowak`**](https://github.com/PatNowak) 🙌

The ideal syntax for this would be:

```elixir
person_id = conn.assigns.person.id || 0
```

But `Elixir` "_Me no likey_" ...
So this is what we have.

### `list_tuple_to_unique_keys/1`

Turns a list of tuples with the _same_ key
into a list of tuples with _unique_ keys.
Useful when dealing with "multipart" forms
that upload multiple files. e.g:

```elixir
parts = [
{"files",[{"content-type", "image/png"},{"content-disposition","form-data; name=\"files\"; filename=\"first.png\""}],%Plug.Upload{path: "..", content_type: "image/png",filename: "first.png"}},
{"files",[{"content-type", "image/webp"},{"content-disposition","form-data; name=\"files\"; filename=\"second.webp\""}],%Plug.Upload{path: "...",content_type: "image/webp",filename: "second.webp"}}
]

Useful.list_tuples_to_unique_keys(parts) =
[
{"files-1",[{"content-type", "image/png"},{"content-disposition","form-data; name=\"files\"; filename=\"first.png\""}],%Plug.Upload{path: "..", content_type: "image/png",filename: "first.png"}},
{"files-2",[{"content-type", "image/webp"},{"content-disposition","form-data; name=\"files\"; filename=\"second.webp\""}],%Plug.Upload{path: "...",content_type: "image/webp",filename: "second.webp"}}
]
```

### `remove_item_from_list/2`

Remove an `item` from a `list`.

With numbers:

```elixir
list = [1, 2, 3, 4]
Useful.remove_item_from_list(list, 3)
[1, 2, 4]
```

With a `List` of `Strings`:

```elixir
list = ["climate", "change", "is", "not", "real"]
Useful.remove_item_from_list(list, "not")
["climate", "change", "is", "real"]
```

The `list` is the first argument to the function
so it's easy to pipe:

```elixir
get_list_of_items(person_id)
|> Useful.remove_item_from_list("item_to_be_removed")
|> etc.
```

### `stringify_map/1`

Stringify a `Map` e.g. to store it in a DB or log it stdout.

```elixir
map = %{name: "alex", data: %{age: 17, height: 185}}
Useful.stringify_map(map)
"data__age: 17, data__height: 185, name: alex"
```

### `stringify_tuple/1`

Stringify a tuple of any length; useful in debugging.

```elixir
iex> tuple = {:ok, :example}
iex> Useful.stringify_tuple(tuple)
"ok: example"
```

### `typeof/1`

Returns the type of a variable, e.g: "function" or "integer"
Inspired by
[**`typeof`**](https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/JavaScript/Reference/Operators/typeof)
from `JavaScript` land.

```elixir
iex> myvar = 42
iex> Useful.typeof(myvar)
"integer"
```

### `empty_dir_contents/1`

Empties the directory
(_deletes all files and any nested directories_)
recursively, but does _not_ delete the actual directory.
This is useful when you want to reset a directory,
e.g. when testing.

```elixir
iex> dir = "tmp" # contains lots of sub directories and files
iex> Useful.empty_dir_contents(dir)
{:ok, dir}
```


# Docs 📜

Detailed docs available at:
https://hexdocs.pm/useful/Useful.html


# Help Us Help You! 🙏

If you need a specific helper function or utility
(e.g: something you found useful in a different programming language),
please
[open an issue](https://github.com/dwyl/useful/issues)
so that we can all benefit from useful functions.

Thanks!