AspectScript is a JavaScript extension for Aspect-Oriented Programming (AOP) that currently supports Mozilla Firefox, Safari, Chrome, and Opera (no plug-ins or add-ons required!). AspectScript is an aspect language that integrates with the characterizing features of JavaScript such as first-class and higher-order functions, dynamic typing, and prototype-based programming. AspectScript is based on the pointcut-advice mechanism and includes the followings state-of-the-art AOP features:

• Higher-order aspects: AspectScript is directly inspired by AspectScheme, in which aspects, pointcuts, and advices are first-class values. Consequently, they can be created and manipulated at runtime. An aspect in AspectScript is a pointcut-advice pair; pointcuts and advices are plain JavaScript functions. This feature allows programmers to use the full power of higher-order programming in AOP.

• Dynamic deployment of aspects with scoping strategies: Aspects in AspectScript are dynamically deployed like in CaesarJ and AspectScheme. In addition, the scope of dynamically deployed aspects can be expressively refined using Scoping Strategies (AOSD'08, DLS'09).

• Hybrid join point model: At its core, AspectScript adopts a join point model in the line of that of AspectJ (see the join point model), but tailored for the JavaScript language. However, AspectScript not only supports implicitly-generated join points following the language model, but also provides the possibility to define custom join points triggered explicitly, as in Ptolemy.

Despite the numerous aspect-oriented features of AspectScript, it is still very easy to use, thanks to sensible default semantics. For instance, to define an aspect that shows a message before calls to the foo function, it is only necessary to write:

var pointcut = AspectScript.Pointcuts.call(foo);
var advice   = function() {
 alert("Calling foo");
};
AspectScript.before(pointcut, advice);

• Do you want to see AspectScript in action? Please try the tetris game here.

• Do you need more examples? You can find them here.

• Do you want to learn more? You can follow our tutorial.

• Do you have any doubt? Please, do not hesitate to ask in our mailing list.

• Do you want to try AspectScript? Download it from here.

• Did you find a bug? Do you have a feature request/suggestion? Please, use the AspectScript trac.

Target audience

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