Customize the template of a third-party component by overriding or extending it

Question

Customize the template of a third-party component by overriding or extending it

I am facing a situation where I need to customize the template of a third party component that I have imported. However, since this component is part of an npm package, I want to avoid making direct changes to it in order to prevent issues when updating the package in the future.

Is there a way to override the template of another component without modifying its original source code?

I am familiar with using <ng-content> for injecting elements, but it's not suitable in this case.

The structure of the HTML looks like this:

<third-party-component [items]="items" [example]="example">

The controller includes something similar to this:

import {THIRD_PARTY_DIRECTIVES} from 'ng2-select/ng2-select';

@Component({
  selector: 'example-component',
  directives: [THIRD_PARTY_DIRECTIVES]
})
export class Example {

  private items: Array<string> = [
    'whatever', 'whatever2', 'whatever3'
  ];
}

Is there a method that allows me to specify the desired template for <third-party-component> without directly altering the component declaration? Perhaps even through extending it?

typescript angular

Answer 1

Answer №1

Experimenting with different approaches, I found a straightforward solution that suits my requirements.

Essentially, I developed a new class that extends the thirdPartyClass.

What I accomplished here was replacing the template for the thirdPartyClass by defining my own selector and importing only the necessary class.

Here is an example of how I implemented this:

import {Component} from 'angular2/core';
import {ThirdPartyClass} from 'example/example';

@Component({
  selector: 'my-selector',
  template: '<div>my template</div>'
})

export class MyOwnComponent extends ThirdPartyClass {
  constructor() {
     super()
  }
}

Important Notes:

When using this method, make sure to import any pipes used in the thirdPartyClass template.
If there are updates to the functionality of the thirdPartyClass that impact the template, manual updating will be required.
I opted for this solution over utilizing ReflectMetaData because it involves a simple extension rather than accessing annotations and forcibly making changes.

Answer 2

Experimenting with different approaches, I found a straightforward solution that suits my requirements.

Essentially, I developed a new class that extends the thirdPartyClass.

What I accomplished here was replacing the template for the thirdPartyClass by defining my own selector and importing only the necessary class.

Here is an example of how I implemented this:

import {Component} from 'angular2/core';
import {ThirdPartyClass} from 'example/example';

@Component({
  selector: 'my-selector',
  template: '<div>my template</div>'
})

export class MyOwnComponent extends ThirdPartyClass {
  constructor() {
     super()
  }
}

Important Notes:

When using this method, make sure to import any pipes used in the thirdPartyClass template.
If there are updates to the functionality of the thirdPartyClass that impact the template, manual updating will be required.
I opted for this solution over utilizing ReflectMetaData because it involves a simple extension rather than accessing annotations and forcibly making changes.

Answer 3

Answer №2

To modify the metadata of a component, you can utilize Reflect. Take a look at this extremely easy example:

import {Component} from 'angular2/core'

@Component({
  selector: 'thing',
  template: `Hi!`,
})
export class Thing {}

annotations = Reflect.getMetadata('annotations', Thing);
for (let i = 0; i < annotations.length; i += 1) {
  if (annotations[i].constructor.name === 'ComponentMetadata') {
    annotations[i].template = 'Ho!';
    break;
  }
}

@Component({
  selector: 'my-app',
  directives: [Thing],
  template: `<thing></thing>`,
})
export class App {}

Remember to update the template content before injecting it into the parent component. Also, refer to the available metadata that you may need to access, such as DirectiveMetadata in your specific scenario.

Answer 4

To modify the metadata of a component, you can utilize Reflect. Take a look at this extremely easy example:

import {Component} from 'angular2/core'

@Component({
  selector: 'thing',
  template: `Hi!`,
})
export class Thing {}

annotations = Reflect.getMetadata('annotations', Thing);
for (let i = 0; i < annotations.length; i += 1) {
  if (annotations[i].constructor.name === 'ComponentMetadata') {
    annotations[i].template = 'Ho!';
    break;
  }
}

@Component({
  selector: 'my-app',
  directives: [Thing],
  template: `<thing></thing>`,
})
export class App {}

Remember to update the template content before injecting it into the parent component. Also, refer to the available metadata that you may need to access, such as DirectiveMetadata in your specific scenario.

Customize the template of a third-party component by overriding or extending it

Answer №1

Answer №2

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