What is the reason behind TypeScript requiring me to initialize a property even though I am retrieving its value from a local reference?

I am just beginning to explore Angular.

This is the template for my custom component:

    <div class="row">
  <div class="col-xs-12">
    <form action="">
      <div class="ro">
        <div class="col sm-5 form-group">
          <label for="name">Name</label>
          <input type="text" id="name" class="form-control" #nameInput />
        </div>
        <div class="col-sm-2 form-group">
          <label for="amount">Amount</label>
          <input type="number" id="amount" class="form-control" #amountInput />
        </div>
      </div>
      <div class="row">
        <div class="col-xs-12">
          <button class="btn btn-success" type="submit" (click)="onAddItem()">
            Add
          </button>
          <button class="btn btn-danger" type="button">Delete</button>
          <button class="btn btn-primary" type="button">Clear</button>
        </div>
      </div>
    </form>
  </div>
</div>

This is the corresponding TypeScript file:

import { Component, ElementRef, OnInit, ViewChild } from '@angular/core';

@Component({
  selector: 'app-shopping-edit',
  templateUrl: './shopping-edit.component.html',
  styleUrls: ['./shopping-edit.component.css'],
})
export class ShoppingEditComponent implements OnInit {
  @ViewChild('nameInput') nameInputRef: ElementRef;
  @ViewChild('amountInput') amountInputRef: ElementRef;

  constructor() {}

  ngOnInit(): void {}
  onAddItem() {}
}

I am encountering an error when attempting to initialize the variables nameInputRef and amountInputRef. However, these values are being received from the form. How can I resolve this issue?

Answer №1

When working with TypeScript, it's important to remember that the values you're grabbing from the template may not be initialized until the view is initialized in the Angular lifecycle. Trying to access these values while they are still undefined can lead to errors.

To address this issue, one option is to use the non-null assertion operator ! as shown below:

export class ShoppingEditComponent implements OnInit {
 @ViewChild('nameInput') nameInputRef!: ElementRef;
 @ViewChild('amountInput') amountInputRef!: ElementRef;
}

However, using the non-null assertion operator in this way can be risky because you may still be accessing the values when they are undefined.

Alternatively, you could expand the type to allow for undefined values like this:

@ViewChild('nameInput') nameInputRef: ElementRef | undefined;

But when accessing any property, you will still need to use the non-null assertion operator as follows:

this.nameInputRef!.nativeElement

If the elements you are referencing are static within your component and not subject to conditional rendering, you can mark them as static. This allows you to access them earlier in the component lifecycle through ngOnInit.

@ViewChild('nameInput', { static: true }) nameInputRef: ElementRef;
@ViewChild('amountInput', { static: true }) amountInputRef: ElementRef;

I personally recommend marking a ViewChild as static if it meets these criteria to gain early access in the lifecycle.

Answer №2

One reason for this issue may be that you are in strict mode. To resolve this, consider using non-null assertion with exclamation mark:

@ViewChild('nameInput') nameInputRef!: ElementRef;
@ViewChild('amountInput') amountInputRef!: ElementRef;

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