Cross-Environment Class Usage in JavaScript: Browser, Node.js, and Beyond

Share code smoothly between ecosystems with universal class definitions

Photo by NOAA on Unsplash

JavaScript dominates client-side scripting, server-side rendering, desktop apps, mobile devices, IoT appliances, and virtually everywhere imaginable. Despite widespread adoption, slight discrepancies surface across platforms, forcing developers to adapt tactics pragmatically. Thankfully, classes transcend artificial borders effortlessly, lending themselves to portability dreams.

This article guides readers through class deployment strategies spanning browser, Node.js, and miscellaneous environments.

Classic Module Pattern

Conditionalizing classic module patterns achieves cross-environment compatibility easily. Simply wrap initializations within checks determining runtime context, emitting compatible outputs appropriately.

Example: Singleton Factory

let MyClass;
if (typeof window !== 'undefined') {
  // Running in browser
  MyClass = class {};
} else if (typeof global !== 'undefined') {
  // Executing inside Node.js
  MyClass = require('./my_class').default;
} else {
  // Fallback position for exotic environments
  throw new Error('Failed to determine running…