Polling a Collection with Backbone.js

Question

I’m trying to keep a Backbone.js Collection up-to-date with what’s happening on the server.

My code is similar to the following:

var Comment = Backbone.M         


        

Answer 1

Make a duplicate collection. Fetch() it. Compare the two to find the deltas. Apply them.

      /*
       * Update a collection using the changes from previous fetch,
       * but without actually performing a fetch on the target 
       * collection. 
       */
      updateUsingDeltas: function(collection) {
        // Make a new collection of the type of the parameter 
        // collection.
        var newCollection = new collection.constructor(); 

        // Assign it the model and url of collection.
        newCollection.url = collection.url;
        newCollection.model = collection.model;

        // Call fetch on the new collection.
        var that = this;
        newCollection.fetch({
          success: function() {
            // Calc the deltas between the new and original collections.
            var modelIds = that.getIdsOfModels(collection.models);
            var newModelIds = that.getIdsOfModels(newCollection.models);

            // If an activity is found in the new collection that isn't in
            // the existing one, then add it to the existing collection.
            _(newCollection.models).each(function(activity) {
              if (modelIds.indexOf(activity.id) == -1) { 
                collection.add(activity);
              }
            }, that);

            // If an activity in the existing colleciton isn't found in the
            // new one, remove it from the existing collection.
            _(collection.models).each(function(activity) {
              if (newModelIds.indexOf(activity.id) == -1) {  
                collection.remove(activity);  
              }
            }, that);

            // TODO compare the models that are found in both collections,
            // but have changed. Maybe just jsonify them and string or md5
            // compare.
          }
        });
      },

      getIdsOfModels: function(models) {
        return _(models).map(function(model) { return model.id; });
      },