“Can't find variable” error with Rails 3.1 and Coffeescript

Question

I have views in my application that reference my application.js file which contains functions I use throughout my application.

I just installed the Rails 3.1 release

Answer 1

By default, every CoffeeScript file is compiled down into a closure. You cannot interact with functions from a different file, unless you export them to a global variable. I'd recommend doing something like this:

On top of every coffeescript file, add a line like

window.Application ||= {}

This will ensure that there's a global named Application present at all times.

Now, for every function that you'll have the need to call from another file, define them as

Application.indicator_tag = (el) ->
  ...

and call them using

Application.indicator_tag(params)

Answer 2

Dogbert's solution is a great way to go if you have a very sophisticated JS back-end. However, there's a much simpler solution if you only have a handful of functions you're working with. Just add them directly to the window object, like this:

window.indicator_tag = (el) ->
  ...

Then you can use your functions from anywhere without having to wrap them up in another object.