How do I use slug in a browser without downloading a huge file?

Use browserify with the --ignore flag to exclude the Unicode table, reducing bundle size, but this limits Unicode support. Alternatively, generate slugs server-side to avoid client-side overhead, as suggested in the README.

Does slug handle emojis and special symbols correctly?

Yes, slug converts emojis and Unicode symbols to English equivalents using a built-in charmap. For example, '☢' becomes 'radioactive', as shown in the README examples, ensuring URL-safe output.

Is slug or slugify better for Node.js projects?

slug excels in Unicode symbol translation and RFC compliance, while slugify might offer more granular control over diacritics and language rules. Choose based on whether you prioritize symbol handling or broader linguistic features.

How to change the separator from hyphens to underscores?

Pass the separator as the second argument, like slug('string', '_'), or set it in the options object. The README demonstrates this with slug('i ♥ unicode', '_') producing 'i_love_unicode'.

Can I make slugs lowercase with slug?

Yes, enable lowercasing by setting the 'lower' option to true in the configuration. For instance, slug('☏-Number', {lower: true}) outputs 'telephone-number', as per the README example.

What if I need to add custom translations for symbols?

Modify slug.charmap directly or provide a custom charmap in the options. The README shows an example where slug.charmap['♥'] is set to 'freaking love' for personalized mappings.

Open-Awesome

node-slug

MITCoffeeScript

A Node.js library that converts strings to URL-safe slugs, handling Unicode characters and symbols.

GitHub

1.1k stars90 forks0 contributors

What is node-slug?

slug is a Node.js library that converts strings into URL-safe slugs by handling Unicode characters, symbols, and special characters. It solves the problem of generating clean, readable, and web-safe identifiers from arbitrary text, such as creating SEO-friendly URLs from article titles or sanitizing filenames.

Target Audience

Developers working on web applications, content management systems, or any project requiring URL generation, SEO optimization, or text normalization for storage or display.

Value Proposition

Developers choose slug for its robust Unicode handling, compliance with URL standards, and flexibility through customizable options, all without external dependencies, making it a lightweight and reliable solution.

Overview

slugifies even utf-8 chars!

Use Cases

Best For

Generating SEO-friendly URLs from blog post titles
Sanitizing user-generated content for filenames or database keys
Normalizing strings with Unicode symbols in multilingual applications
Creating readable slugs for e-commerce product pages
Handling special characters in API endpoints or routing systems
Converting emojis or symbols to text in URL paths

Not Ideal For

Applications requiring minimal client-side JavaScript bundles without build tools like browserify
Projects needing locale-aware or language-specific slug rules beyond basic Unicode symbol translation
Systems where real-time, high-throughput slug generation is a priority and performance overhead is a concern

Pros & Cons

Pros

Robust Unicode Support

Converts Unicode symbols and characters to English equivalents, ensuring web-safe strings, as demonstrated with examples like '♥' to 'love' and '☢' to 'radioactive' in the README.

RFC 3986 Compliance

Adheres to URL encoding standards, making generated slugs reliable for web use and compatible with various systems, as stated in the README.

Flexible Configuration

Offers customizable options for separators, case sensitivity, and character mappings, allowing tailored slug generation, such as changing separators or lowercasing via options.

Dependency-Free Core

Has no external dependencies for basic functionality, keeping the library lightweight and easy to integrate, though it includes an optional Unicode table.

Cons

Large Browser Bundle

Including the full Unicode table can result in a ~2MB file in browser environments, requiring workarounds like browserify with --ignore flags, as noted in the README.

Manual Charmap Management

For unsupported symbols or custom translations, developers must manually update the charmap, which can be tedious and error-prone for complex or evolving projects.

Outdated Test Framework

Tests are written in CoffeeScript, which may not align with modern JavaScript development practices and could hinder contributions or maintenance efforts.

Frequently Asked Questions

Related Projects

strip-ansi

Strip ANSI escape codes from a string

Stars500

Forks45

Last commit3 months ago

striptags

An implementation of PHP's strip_tags in Typescript.

Stars492

Forks51

Last commit3 years ago

decamelize

Convert a camelized string into a lowercased one with a custom separator: unicornRainbow → unicorn_rainbow

Stars244

Forks28