Question 1

How do I measure the width of a string with ANSI colors in Node.js?

Accepted Answer

Use the string-width library as it automatically strips ANSI escape codes. Import the module and call stringWidth('your string'), and it will return the visual width ignoring color codes, as demonstrated in the README examples.

Question 2

string-width vs wcwidth for terminal text alignment?

Accepted Answer

string-width is a Node.js-specific library that handles ANSI codes and has configurable options for ambiguous characters, while wcwidth is a lower-level C library port. For Node.js CLI tools, string-width offers better integration and convenience out of the box.

Question 3

How to handle emoji width in terminal output?

Accepted Answer

string-width accounts for emoji based on Unicode fullwidth rules; most emoji are treated as wide characters occupying two columns. Refer to Unicode UTR #11 guidelines, which the library follows, for specific edge cases.

Question 4

Can I use string-width in the browser?

Accepted Answer

No, string-width is designed for Node.js and relies on Node-specific features. For browser text width calculations, use CSS methods like getComputedStyle or libraries tailored for web environments.

Question 5

How to configure string-width for ambiguous characters?

Accepted Answer

Pass an options object with ambiguousIsNarrow set to false if you want to treat ambiguous characters as wide. By default, it treats them as narrow, per Unicode recommendations, as explained in the API documentation.

Question 6

string-width or string-length for CLI formatting?

Accepted Answer

Use string-width for visual column width, as it considers fullwidth characters and strips ANSI codes. string-length gives the actual character count, which might not match terminal display width, making string-width essential for accurate alignment.

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