Angular.js: Is .value() the proper way to set app wide constant and how to retrieve it in a controller

Solution 1:

Module.value(key, value) is used to inject an editable value, Module.constant(key, value) is used to inject a constant value

The difference between the two isn't so much that you "can't edit a constant", it's more that you can't intercept a constant with $provide and inject something else.

// define a value
app.value('myThing', 'weee');

// define a constant
app.constant('myConst', 'blah');

// use it in a service
app.factory('myService', ['myThing', 'myConst', function(myThing, myConst){
   return {
       whatsMyThing: function() { 
          return myThing; //weee
       },
       getMyConst: function () {
          return myConst; //blah
       }
   };
}]);

// use it in a controller
app.controller('someController', ['$scope', 'myThing', 'myConst', 
    function($scope, myThing, myConst) {
        $scope.foo = myThing; //weee
        $scope.bar = myConst; //blah
    });

Solution 2:

I recently wanted to use this feature with Karma inside a test. As Dan Doyon points out the key is that you would inject a value just like a controller, service, etc. You can set .value to many different types - strings, arrays of objects, etc. For example:

myvalues.js a file containing value - make sure it is including in your karma conf file

var myConstantsModule = angular.module('test.models', []);
myConstantModule.value('dataitem', 'thedata');
// or something like this if needed
myConstantModule.value('theitems', [                                                                                                                                                                                                             
  {name: 'Item 1'},                                                                                                                                                                                                                         
  {name: 'Item 2'},                                                                                                                                                                                                                         
  {name: 'Item 3'}
]);                                                                                                                                                                                                                         

]);

test/spec/mytest.js - maybe this is a Jasmine spec file loaded by Karma

describe('my model', function() {
    var theValue;
    var theArray;
    beforeEach(module('test.models'));
    beforeEach(inject(function(dataitem,theitems) {
      // note that dataitem is just available
      // after calling module('test.models')
      theValue = dataitem;
      theArray = theitems;
    });
    it('should do something',function() {
      // now you can use the value in your tests as needed
      console.log("The value is " + theValue);
      console.log("The array is " + theArray);
    });
});

Solution 3:

You need to reference csrf in your controller IndexUsersCtrl = ( $scope, csrf )

IndexUsersCtrl.$inject = [ '$scope', 'csrf' ]