What is the difference between the use of backticks and the use of single or double quotes and when should either of them be used?
What is the essence of interpolation?
The beauty of backticks is that they are for all intents just another form of quote that JS recognizes and treats as a string object. Add in the interpolation and it is bang on the nicest improvement over ES5 concatenation.
What this means is we can set aside the conventional quotes unless we are using them as printable characters. It’s not an imperative. All quotes are valid and recognized as character string demarcation. These ones just have pizzazz.
The essence of interpolation is the merging of dynamic data references with precast text or prose. We simply write a template expression (${}) within our string and insert the data or its expression inside. Voila it becomes a part of the string.
What’s your favorite poem? Let’s say it is, ‘The Raven.’
let favoritePoem = `The Raven`;
console.log(`Your favorite poem is, "${favoritePoem}."`)
// Your favorite poem is, "The Raven."
Or better still,
console.log(`My dad's favorite poem is, "${favoritePoem}."`)
// My dad's favorite poem is, "The Raven."
6 Likes
In your 2 examples here, you used the regular double quotes to enclose (favoritePoem) within the pair of backticks, like so "${favoritePoem}.". Are the quotes necessary here or can you ignore them in this context?
Can you use backticks ordinarily just like regular quotes, even when you’re not including any template expression within it?
They are not necessary, no. I used them as printable characters, as well as the apostrophe in dad's to demonstrate how we are free to use them within back tick quoted strings.
Yes. They can be used anywhere we would use quotes.
2 Likes
So what problem exactly does string interpolation solve?
and
What problem does template expression solve? The Importance of both?
None if all you want to do is use concatenation. If that’s not a problem, then nothing to solve.
When we get into expressions embedded in expressions it is a lifesaver.
3 Likes
It makes sense now.
But can template expressions still be used within ordinary quotes?
Well, that would be, no. That’s why they were created with their own set of delimiters.
1 Like
By delimiters here, what do you mean?
Back ticks, single quotes, double quotes, are all string delimiters.
1 Like
Thanks for the insights.
1 Like
be aware that for template string (so the everything within your backticks) the output is as it appears, spaces and all. This is not the case for single or double quotes.
1 Like