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////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
//
// Array.remove( object|string item) - removes an item from an array
//    Example x = ["abc","xyz",1,4]  x.remove("xyz") returns ["abc",1,4]
//    Presumably this will eventually be added to Javascript, but until that day...
////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
if (Array.prototype.remove===undefined) {
  Array.prototype.remove = function( item ) {
    var itemLocation = this.indexOf(item);
    if (itemLocation > -1) {
      this.splice(itemLocation,1);
    }
  }
}
////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
//
// Array.indexOf() - returns integer index where valueToSearchFor is in an Array
//   (believe it or not, not all browsers have this yet ... and it's 2010!
////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
if (Array.prototype.indexOf===undefined) {
  Array.prototype.indexOf = function( valueToSearchFor ) {
    var iEnd = this.length;
    var retVal = -1;
    for (var i=0;i<iEnd; i++) {
      if (this[i] == valueToSearchFor) {
        retVal = i;
        break;
      }
    }
    return retVal;
  };
}

Shannon Norrell

Turns out the most reliable way to detect an Array is not to use the old standby:

return (typeof foo === ‘object’ && foo.constructor === Array)

but rather to do this:

function isArray(anArray) {
  return Object.prototype.toString.apply(anArray) === "[object Array]";
}

I have to give credit to my friend Doug Crockford, for this.

I recommend his book Javascript: The Good Parts

shannon norrell

This quick function takes a an array, whose elements may or may not be other arrays, and flattens it into a single array.

Extremely simple solution, but kind of fun because it’s a chance to use recursion:

<script type=text/javascript>
var a = [1,2,[5,6,7], 8, [9,10,[11,12],13], 14];

function flatten( oArray ) {
  var retVal = [];
  for (var i=0;i<oArray.length;i++) {
    if (!isArray( oArray[i]) ) {
      retVal.push( oArray[i] );
    } else {
      var tempFlatt = flatten(oArray[i]);
      for (var j=0;<tempFlatt.length;j++) {
        retVal.push( tempFlatt[j] );
      }
    }
  }
  return retVal;
}

function isArray( anElement ) {
  return (typeof anElement=="object" && anElement.constructor == Array);
}

alert(flatten(a));
</script>

What's the fastest way to find the largest, or smallest, number in an array?

Array.max = function( array ){
  return Math.max.apply( Math, array );
};
Array.min = function( array ){
  return Math.min.apply( Math, array );
};

By using JavaScript's .apply() method on a built-in function you can pass in an array of unlimited arguments.

Shannon Norrell