2 Quick Tips When Adding PhoneGap/Cordova Plugins
Here are a few quick tips when adding plugins in case you weren’t aware of them previously:
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Useful command line shortcuts when adding a plugin:
Add a specific version of a plugin using the @ syntax
$ phonegap plugin add org.apache.cordova.camera@0.2.9
$ cordova plugin add org.apache.cordova.camera@0.2.9
Add multiple plugins batch style
$ phonegap plugin add org.apache.cordova.file org.apache.cordova.device
$ cordova plugin add org.apache.cordova.file org.apache.cordova.device
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Use the docs from the
plugin add
locationThis may be fairly obvious though I still wanted to point it out. To avoid any headaches with a plugin version mismatch between installed plugin code and docs, be sure to use the docs from where you added the plugin instead of assuming the latest Cordova/PhoneGap documentation links.
If you add via Plugin Registry such as:
$ phonegap plugin add org.apache.cordova.contacts
$ cordova plugin add org.apache.cordova.contacts
If you add via GitHub location such as:
$ phonegap plugin add https://github.com/apache/cordova-plugin-contacts
$ cordova plugin add https://github.com/apache/cordova-plugin-contacts
This applies for each of the core API plugins.
Why?
Currently the Plugin API documentation points to the GitHub location which contains the very latest code/updates. These code updates get released to the Plugin Registry in a timely fashion, but there can be a time when a mismatch could occur, like when you’ve installed a plugin via the Plugin Registry but are referencing the GitHub docs where a new feature was documented but not in the version you actually installed. (Thanks to Ray Camden for noticing the Contacts plugin mismatch recently).
Filed in: Cordova • iOS • Mobile Development • PhoneGap