👋 Getting Started with Readline

The Readline module is a built-in module in Node.js that simplifies reading input from the user in an interactive manner. It's often used to create prompts, collect user responses, and build interactive question-answer sessions in the command-line interface.

📖 Understanding the Readline Module

Before diving into a real-world example, let's explore the core concepts and methods provided by the Readline module.

Creating a Readline Interface

To use the Readline module, we typically start by creating a Readline interface that manages input and output streams. Here's how we create an interface:

• const rl represents the Readline interface;
• readline.createInterface({ input: process.stdin, output: process.stdout }) sets up the interface to read from the standard input (process.stdin) and write to the standard output (process.stdout).

Collecting User Input

Once we have a Readline interface, we can use it to collect user input. The most common method for this purpose is rl.question():

• rl.question("Please enter your name: ", (name) => { ... }) prompts the user for input with the provided message;
• The callback function (name) => { ... } is executed when the user enters their response;
• name contains the user's input.

Managing the Interface

It's important to close the Readline interface when we're done with it. We can do this using rl.close().

🔧 Creating an Interactive Prompt

Now that we've covered the basics let's put our knowledge to use and create a fun command-line fortune teller. Users will enter their names, and the application will generate a random fortune message.

Here's the code example from the video:

In this example, we've applied the above concepts to create an interactive command-line application. Users are prompted for input, and the application generates random responses. The Readline module simplifies user interaction in the command-line interface, making it ideal for creating interactive CLI applications.