Use of .apply() with 'new' operator. Is this possible?

Question

In JavaScript, I want to create an object instance (via the new operator), but pass an arbitrary number of arguments to the constructor. Is this possible?

Answer 1

I just came across this problem, and I solved it like this:

function instantiate(ctor) {
    switch (arguments.length) {
        case 1: return new ctor();
        case 2: return new ctor(arguments[1]);
        case 3: return new ctor(arguments[1], arguments[2]);
        case 4: return new ctor(arguments[1], arguments[2], arguments[3]);
        //...
        default: throw new Error('instantiate: too many parameters');
    }
}

function Thing(a, b, c) {
    console.log(a);
    console.log(b);
    console.log(c);
}

var thing = instantiate(Thing, 'abc', 123, {x:5});

Yeah, it's a bit ugly, but it solves the problem, and it's dead simple.