Question

I now know this works:

function outerfunction(arg1, arg2, arg3) {
    var others;
    //Some code

    innerFunction();

    function innerFunction() {
        //do some stuff
        //I have access to the args and vars of the outerFunction also I can limit the scope of vars in the innerFunction..!
    }
    //Also
    $.ajax({
            success : secondInnerFunction;
        });

    function secondInnerFunction() {
        // Has all the same benefits!
    }
}

outerFunction();

So, I am not doing a ‘new’ on the outerFunction, but I am using it as an object! How correct is this, semantically?

Answer 1

There doesn’t appear to be anything wrong with what you’re doing. new is used to construct a new object from a function that is intended as a constructor function. Without new, no object is created; the function just executes and returns the result.

I assume you’re confused about the closure, and how the functions and other variables belonging to the function scope are kept alive after the function exits. If that’s the case, I suggest you take a look at the jibbering JavaScript FAQ.