The RxJS 5 Share operator might sound a bit complicated at first, but once you get the hang of it, it can be a powerful tool in your programming arsenal. So, let's break it down in plain and simple terms.
Imagine you have an Observable that you want to share among multiple subscribers. Normally, each subscriber would trigger a separate execution of the Observable, leading to duplicated work or unwanted side effects. This is where the Share operator comes in handy.
When you use the Share operator, it essentially turns a cold Observable into a hot one. In other words, it allows multiple subscribers to share the same execution of the Observable, avoiding unnecessary duplication. This can be particularly useful in scenarios where you want to cache results or have multiple components observe the same data stream.
Here’s how you can use the Share operator in RxJS 5:
1. First, import the Share operator from RxJS:
import 'rxjs/add/operator/share';
2. Apply the Share operator to your Observable:
const sharedObservable = myObservable.share();
That's it! By calling the `share()` method on your Observable, you're telling RxJS to create a shared execution of that Observable. Any subsequent subscribers will now receive the same data stream without triggering additional work.
One key thing to note is that the Share operator internally uses a subject to multicast notifications to multiple subscribers. This means that all subscribers will receive the same notifications in real-time, ensuring consistency across the board.
Now, let's look at a practical example to see how the Share operator works in action:
const myObservable = Observable.interval(1000).take(5).do(val => console.log('Executing with value:', val));
const sharedObservable = myObservable.share();
sharedObservable.subscribe(val => console.log('First subscriber:', val));
setTimeout(() => {
sharedObservable.subscribe(val => console.log('Second subscriber:', val));
}, 2000);
In this example, the `myObservable` emits values every second for a total of 5 emissions. By applying the Share operator, both the first and second subscribers will share the same execution of the Observable. This means that the "Executing with value" logs will only occur once, and both subscribers will receive the same values concurrently.
In conclusion, the RxJS 5 Share operator is a handy tool for managing shared data streams and ensuring efficient communication between multiple subscribers. By understanding how it works and incorporating it into your RxJS workflows, you can streamline your code and enhance the performance of your applications.