Consuming and Transforming Arrays
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For some time now, I’ve been wanting to write an extremely short blog post that hits on one central idea. It was supposed to be this one, but hey, words. So, here’s a snappy look at some of my favorite ways to slice, dice and search Swift arrays, all in one sentence each.
Our Specimen
var numbers = [1,2,3]
map(transform:T throws -> T)
Map applies a function over each element:
numbers.map { String($0) } // Returns ["1", "2", "3"]
flatMap(transform:T throws -> T?)
Same as above, but eliminates optionals:
numbers.flatMap { Foo($0) } // Suppose Foo returns nil if the number is odd - this would return only non-nil Foo instances
reduce(initial: T, combine: (T, T) throws -> T))
Reduce combines elements of the array into one value:
numbers.reduce(0) { curCount, numToAdd in return curCount + numToAdd } // Returns 6 - (0) is the starting value
filter(includeElement:T throws -> Bool)
Filter only returns elements that pass a given condition:
numbers.filter { $0 % 2 == 0} //Returns 2
sort(isOrderedBefore:)
Returns a sorted array if the elements are comparable by default, otherwise a closure returns true if an element is sorted before the other:
["Zeke", "Bill", "James"].sort() //Returns ["Bill", "James", "Zeke"]
or
employees.sort { $0.name < $1.name } //Would return an array sorted by the Struct/Classes name property
indexOf(predicate:(T) throws -> Bool)
Returns the first position that passes the provided test:
numbers.indexOf { $0 > 1} //Returns 1, i.e. the second element
flatten()
Concatenates the elements of the array:
Array([[1,2,3], [4,5,6]].flatten()) //Returns [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6] — initialized with an Array since flatten actually returns FlattenBidirectionalCollection
reverse()
Reverses the elements in the array:
Array(numbers.reverse()) //Returns [3, 2, 1] — initialized with an Array since reverse actually returns ReverseCollection
split(separator:T)
Returns a new array, in order, where the elements don’t contain the separator:
numbers.split(1) //Returns [2,3]
Wrapping Up
…and done in 311 words 👍
Until next time ✌️.