ECMAScript 5 (2009) started to deprecate error-prone programming practices. But it could not just change code semantics from one day to the next. This would have broken most existing code.
In order to maintain backwards compatibility, ECMAScript 5 introduces the Strict Mode as an opt-in feature. In Strict Mode, common pitfalls are removed from the language or throw visible exceptions. Previously, several programming mistakes and bogus code were ignored silently. The Strict Mode turns these mistakes into visible errors – see failing fast.
Enable the Strict Mode by placing a marker at the beginning of a script:
Code language: JavaScript
'use strict';
window.alert('This code is evaluated in Strict Mode! Be careful!');
Or at the beginning of a function:
Code language: JavaScript
function strictFunction() {
'use strict';
window.alert('This function is evaluated in Strict Mode! Be careful!');
}
Syntax-wise,
'use strict';is simply an expression statement with a string literal. This code does not do anything when evaluated. It is a meaningful marker for browsers that support ECMAScript 5, and innocuous code for browsers that do not.
Quoted content by Mathias Schäfer is licensed under CC BY-SA. See the other snippets from Robust Client-Side JavaScript.