Hello World NPM Package

A simple Hello World npm package with a beautiful web UI, demonstrating modern package structure and functionality.

Installation

npm install chat-helper-example-package

Usage

As a Module (Programmatic)

Use the core helloWorld function in your Node.js code:

const helloWorld = require('chat-helper-example-package');

// Basic usage
console.log(helloWorld()); // Output: Hello, World!

// With a custom name
console.log(helloWorld('Alice')); // Output: Hello, Alice!

As a Web Server

Start the Express server with web UI:

const express = require('express');
const helloWorld = require('chat-helper-example-package');
const app = express();

// Use in your routes
app.get('/greet', (req, res) => {
  res.json({ message: helloWorld(req.query.name) });
});

Or run the included server:

# Install the package
npm install chat-helper-example-package

# Navigate to node_modules/chat-helper-example-package
cd node_modules/chat-helper-example-package

# Start the server
npm start

Using the CLI Command

After installation, you can run the server directly:

npx hello-world-server

Then visit: http://localhost:3000

Features

• 🎯 Core Function: Simple helloWorld(name) function for programmatic use
• 🌐 Web UI: Beautiful, responsive interface with gradient design
• 🚀 Express Server: Ready-to-use web server with REST API
• 📦 NPM Ready: Properly packaged with all necessary files
• 🔧 CLI Tool: Command-line interface for easy server startup

API Reference

helloWorld([name])

Returns a greeting message.

Parameters:

• name (string, optional): The name to greet. If not provided, defaults to "World".

Returns:

• (string): A greeting message in format "Hello, [name]!"

Example:

helloWorld();           // "Hello, World!"
helloWorld('Alice');    // "Hello, Alice!"

Package Structure

chat-helper-example-package/
├── index.js          # Core helloWorld function (main entry)
├── server.js         # Express web server
├── bin/
│   └── cli.js        # CLI executable
├── public/
│   └── index.html    # Web UI
├── package.json      # Package configuration
├── README.md         # Documentation
└── .npmignore        # Files excluded from npm package

Publishing to NPM

Before Publishing

1. Update Package Name: Choose a unique name (check availability on npmjs.com)

   {
     "name": "@yourscope/your-unique-package-name"
   }

2. Update Version: Follow semantic versioning

   {
     "version": "1.0.0"
   }

3. Add Repository URL: Update the git repository URL

   {
     "repository": {
       "type": "git",
       "url": "https://github.com/yourusername/your-repo.git"
     }
   }

4. Set Author: Add your information

   {
     "author": "Your Name <[email protected]>"
   }

Publishing Steps

# 1. Login to npm (first time only)
npm login

# 2. Test your package locally
npm pack
# This creates a .tgz file you can inspect

# 3. Dry run to see what will be published
npm publish --dry-run

# 4. Publish to npm
npm publish

# For scoped packages (private by default)
npm publish --access public

What Gets Published

The files field in package.json controls what gets included:

• ✅ index.js - Core function
• ✅ server.js - Web server
• ✅ public/ - Web UI assets
• ✅ bin/ - CLI executable
• ✅ README.md - Documentation
• ❌ node_modules/ - Excluded (.npmignore)
• ❌ .git/ - Excluded (.npmignore)
• ❌ Dev files - Excluded (.npmignore)

Verify Package Contents

# See what files will be included
npm pack --dry-run

# Or extract and inspect the tarball
npm pack
tar -xzf chat-helper-example-package-1.0.0.tgz

Testing Locally Before Publishing

# In your package directory
npm pack

# In another project
npm install /path/to/chat-helper-example-package-1.0.0.tgz

# Test it works
node -e "console.log(require('chat-helper-example-package')())"

Version Management

# Patch release (1.0.0 -> 1.0.1)
npm version patch

# Minor release (1.0.0 -> 1.1.0)
npm version minor

# Major release (1.0.0 -> 2.0.0)
npm version major

# Then publish
npm publish

Requirements

• Node.js >= 12.0.0
• npm or yarn

License

MIT

Contributing

Issues and pull requests are welcome!

Support

For questions or issues, please open an issue on GitHub.