🕵️‍♂️ node-moss > "Because Ctrl+C Ctrl+V is not a Design Pattern."

🧐 What is this?

Welcome to node-moss, the sleekest, strictly-typed Node.js client for Stanford's MOSS (Measure of Software Similarity). Whether you are a Professor tired of grading the same code 50 times, or a TA hunting for the "Stack Overflow Special," this package connects you to the MOSS server faster than your students can say "git clone."

🚀 Installation

Stop reinventing the wheel. Install the detective:

npm install node-moss

⚡ The "Sting Operation" (Quick Start)

Here is how you catch the impostors in under 10 lines of code:

TypeScript

import { MOSS } from 'node-moss';

(async () => {
  // 1. Badge up (Use your Stanford MOSS User ID)
  const client = new MOSS("YOUR_USER_ID");

  // 2. Set the rules of engagement
  client.setLanguage("cc"); // C++
  client.setResultLimit(10); // Top 10 copycats

  // 3. Load the evidence
  // You can add files one by one...
  await client.addBaseFile("./skeleton_code.cpp"); // The code you gave them
  await client.addFile("./submission_A.cpp");
  await client.addFile("./submission_B.cpp");

  // ... OR just throw a wildcard net 🕸️
  await client.addByWildcard("./students/assignment1/*.cpp");

  // 4. Send it to the lab 🧪
  console.log("🔍 Scanning for duplicates...");
  const reportUrl = await client.send();

  console.log("🚨 BUSTED! View report here:", reportUrl);
})();

🧰 Features (The Toolkit)

• 🕵️ Wildcard Support: Don't add files manually like a caveman. Use addByWildcard('./*.js').
• 👮‍♂️ Base Files: Upload the skeleton code so MOSS knows what not to flag.
• 💬 Polyglot: Speaks fluent C, Java, Python, ASCII, and dozens more.
• 📜 TypeScript Native: Fully typed. No more guessing what options are available.
• 🚀 Async/Await: Non-blocking, because you have other bugs to fix.

🌍 Supported Languages

MOSS supports the following languages (use the exact code with setLanguage()):

| Language | Code | |-----------------------|--------------| | C | c | | C++ | cc | | Java | java | | ML | ml | | Pascal | pascal | | Ada | ada | | Lisp | lisp | | Scheme | scheme | | Haskell | haskell | | Fortran | fortran | | ASCII files | ascii | | VHDL | vhdl | | Perl | perl | | MATLAB | matlab | | Python | python | | MIPS assembly | mips | | Prolog | prolog | | SPICE | spice | | Visual Basic | vb | | C# | csharp | | Modula-2 | modula2 | | 8086 assembly | a8086 | | JavaScript | javascript | | PL/SQL | plsql | | Verilog | verilog |

Note: This is the full list from the official MOSS Perl script. May Some changes are done.

The Methods

🔍 Getters

Retrieve current configuration values.

| Method | Returns | Description | | :--- | :--- | :--- | | getUserID() | string | Returns the current User ID. | | getSupportedLanguages() | string[] | Returns a list of all supported languages. | | getComment() | string | Returns the current comment string. | | getDirectoryMode() | number | Returns 0 or 1. | | getIgnoreLimit() | number | Returns the current ignore limit. | | getResultLimit() | number | Returns the current result limit. | | getExperimentalServer() | number | Returns the experimental server status. |

🛠️ Configuration (Setters)

Customize how MOSS processes your files.

| Method | Description | Default Value | | :--- | :--- | :--- | | setLanguage(lang) | Set the programming language (e.g., 'c', 'java', 'python'). | 'c' | | setDirectoryMode(mode) | Set to 1 to group files by directory (useful for multi-file projects). | 0 (Off) | | setResultLimit(n) | The number of matching files to show in the results. | 250 | | setIgnoreLimit(n) | Ignore code passages that appear in more than n files (helps ignore common boilerplate). | 10 | | setComment(text) | A string attached to the report for your own reference. | "" | | setExperimentalServer(x) | Set to 1 to use the experimental MOSS server. | 0 | | setUserID(id) | Updates the User ID (if not set in constructor). | - |

📂 File Management

Methods to load student code and skeleton code.

| Method | Description | Async? | | :--- | :--- | :--- | | addFile(path) | Adds a specific submission file to be checked. | ✅ Yes | | addBaseFile(path) | Adds "skeleton" or "base" code. MOSS will ignore matches found in these files. | ✅ Yes | | addByWildcard(pattern) | Adds multiple files using a glob pattern (e.g., ./src/*.js). | ✅ Yes |

🚀 Execution

The command to start the analysis.

| Method | Description | Returns | | :--- | :--- | :--- | | send() | Uploads all files and settings to Stanford MOSS and awaits the response. | Promise<string> (The URL) |

⚠️ Important Note

This is a client. You still need a valid MOSS User ID from Stanford.

• Don't have one? Send an email to [email protected] with the body registeruser-mail <your_email>.

🤝 Contributing

Found a bug? Want to add support? Your are welcomed! Fork it, fix it, ship it.

📜 License

This project is licensed under MIT License LICENSE file. 2025 MIT © Abdelhalim Yasser

Go forth and keep the code clean. 🧹