Template of Node.js library

Load .ts, .mts, and .cts files in Node.js by registering a custom load hook.

This package wires into Node's module loader (node:module) and strips TypeScript types at load time, so files can run directly without a build step.

What this project does

• Registers a Node.js module hook via registerHooks(...).
• Intercepts TypeScript files based on extension:
  • .cts → loads as CommonJS
  • .mts → loads as ESM
  • .ts → auto-detects module type from nearest package.json
• Uses stripTypeScriptTypes(...) from node:module to remove TypeScript-only syntax.
• Passes non-TypeScript files through untouched.

How module type is chosen for .ts

For plain .ts files, the loader walks up directories from the file location:

• If it finds a package.json with "type": "module", the file is treated as ESM.
• Otherwise, it is treated as CommonJS.
• If no package.json is found, CommonJS is used.

Requirements

• Node.js >=24.14.0
• npm >=11.9.0

Installation

npm install template-of-node-js-library

Usage

1. Register through Node's import flag (recommended)

node --import template-of-node-js-library ./path/to/file.ts

You can also keep it enabled globally for a session:

export NODE_OPTIONS="--import=template-of-node-js-library"
node ./path/to/file.ts

2. Register programmatically

Importing the package runs its side-effect entrypoint and registers the hook:

import "template-of-node-js-library";

Notes and limitations

• This loader strips types; it does not perform full TypeScript transpilation.
• Prefer erasable TypeScript syntax compatible with stripTypeScriptTypes(...).
• Keep using tsc --noEmit (or equivalent) for type checking in CI.