Let's dive into the world of MeasureThat.net and explore what's being tested in this benchmark.

Benchmark Overview

The benchmark compares two approaches for merging objects: Lodash's _merge function and the native Object.assign method.

Options Compared

The test cases compare:

1. Lodash's _merge function: A utility function from the popular JavaScript library Lodash that merges multiple objects into a single object.
2. Native Object.assign method: A built-in JavaScript method for merging two or more objects into a new object.

Pros and Cons

Here are some pros and cons of each approach:

• Lodash's _merge function:
  • Pros:
    • Can handle nested objects with ease.
    • Can be customized to use specific merge strategies (e.g., merging multiple properties, handling undefined values).
  • Cons:
    • Adds an external dependency on the Lodash library, which may introduce overhead.
• Native Object.assign method:
  • Pros:
    • Built-in and widely supported across browsers and Node.js environments.
    • Faster execution time compared to Lodash's _merge function (although not always significant).
  • Cons:
    • Can be slower for complex object merges due to the need to create a new object with all the properties from each input object.

Other Considerations

• Library Usage: The benchmark uses Lodash, which is a popular utility library for JavaScript. This choice may introduce some overhead due to the additional dependency.
• Browser Support: Both approaches are supported by most modern browsers, but it's essential to ensure compatibility with older browsers if necessary.
• Performance: The execution time of each approach can vary depending on the size and complexity of the input objects.

Individual Test Cases

The individual test cases measure the performance of each approach:

1. _merge function: _.merge({}, obj1, obj2, obj3) This test case uses Lodash's _merge function to merge three simple objects (obj1, obj2, and obj3) into a single object.
2. Native Object.assign method: Object.assign({}, obj1, obj2, obj3) This test case uses the native Object.assign method to achieve the same result as Lodash's _merge function.

Conclusion

The MeasureThat.net benchmark provides valuable insights into the performance differences between using an external library (Lodash) and a built-in JavaScript method (Object.assign). Understanding these trade-offs can help developers make informed decisions when working with object merges in their projects.