Count characters in string

[simonchristieis]

I would like to count the characters in a string

eg

str = "123456"

str.match("1")


tells me there is a match - but I want to know how many times, as this is in a document.write statement, and because of the work that the page will have to do, I also don't want to use a function.

something like this:
a new Array()
document.write(a(str.match("1")).length)


any ideas anyone?

simon

 

[mwolf00]

str = "1234561321321"

//make an array
myArr = str.split("1")

//get the count
oneCount = myArr.length + 1

//make sure that there is at least one
if(oneCount == 1){
if(!str.match("1")) oneCount = 0
}

Programming today is a race between software engineers striving to build better and bigger idiot-proof programs, and the Universe trying to produce bigger and better idiots. So far, the Universe is winning. - Rick Cook (No, I'm not Rick)

 

[LFI]

How about:

var numberOfOnes = str.length - str.replace(/1/g,'').length;

This compares the length of the string without the character-in-question (in this case, '1') to the original length. The difference is the number of times the character-in-question appears.

If the character-in-question is going to change (i.e., if you don't know ahead of time which character you want to count):

function countChars(str, characterInQuestion)
{
 var regexp = new RegExp(characterInQuestion, "g");
 var numberOfChars = str.length - str.replace(regexp,'').length;
}

'hope this helps.

--Dave

 

[simonchristieis]

Dave - that's what I'm looking for - thanks

 

[LFI]

NOTE: if the 'characterInQuestion' could be more than one character long, you need to take its length into account:

function countChars(str, characterInQuestion)
{
 var regexp = new RegExp(characterInQuestion, "g");
 var numberOfChars = [b]([/b]str.length - str.replace(regexp,'').length[b])/characterInQuestion.length[/b];

 [b]//oh, yeah... and:
 return numberOfChars;[/b]
}

--Dave