TouchBar

Class: TouchBar

Create TouchBar layouts for native macOS applications

Process: Main

new TouchBar(options) Experimental

• options - Object
  • items (TouchBarButton | TouchBarColorPicker | TouchBarGroup | TouchBarLabel | TouchBarPopover | TouchBarScrubber | TouchBarSegmentedControl | TouchBarSlider | TouchBarSpacer)[]
  • escapeItem (TouchBarButton | TouchBarColorPicker | TouchBarGroup | TouchBarLabel | TouchBarPopover | TouchBarScrubber | TouchBarSegmentedControl | TouchBarSlider | TouchBarSpacer) (optional)

Creates a new touch bar with the specified items. Use BrowserWindow.setTouchBar to add the TouchBar to a window.

Note: The TouchBar API is currently experimental and may change or be removed in future Electron releases.

Tip: If you don’t have a MacBook with Touch Bar, you can use Touch Bar Simulator to test Touch Bar usage in your app.

Instance Properties

The following properties are available on instances of TouchBar:

touchBar.escapeItem

The TouchBarItem that will replace the “esc” button on the touch bar when set. Setting to null restores the default “esc” button. Changing this value immediately updates the escape item in the touch bar.

Examples

Below is an example of a simple slot machine touch bar game with a button and some labels.

const {app, BrowserWindow, TouchBar} = require('electron')

const {TouchBarLabel, TouchBarButton, TouchBarSpacer} = TouchBar

let spinning = false

// Reel labels
const reel1 = new TouchBarLabel()
const reel2 = new TouchBarLabel()
const reel3 = new TouchBarLabel()

// Spin result label
const result = new TouchBarLabel()

// Spin button
const spin = new TouchBarButton({
  label: '???? Spin',
  backgroundColor: '#7851A9',
  click: () => {
    // Ignore clicks if already spinning
    if (spinning) {
      return
    }

    spinning = true
    result.label = ''

    let timeout = 10
    const spinLength = 4 * 1000 // 4 seconds
    const startTime = Date.now()

    const spinReels = () => {
      updateReels()

      if ((Date.now() - startTime) >= spinLength) {
        finishSpin()
      } else {
        // Slow down a bit on each spin
        timeout *= 1.1
        setTimeout(spinReels, timeout)
      }
    }

    spinReels()
  }
})

const getRandomValue = () => {
  const values = ['????', '????', '7️⃣', '????', '????', '⭐', '????', '????']
  return values[Math.floor(Math.random() * values.length)]
}

const updateReels = () => {
  reel1.label = getRandomValue()
  reel2.label = getRandomValue()
  reel3.label = getRandomValue()
}

const finishSpin = () => {
  const uniqueValues = new Set([reel1.label, reel2.label, reel3.label]).size
  if (uniqueValues === 1) {
    // All 3 values are the same
    result.label = '???? Jackpot!'
    result.textColor = '#FDFF00'
  } else if (uniqueValues === 2) {
    // 2 values are the same
    result.label = '???? Winner!'
    result.textColor = '#FDFF00'
  } else {
    // No values are the same
    result.label = '???? Spin Again'
    result.textColor = null
  }
  spinning = false
}

const touchBar = new TouchBar([
  spin,
  new TouchBarSpacer({size: 'large'}),
  reel1,
  new TouchBarSpacer({size: 'small'}),
  reel2,
  new TouchBarSpacer({size: 'small'}),
  reel3,
  new TouchBarSpacer({size: 'large'}),
  result
])

let window

app.once('ready', () => {
  window = new BrowserWindow({
    frame: false,
    titleBarStyle: 'hidden-inset',
    width: 200,
    height: 200,
    backgroundColor: '#000'
  })
  window.loadURL('about:blank')
  window.setTouchBar(touchBar)
})

Running the above example

To run the example above, you’ll need to (assuming you’ve got a terminal open in the dirtectory you want to run the example):

1. Save the above file to your computer as touchbar.js
2. Install Electron via npm install electron
3. Run the example inside Electron: ./node_modules/.bin/electron touchbar.js

You should then see a new Electron window and the app running in your touch bar (or touch bar emulator).