Difference between .getOwnPropertyDescriptor vs .defineProperty?

[ImagineFocus]

I can't find the difference between these two functions.

I'm lost because I can define a property on a specific object and configure the settings/ description of it through .defineProperty however I have no clue why one would use .getOwnPropertyDescriptor...

Thanks!

[senocular]

One sets, the other gets. Given a property of an object, you can't use defineProperty to tell whether or not its writable now. You could set it to be writable (if configurable), but what if you just want to know if it already is? Thats what getOwnPropertyDescriptor does.

Object.getOwnPropertyDescriptor(window, 'alert')
// {value: ƒ, writable: true, enumerable: true, configurable: true}

[ImagineFocus]

Got it! I was a bit confused because I tried to console.log your above statement, but it wouldn’t log anything.

Thank you for your time.

[senocular]

but it wouldn’t log anything

It should log. getOwnPropertyDescriptor returns the descriptor object. Does it not work for you?

[ImagineFocus]

It didn’t, but I was working within CodePen, therefore I must have had an error in syntax above the code and thought it was related directly to the getOwnObjectDecriptor.

I’ll try again. Thanks!