Expose AMD module globally when not in a RequireJS environment

Question

I am attempting to convert a classic JavaScript "class" into an AMD module. However, I also need to keep exporting the class into the global namespace because some legacy code needs it. I've tried this, however, the global object is not created. What am I doing wrong?

define('VisitorManager', function () {

    var VisitorManager = function () {

        "use strict";

        // ...
    };


    VisitorManager.prototype.hasExistingChat = function () {
        // ...
    };


    //expose globally
    this.VisitorManager = VisitorManager;

    //return AMD module
    return VisitorManager;

});

Answer 1

To expose your module globally, you need to register it in the global object.

In the browser the global object is window:

window.VisitorManager = VisitorManager;

In a Node.js environment the global object is called GLOBAL:

GLOBAL.VisitorManager = VisitorManager;

To use the class in both a legacy environment and with RequireJS, you can use this trick:

(function() {

    var module = function() {

        var VisitorManager = function() {
            "use strict";

            // ...
        };

        // Return the class as an AMD module.
        return VisitorManager;
    };

    if (typeof define === "function" && typeof require === "function") {
        // If we are in a RequireJS environment, register the module.
        define('VisitorManager', module);
    } else {
        // Otherwise, register it globally.
        // This registers the class itself:
        window.VisitorManager = module();

        // If you want to great a global *instance* of the class, use this:
        // window.VisitorManager = new (module())();
    }

})();