Add CoffeeScript convenience methods

Adds a number of convenience methods from CoffeeScript to aid in converting
modules to plain Javascript.

dist/utils.js

@@ -32,6 +32,46 @@
     return _results;
   };
 
+  global.slice = [].slice;
+
+  global.hasProp = {}.hasOwnProperty;
+
+  global.subclass = function(child, parent) {
+    var ctor, key;
+    for (key in parent) {
+      if (hasProp.call(parent, key)) {
+        child[key] = parent[key];
+      }
+    }
+    ctor = function() {
+      return this.constructor = child;
+    };
+    ctor.prototype = parent.prototype;
+    child.prototype = new ctor();
+    child.__super__ = parent.prototype;
+    return child;
+  };
+
+  global.instantiate = function(func, args, ctor) {
+    var child, result;
+    ctor.prototype = func.prototype;
+    child = new ctor();
+    result = func.apply(child, args);
+    if (Object(result) === result) {
+      return result;
+    } else {
+      return child;
+    }
+  };
+
+  global.getArgs = function(args) {
+    if (args.length >= 1) {
+      return slice.call(args, 0);
+    } else {
+      return [];
+    }
+  };
+
   global.proxyFunctionsToObject = function(methods, target, base, force) {
     var method, _fn, _i, _len;
     if (base == null) {

src/utils.coffee

@@ -55,6 +55,69 @@ global.sleep = (ms) ->
   while (Date.now() < start + ms)
     i = 1
 
+global.slice = [].slice
+
+global.hasProp = {}.hasOwnProperty
+
+# Public: Function to use for class inheritance. Copy of a CoffeeScript helper
+# function.
+#
+# Example
+#
+#   var Sphero = (function(klass) {
+#     subclass(Sphero, klass);
+#     // Sphero is now a subclass of Parent, and can access it's methods through
+#     // Sphero.__super__
+#   })(Parent);
+#
+# Returns subclass
+global.subclass = (child, parent) ->
+  for key of parent
+    child[key] = parent[key] if hasProp.call(parent, key)
+
+  ctor = -> @constructor = child
+
+  ctor.prototype = parent.prototype
+  child.prototype = new ctor()
+  child.__super__ = parent.prototype
+  child
+
+# Public: Function for instantiating a class with all passed arguments to
+# a function
+#
+# Example
+#
+#  createNewThing = function() {
+#    var args = getArgs(arguments);
+#    return instantiate(ClassToMake, args, function(){});
+#  }
+#
+# Returns an instance of the new class
+global.instantiate = (func, args, ctor) ->
+  ctor.prototype = func.prototype
+  child = new ctor()
+  result = func.apply(child, args)
+  (if Object(result) is result then result else child)
+
+# Public: Function for obtaining array of function arguments. Copied from
+# a CoffeeScript utility function.
+#
+# Example
+#
+#   printArgs = function() {
+#     console.log(getArgs(arguments));
+#   }
+#
+#   printArgs();
+#   //=> []
+#
+#   printArgs('hello', 'world', 3);
+#   //=> ['hello', 'world', 3]
+#
+# Returns an array of args
+global.getArgs = (args) ->
+  if args.length >= 1 then slice.call(args, 0) else []
+
 # Public: Proxies a list of methods from one object to another. It will not
 # overwrite existing methods unless told to.
 #