Building a Conversation

Echo: Reacting to text messages

Let's start with simple example. This is how to make an echo.

const { Router } = require('wingbot');
const bot = new Router();

// this route processes all incomming messages
bot.use((req, res) => {
    res.text('I\'ve got this message:')
        .text(req.text());
});

module.exports = bot;

This works like this:

*-----------------------------------*
|                            Hello! |
| I've got this message:            |
| Hello!                            |
|                                   |
|              It smells like updog |
| I've got this message:            |
| It smells like updog              |
*-----------------------------------*

Asking a question

When asking user a question, it's important to keeping reply in context. The res.expected(<path>) method ensures, that response will be dispatched by /whichCat route.

Routes shoud always begin with / slash, but when referencing route, starting slash is treated as absolute path reference. When you omit the starting slash, path is treated as relative.

const { Router } = require('wingbot');
const bot = new Router();

bot.use('/whichCat', (req, res, postBack) => {
    const lowercaseText = req.text(true); // converts "Nýan. Cát" to "nyan-cat"

    if (lowercaseText.match(/nyan-cat/)) {
        res.text('Yeah, nyan cat!');
    } else if (lowercaseText.match(/grumpy-cat/)) {
        res.text('Ugh, grumpy cat!');
    } else {
        return Router.CONTINUE;
    }
});

bot.use((req, res) => {
    res.text('So, Nyan cat or grumpy cat?')
        .expected('whichCat'); // set the route, which will process next text request
});

module.exports = bot;

This works like this:

*-----------------------------------*
|                          Nyan cat |
| So, Nyan cat or grumpy cat?       |
|                                   |
|                          Nyan cat |
| Yeah, nyan cat!                   |
|                                   |
|                             What? |
| So, Nyan cat or grumpy cat?       |
*-----------------------------------*

Using Quick Replies for controlling conversation

Click is always simplier then writing a text. And also working with events is much easier then text processing. Let's lead conversation throuch quick replies.

const { Router } = require('wingbot');
const bot = new Router();

bot.use('/grumpy', (req, res) => {
    res.text('Ugh, grumpy cat!');
});

bot.use('/nyan', (req, res) => {
    res.text('Yeah, nyan cat!');
});

bot.use((req, res) => {
    // let's give two options to user
    res.text('So, Nyan cat or grumpy cat?', {
        grumpy: 'Grumpy cat',
        nyan: 'Nyan cat'
    });
});

module.exports = bot;

This code works exacly like previous example, because when quick replies are used, treir text representation is used to match the users input. String "Nyan cat" is converted to regular expression /nyan-cat/;

Post Back is also an action!

We've normalized all Quick Replies, Post Backs, or Referrals to actions! You don't have to care about action type.

const { Router } = require('wingbot');
const bot = new Router();

bot.use('/grumpy', (req, res) => {
    res.text('Ugh, grumpy cat!');
});

bot.use('/nyan', (req, res) => {
    res.text('Yeah, nyan cat!');
});

bot.use((req, res) => {
    // allow access grumpy cat with button
    res.button('Lets choose grumpy cat')
        .postBackButton('Call it', 'grumpy')
        .send();

    // and nyan cat with quick reply
    res.text('So, Nyan cat or grumpy cat?', {
        nyan: 'Nyan cat'
    });
});

module.exports = bot;