Assigning a javascript object with and object inside an array

Question

I am just curious about this.

Let's say I have an array of objects and I create 1 object, lets name the array of objects items and the object item.

I want to get a particular item in my array of items by using the following code:

//gets an item base on ID
function get_item(td){
    var item = undefined;
    $.each(items, function(i, val) {
        if(val.item_id == td){
            item = val;
        }   
    });
    return item;
}

The get_item() basically gets an object matched with the supplied id.

So my question is this. What if I changed the properties of item will it also changed the properties of an object associated with it within the array?

Thank you very much!

Answer 1

What if I changed the properties of item will it also changed the properties of an object associated with it within the array?

Yes.

Objects are not copied. Instead, references to the objects are passed around. Simplest example:

var a = [];
var b = a;
b.push(1);
console.log(a); // logs [1]

Many object-oriented programming languages work like this.