Is 'dot slash' (./) mandatory when a module in Node.js is required?

Question

I'm learning Node.js and writing a simple module using the Visual Studio 2015 Node.JS extension.

I know ./ means 'look for the file in the same directory'. But in most systems I've seen (say, #include in C++) the forwarding ./ is optional. I've tried to remove it but it turns out Node.js cannot find modules without the prefix. For me it seems ugly, so is it really mandatory? If yes, why?

Regards,

Answer 1

With require('./script_name'), you can include another JS within the same folder, as you know already.

When you require('module_name') without the ./, Node.JS looks at the node_modules folder for a module with this name. Optionally, you can call it's public methods or pass it arguments.