npm init doesn't create package.json

Question

I am new to ReactJS, I was following one of the tutorials in "TutorialsPoint".

In Step 2: After the folder is created we need to open it and create empty package.json file inside by running npm init from the command prompt and follow the instructions.

C:\Users\username\Desktop\reactApp>npm init 

By running the above command I am unable to create and package.json Only this thing is coming up after running init.

In Step 4: it asks to add dependencies and plugins

In Step 5: it asks to open the package.json and delete "test": "echo \"Error: no test specified\" && exit 1" inside "scripts" object.

Now how can I open package.json, if I was not been created from the beginning?

Answer 1

Complete the npm init prompts

The command npm init "will ask you a bunch of questions, and then write a package.json for you."

The first prompt, as shown in your screen capture, asks you to enter a package name. You can just hit Enter to skip through the prompts and accept the default values if you are unsure of what information to provide.

You can also use -y/--yes to skip the questionnaire altogether. For example, npm init -y. (Note: -f/--force also work.)

Each prompt corresponds to a field in the package.json file. Consequently, you can construct this file yourself or copy and modify an existing one from another project.

Answer 2

A package.json must have:

• A name all lowercase one word, no spaces, dashes and underscores allowed;
• A version in the form of x.x.x;

There are two ways to create a empty package.json file:

1. Run a CLI questionnaire to create a package.json with values that you supply. For that run the command:

   npm init

2. Create a default package.json. For that you just need to run the same command but with the --yes or -y flag.

   npm init --yes

and it will create the package.json file in the dir where you run the command and will display the code shown bellow:

{   "name": "reactApp",   "version": "1.0.0",   "description": "",   "main": "index.js",   "scripts": {     "test": "echo \"Error: no test specified\" && exit 1"   },   "keywords": [],   "author": "",   "license": "ISC" }