Creates jQuery element selectors

createElementSelectors.js

/**
 * Creates a new property on an object
 * http://jsfiddle.net/hellatan/AQPQ7/
 * 
 * @param {object} obj The object with the property to update/create
 * @param {string} [key] The key to check for to create new property
 * @param {string} [newKey] The new key to create
 * @returns {Object}
 * 
 * @example
 * var ret = { ... };
 * var els = {
 *     element1: {
 *         selector: '.element-1'
 *     },
 *     element2: {
 *         selector: '.element-2'
 *     },
 *     uniqueElement1: {
 *         selector: '#uniqueElement1'
 *     },
 *     uniqueElement2: {
 *         selector: '#uniqueElement2'
 *     }
 *  };
 *  // defaulted arguments in method: key, newKey
 *  els = createElementSelectors(els);
 *  ret = $.extend(ret, els);
 */
function createElementSelectors(obj, key, newKey) {
    
    key = key || "selector";
    newKey = newKey || "$el";
    
    for (var p in obj) {
        if (obj.hasOwnProperty(p)) {
            var item = obj[p];
            if (item[key]) {
                item[newKey] = $(item[key]);
            }
        }
    }
    
    return obj;
}

createElementSelectorsWithKeyMap.js

/**
 * Takes the keys from the `selectors`, creates new objects with the values from the keys of the `keyMap` 
 * and then places them on the `obj`
 * http://jsfiddle.net/hellatan/fdq7U/1/
 * 
 * @param {object} obj The object to modify/update
 * @param {string} selectors An object where the key will be placed onto the `obj` as an object
 *                           with keys created from the values of the keyMap
 * @param {string} [keyMap] An object that has a 'plain' and '$el' as keys that map to new key names
 *                         that will be created inside a new object from `selectors`
 * @returns {Object}
 * 
 * @example
 * var obj = {
 *     val1: true,
 *     val2: true,
 *     val3: false
 * };
 * var selectors = {
 *     element1: '.element-1',
 *     element2: '.element-2',
 *     element3: '.element-3',
 *     val3: '.val-3'
 * };
 * var keyMap = {
 *     plain: 'selector',
 *     $el: '$el'
 * };
 *
 * var ret = createMappedElements(obj, selectors, keyMap);
 *
 * output:
 *
 * ret.val1 = true;
 * ret.val2 = true;
 * ret.val3 = false;
 * ret.element1 = {
 *     selector: '.element-1'
 *     $el: $('.element-1')
 * };
 * ret.element2 = {
 *     selector: '.element-2'
 *     $el: $('.element-2')
 * };
 */
function createElementSelectors(obj, selectors, keyMap) {

    keyMap || (keyMap = { plain: 'selector', $el: '$el' });

    if (keyMap.plain && keyMap.$el) {
        for (var p in selectors) {
            // don't overwrite existing properties!
            if (selectors.hasOwnProperty(p) && !obj.hasOwnProperty(p)) {
                obj[p] = {};
                obj[p][keyMap.plain] = selectors[p];
                obj[p][keyMap.$el] = $(p);
            }
        }
    }
    
    return obj;
}