Angular Directives

Angular directives are a fundamental part of the Angular framework. They allow you to extend HTML with custom behavior and create reusable components in your Angular applications. Directives are markers on a DOM element that tell Angular to attach a specific behavior or functionality to that element. There are three types of directives in Angular:

1. Component Directives:

   • Component directives are the most common type of directive in Angular. They represent reusable components that encapsulate a piece of functionality and have their own template, styles, and logic.
   • Components are typically used to build the user interface of an application and can be nested within other components.
   • You can create components using the @Component decorator and define their template and other properties.

2. Attribute Directives:

   • Attribute directives modify the appearance or behavior of an element, component, or another directive.
   • They are applied as attributes on HTML elements and are denoted by square brackets in the template syntax.
   • Attribute directives can be used to dynamically modify the behavior or appearance of elements based on certain conditions.

3. Structural Directives:

   • Structural directives modify the structure of the DOM by adding, removing, or manipulating elements.
   • They are denoted by an asterisk (*) prefix in the template syntax.
   • Structural directives allow you to conditionally render elements, loop over collections, and perform other dynamic operations on the DOM.

Angular provides built-in directives such as ngIf, ngFor, and ngStyle that you can use out of the box. Additionally, you can create your own custom directives to encapsulate specific behaviors and reuse them across your application.

To use a directive, you need to import it into the module or component where it will be used and add it to the declarations array in the module or the directives array in the component's decorator.

Directives are powerful tools in Angular that enable you to create modular, reusable, and dynamic components and enhance the functionality and appearance of your application's user interface.