I am using gulp. 

I would like to having one or multiple JS files (say jQuery) to combine them in one, minify it, and write it to a distribution folder. 

This is how I do it: 

    minifyJS([&#39;/js/myModule.file1.js&#39;,
              &#39;/js/myModule.file2.js&#39;], &#39;/dist/js&#39;, &#39;myModule&#39;)

the function: 

    function minifyJS(sourceFiles, destinationFolder, filenameRoot) {
        return gulp.src(sourceFiles)
            .pipe(plumber())
    
            // .pipe(sourcemaps.init()) here ???
            .pipe(concat(filenameRoot + &#39;.js&#39;))
            .pipe(sourcemaps.init()) // or here ???
    
            .pipe(gulp.dest(destinationFolder)) // save .js
            .pipe(uglify({ preserveComments: &#39;license&#39; }))
            .pipe(rename({ extname: &#39;.min.js&#39; }))
            .pipe(gulp.dest(destinationFolder)) // save .min.js
            .pipe(sourcemaps.write(&#39;maps&#39;))
            .pipe(gulp.dest(destinationFolder)) // save .map
    }


What I am not sure about is the `sourcemaps.init()` location...   

Should I create multiple (2 in my case) map files (that would be nice if is supported by browsers) or only one (*/maps/myModule.map*)?

gulp: uglify and sourcemaps

Today I learned that it is possible to [include source maps][1] directly into your minified JavaScript file instead of having them in a separate example.min.map file. I wonder: **why would anybody want to do something like that**?

The **benefit of having source maps is clear** to me: one can for example debug errors with the original, non-compressed source files while running the minified files. The **benefit of minimization is also clear**: the size of source files is greatly reduced, making it quicker for browsers to download.

So why on Earth I would want to include the source maps into the minified file, given that **the maps have size even greater than the minified code itself**?


  [1]: https://github.com/floridoo/gulp-sourcemaps#inline-maps

All Gulp Sourcemaps Solutions on Gang of Coders

Total of 2 Gulp Sourcemaps Solutions

gulp: uglify and sourcemaps

Why inline source maps?