From: "ioquatix (Samuel Williams) via ruby-core" <ruby-core@...>
Date: 2023-06-22T01:09:09+00:00
Subject: [ruby-core:113992] [Ruby master Feature#19742] Introduce `Module#anonymous?`

Issue #19742 has been updated by ioquatix (Samuel Williams).


Should setting a temporary name make a module not anonymous?

I found the following use cases in Rails:

```ruby
                unless controller_class.anonymous?
                  controller_class.name.delete_suffix("Controller").underscore
                end
```

```ruby
    def self.kind
      @kind ||= name.split("::").last.underscore.chomp("_validator").to_sym unless anonymous?
    end
```

```ruby
    def self.controller_name
      @controller_name ||= (name.demodulize.delete_suffix("Controller").underscore unless anonymous?)
    end
```

```ruby
      def controller_path
        @controller_path ||= name.delete_suffix("Controller").underscore unless anonymous?
      end
```

```ruby
      def mailer_name
        @mailer_name ||= anonymous? ? "anonymous" : name.underscore
      end
```

So, I think the usage of anonymous is already ossified by Rails, even if I disagree.

To me, anonymous means it cannot be named, but there is a difference between "proper noun" and "common noun".

If you refer to a "person", the person does not have a proper name, they are anonymous. If you refer to "Samuel", you are referring to a specific person, which is not anonymous.

----------------------------------------
Feature #19742: Introduce `Module#anonymous?`
https://bugs.ruby-lang.org/issues/19742#change-103650

* Author: ioquatix (Samuel Williams)
* Status: Open
* Priority: Normal
----------------------------------------
As a follow-on <from https://bugs.ruby-lang.org/issues/19521>, I'd like propose we introduce `Module#anonymous?`.

In some situations, like logging/formatting, serialisation/deserialization, debugging or meta-programming, we might like to know if a class is a proper constant or not.

However, this brings about some other issues which might need to be discussed.

After assigning a constant, then removing it, the internal state of Ruby still believes that the class name is permanent, even thought it's no longer true.

e.g.

```
m = Module.new
m.anonymous? # true

M = m
m.anonyomous # false

Object.send(:remove_const, :M)
M # uninitialized constant M (NameError)

m.anonymous? # false
```

Because RCLASS data structure is not updated after the constant is removed, internally the state still has a "permanent class name".

I want to use this proposal to discuss this issue and whether there is anything we should do about such behaviour (or even if it's desirable).

Proposed PR: https://github.com/ruby/ruby/pull/7966

cc @fxn



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