Re: method names in 1.9

Hi --

On Sun, 11 Nov 2007, Matthew Boeh wrote:

> On Sun, Nov 11, 2007 at 05:50:18PM +0900, Trans wrote:
>>
>>
>> On Nov 10, 10:55 am, "David A. Black" <[e-mail]> wrote:
>>> Hi --
>>>
>>> I know that a 1.9 feature-freeze is coming soon, but I just wanted to
>>> put in a last-minute plea for some method name changes or removals.
>>>
>>> "invoke_method" is one. I always take the trouble to explain to people
>>> learning Ruby that sending a message and executing a method are not
>>> same thing (even though they often happen together). "send" makes
>>> sense: we're sending the object a message, explicitly. "invoke_method"
>>> does not make sense. We're not invoking a method; we're sending a
>>> message. The object then does something with the method.
>>
>> But is this distiction usable in nay way? Whe do they not coccur
>> together. I'm just curious. I've heard this before, and while I
>> basically understand, I don;t see how it plays out in actual Ruby
>> practice.
>>
>> Thanks,
>> T.
>>
>>
>
> The first thing that comes to mind is method_missing.
>
>  ; class Q
>  ;   def method_missing(meth, *args)
>  ;     "zzz"
>  ;   end
>  ; end
>  ; a = Q.new
>  ; a.send(:arbitrary_message)
>  # => "zzz"
>  ; a.method(:arbitrary_message)
>  NameError: undefined method `arbitrary_message' for class `Q'
>          from (irb):8:in `method'
>          from (irb):8
>          from :0
>
> Now, whether the distinction is actually significant in any practical sense is
> a different issue. In my experience, it's confusing at first, especially to
> programmers from a procedural background, but it ultimately results in a more
> sophisticated understanding of the object-oriented paradigm. It isn't
> necessarily Ruby's place to fit itself to the task of pedagogy, but I
> personally value the distinction between sending a message to an object
> (Object#send) and invoking one of its methods (Object#method -> Method#call).

It's not a question of fitting Ruby to the task of pedagogy. I use my
teaching as a barometer of how much sense things make, and how much
un-learning and re-learning the language makes you do as you move from
one thing to another.


David

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