From: Christoph <chr_mail@...>
Date: 2005-05-17T00:12:44+09:00
Subject: Re: infinite number of singleton_classes

Ara.T.Howard@noaa.gov schrieb:

>>  misunderstood something once again?
>
>
> well - sorta ;-)
>
> i only meant to say that the behaviour is consistent and, although 
> there is no
> regular ruby idiom that makes use of it now, there may well be in the 
> future.

Actually the behavior is not consistent  - assuming the definition
----
public # create meta objects
def m(height =1)
    height.zero? ? self  :   class << self; self end.m(height -1)
end
----

and the natural inheritance assumption, that the class relation

X < Y         # true, implies
X.m < Y.m # true
---
you would expect the  following method lookup path for a
singleton class of  "height" 5
---
class A; end
class B < A; end
b = B.new

b.m(5) <- B.m(4)    < A.m(4) < Object.m(4) <
Class.m(3) < Module.m(3) <  Object.m(3) <
Class.m(2) < Module.m(2) <  Object.m(2) <
Class.m     < Module.m     <  Object.m      <
Class         <  Module        <  Object < Kernel
---

 From a practical point of view this would be rather silly, so Matz bend
the rules, and "benevolently ruled" the following to be true
---
b.m(5) < Class.m < Module.m <  Object.m <
              Class    <  Module     <  Object  < Kernel
---

I personally still prefer honest exception raising over a trickery like 
this.

/Christoh