From: daz <dooby@...10.karoo.co.uk>
Date: 2005-07-06T18:15:46+09:00
Subject: Re: (newb) converting seconds into plain english time units


luke wrote:
> hi,
>
> [...]  at the moment it's making everything a plural!
>
>
> def format_time seconds
>  hours  = (seconds / (60 * 60))
>  plural = "s" if hours.to_i > 1
>  time = "#{hours.to_i} hour#{plural}"
>  if hours > 23
>   days = hours / 24
>   plural = "s" if days.to_i > 1
>    time = "#{days.to_i} day#{plural}"
>    if days > 30
>     weeks = days / 7
>    plural = "s" if weeks.to_i > 1
>     time = "#{weeks.to_i} week#{plural}"
>    end
>  end
>
>  time
> end
>
> [...]
>
> any help would be much appreciated.
>

The reason you're getting plural is that
"plural" is only set to 's', never ''.

Here's one way which is probably similar to the way
Robert was describing.
(Haven't checked it rigorously ;)

#----------------------------------------------------
def format_time(seconds)
  arr = [ ['second', [3600]  ],
          ['hour',   [24]    ],
          ['day',    [31, 7] ],
          ['week',   nil     ],
        ]
  t = seconds
  aix = 0
  while (lim = arr[aix][1])
    ## ternary operator   cond ? true : false
    (t >= lim[0]) ? t /= lim[-1] : break
    aix += 1
  end
  ## % is a method of the String class (like sprintf)
  '%4d %s%s' % [t, arr[aix][0], (t == 1) ? '' : 's']
end

[   0,         #->    0 seconds
    1,         #->    1 second
   36,         #->   36 seconds
 3599,         #-> 3599 seconds
 3600,         #->    1 hour
 3601,         #->    1 hour
 3600*4,       #->    4 hours
 3600*23,      #->   23 hours
 3600*24*2,    #->    2 days
 3600*24*7,    #->    7 days
 3600*24*30,   #->   30 days
 3600*24*31,   #->    4 weeks
 3600*24*32,   #->    4 weeks
 3600*24*60,   #->    8 weeks
 3600*24*100,  #->   14 weeks
].each do |secs|
  puts format_time(secs)
end
#----------------------------------------------------

daz