From: Peter Ertl <pertl@...>
Date: 2005-11-18T01:25:10+09:00
Subject: Re: Serializing an instance with arbitrary methods (in rails)

This is supposed to be good stuff:

http://yaml4r.sourceforge.net




> --- Urspr�ngliche Nachricht ---
> Von: Gavin Kistner <gavin@refinery.com>
> An: ruby-talk@ruby-lang.org (ruby-talk ML)
> Betreff: Serializing an instance with arbitrary methods (in rails)
> Datum: Fri, 18 Nov 2005 01:21:43 +0900
> 
> (I know there's a rails mailing list. For some reason this feels more  
> appropriate to ruby-talk. I'll go to the other ML if this one fails :)
> 
> Summary:
> I'm writing a rails app where I want to save information about a  
> user's session, so that they may return at a later date and pick up  
> where they left off. The information being saved is an object with  
> arbitrary instance variables. What's the best way (or any good way)  
> to save this? So far, the only thing I can think of is Marshal dump/ 
> load to a db row, but this seems off for some reason. Is this the  
> best way?
> 
> Details:
> I'm writing an app that's an odd mixture of interactive fiction,  
> wiki, and MUD. (Well, single-user for now.) Think of a web version of  
> a "Choose Your Own Adventure" book, where anyone can write the pages/ 
> choices, and every page and choice can have arbitrary ruby code  
> associated with it. Each page and choice is an ERB template (in the  
> future, with wiki markup), allowing the contents of the story and  
> text of the choices to vary.
> 
> Each page can run Ruby code against a 'ReaderSession' before the page  
> is viewed, setting the consequences of getting to the page. Each  
> choice can run Ruby code to decide if it may be shown (e.g. has the  
> user already made this choice? does the user have enough gold to buy  
> the rabbit? does the user have the sword needed to slay the dragon  
> here?). When the user makes a choice, code specific to that choice  
> can be run before the destination page is shown (e.g. subtract the  
> right amount of gold and add the rabbit to the inventory).
> 
> When the user starts a story, a blank ReaderSession object is  
> created. The code for each page/choice is run within the scope of  
> this instance, so that any instance variables may be set without  
> harming others (a sort of namespace) and I can easily start the story  
> over by clearing out the instance variables.
> 
> Certain details haven't been ironed out yet: should each choice be  
> hardcoded to a destination page, or can the 'result code' for a  
> choice change which page you go to? How will I use AJAX to make this  
> a multi-user/reader game, so that when someone else arrives at the  
> same page, you know they're there? Can pages have time limits that  
> force the user to make a choice before a default action is taken  
> automatically?
> 
> Thanks for any advice/brainstorming. :) As with all my personal  
> projects, this will be an (advertisement-free), free service for  
> the .net to enjoy. (In other words, helping me isn't helping with  
> some commercial project you'll never see. :)
> 
> --
> (-, /\ \/ / /\/
>