From: "David A. Black" <dblack@...>
Date: 2005-12-01T04:30:06+09:00
Subject: Re: Dumb question: in documentation, why Object#method, and not Object.method ?

Hi --

On Thu, 1 Dec 2005, Marcel Molina Jr. wrote:

> On Thu, Dec 01, 2005 at 04:17:30AM +0900, Elf M. Sternberg wrote:
>> I keep seeing this syntax in documentation: Object#method, but in actual
>> use sending a message to an object is usually
>>
>>         object = Object.new
>>         object.method
>>
>> Is this just to emphasize that method() operates on an instance of
>> Object and not the class Object?
>
> The # is a naming convention.
>
> Class#method means method is an instance method.
> Class::method means method is a class method.
>
> For example, do
>
>  ri IO.read
>
> There is IO::read and IO#read.

Interesting -- I never picked up on ri's use of :: in preference to
the dot.  I personally use Class.method for class methods (indeed for
any singleton method).


David

-- 
David A. Black
dblack@wobblini.net