From: Robert Dober <robert.dober@...>
Date: 2006-09-29T06:54:19+09:00
Subject: Re: String starts? and ends? methods

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On 9/28/06, Pete Yandell <pete@notahat.com> wrote:
>
>
> On 28/09/2006, at 12:36 PM, Marcelo Alvim wrote:
>
> > On 9/27/06, Pete Yandell <pete@notahat.com> wrote:
> >> For non-predicate methods, the second person makes sense. Take
> >> String.squeeze for example...that's really about you (the second
> >> person) squeezing the string.
> >
> > Sorry for entering this thread now to give my two cents. I'm sorry
> > because I'm a Ruby newbie AND a non-native english speaker, but I
> > thought I should say this.
> >
> > I don't think the person is really the question here. I think it's the
> > imperative form of the verb.
> > In that case, I have always interpreted that (both in english and in
> > my native language) as you telling the string to squeeze itself.
> > File.open, for example, reads like "Hey, File class, open this for me,
> > please". I'm imperative, but polite :).
>
> I think you're absolutely right Marcelo, and you've once again proved
> that non-native English speakers tend to know way more about grammar
> than native English speakers like me. :)
>

by force of nature, we have to study it to learn,
OTOH method names ending in "?" are hardly imparative forms  [ I guess that
was what Pete was refering to]

but why not making things easier and being more tolerant :)

in the  beginning I had to correct #responds_to? with #respond_to? what
seemed a zillion times (I should have aliased it in Object anyway, but when
I knew how to do that I did not need it anymore ;)
.
Aliases are commonly used in Ruby Array#collect, Array#map etc

why not having them for flected forms
String#starts_with? <=3D> String#start_with?
personally I like String#prefix? and String#suffix? too, shorter and very
precise.

Object#responds_to? <=3D> ...

I guess it will make life easier for Newbies and let everybody use it's
personal feeling for what sounds better.

Cheers
Rober

Pete Yandell
>
>
--=20
Deux choses sont infinies : l'univers et la b=EAtise humaine ; en ce qui
concerne l'univers, je n'en ai pas acquis la certitude absolue.

- Albert Einstein

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