From: Jon Egil Strand <jes@...>
Date: 2007-02-02T18:31:00+09:00
Subject: Re: Performance hit of define_method


> it's not so much the fact that you are using define_method, which is a bit
> slow, but the fact that one Staticperson you define the methods on once while
> in Dynamicperson you define the methods each and every time even though the
> def simply clobbers the existing one. 

But of course, thank you.

To keep the dynamicity of Dynamicperson, which is the functionality I'm 
trying to achieve, I made the define_method conditional:

class Dynamicperson
  def initialize(personalia)
    @personalia = personalia
    @personalia .each_key do |k|
      self.class.send(:define_method, k) { @personalia[k] } unless self.respond_to?(k)
    end
  end
end

Still, it would be better to do this only once, on class level rather than 
instance level

class Dynamicperson_class
  def initialize(personalia)
    @personalia = personalia
  end  
  
  def Dynamicperson_class.define_methods(personalia)
    personalia.each_key do |k|
      send(:define_method, k) { @personalia[k] }
    end
  end
end


Followed by _one_ call of 

peter = {:firstname => "Peter",
         :surname => "Pan",
         :country => "Neverland"}

Dynamicperson_class.define_methods(peter)


Then benchmarking:

------------------------------------------------------------------------
Static:                                1.772000   0.050000   1.822000 (  1.873000)
Dynamic pr. instance:                 27.260000   1.322000  28.582000 ( 28.861000)
Dynamic pr. instance conditionally:    3.284000   0.060000   3.344000 (  3.375000)
Dynamic pr. class:                     2.614000   0.040000   2.654000 (  2.944000)
-------------------------------------------------------------- total: 36.402000sec


Thank's for pointing me in the right direction Ara.

JE