From: Joel VanderWerf <vjoel@...>
Date: 2004-03-04T08:36:30+09:00
Subject: Re: Why do inner methods count in outer scope?

Hal Fulton wrote:
> Joel VanderWerf wrote:
> 
>>> Method definitions are scoped the same way as @variables; the new 
>>> method is added to the current instance. It doesn't matter if you do 
>>> it at the 
>>
>>
>>                           ^^^^^^^^
>>
>> Not exactly. It can be added to the current class, if that is the scope:
>>
>> class A
>>   def foo
>>     def bar; p "BAR"; end
>>   end
>> end
> 
> 
> It's still the current instance. The current instance here happens
> to be a class.

That use of "current instance" is confusing to me. Maybe "current 
definition scope" would be better. Words are more confusing than code...

class A
   def foo
     p self
     def bar; p "BAR"; end
   end
end

a = A.new
a.foo   # ==> #<A:0x401c6da4>

Inside #foo, self refers to the instance of A. Yet, as my previous 
example showed, the method was added as an instance method of class A, 
not as a method of object A or as a singleton method of the instance of A.