Example Class

class Cookie
  def sweeten(more_chips = 10)
    @chips ||= 0    # lazy initialization
    @chips += more_chips
  end

  def yummy?
    @chips and @chips >= 20
  end
end

Creating and Using Objects

• To create an object, call the new method on its class

  cookie = Cookie.new
  

• To call a method an object, use the dot operator

  cookie.sweeten(50)
  cookie.yummy?      #=> true
  

Constructors

• To instantiate an object, call the new method on its class
• The new method then calls initialize

class Cookie
  def initialize
    @chips = 0
  end
end

cookie = Cookie.new  # *not* Cookie.initialize!

Active vs. Lazy Initialization

Active initialization (inside the constructor) leads to simpler code elsewhere in the object, since other methods can assume the instance variables are ready to roll.

Active Initialization

class Cookie
  def initialize
    @chips = 0    # active initialization
  end

  def sweeten(more_chips = 10)
    @chips += more_chips
  end

  def yummy?
    @chips >= 20
  end
end

Lazy Initialization

class Cookie
  def sweeten(more_chips = 10)
    @chips ||= 0    # lazy initialization
    @chips += more_chips
  end

  def yummy?
    @chips and      # defensive coding
      @chips >= 20
  end
end

What does new do?

1. allocates memory for the instance
2. calls initialize on the new instance
3. returns a pointer to the instance

So by the time assignment (=) happens, the object has been constructed and initialized.

So a constructor is your one big chance to initialize everything before anyone else gets a pointer to it.

Instance methods

• defined inside the class
• instance methods are shared among all instances
• same behavior, but different data

class Cookie
  def bake
    @temp = 350
  end
end

Instance variables

• represent object state
• names start with an @
• only visible inside the object
  • i.e. when self is that object

Getter and setter methods

class Person
  def age=(years_old)
    @age = years_old
  end
  def age
    @age
  end
end

alice = Person.new
alice.age= 17
alice.age #=> 17

alice.@age #=> SyntaxError

Ruby's setter sugar

alice.age = 17

is the same as

alice.age=(17)

• Technically, it's not an assignment, it's a method call
• ...but it looks like an assignment!
  • that's called "syntactic sugar" since it makes the syntax sweeter

The setter gotcha

• Inside an object, you can't call that object's setter methods directly

class Person
  def age=(years_old)
    @age = years_old
  end
  def bar_mitzvah!
    age = 13   # oops
  end
end

• Why not?
  • Because "age = 13" looks like a local variable assignment, which takes precedence
  • It eclipses the setter method!
  • Syntax ambiguity! Oh noes!

The setter gotcha solved

• Solution: use "self.age"
  • that forces it to be a method call
• or @age
  • that's a direct instance variable reference

class Person
  def age=(years_old)
    @age = years_old
  end
  def bar_mitzvah!
    @age = 13
  end
  def bat_mitzvah!
    self.age = 13
  end
end

Attributes

• An attribute is a property with named getter and/or setter methods
• Usually corresponds to an instance variable

Attribute Shortcuts

aka "macros"

class Thing
  attr_reader :age    #  def age; @age; end
  attr_writer :age    #  def age=(x); @age = x; end
  attr_accessor :age  # both of the above
end

Constructor plus Attributes

class Person
  attr_accessor :age
  def initialize
    @age = 20
  end
end

alice = Person.new
alice.age #=> 20

Attribute Shortcuts (cont.)

• Can also take multiple arguments

class Thing
  attr_accessor :foo, :bar
end

thing = Thing.new
=> #<Thing:0x007fe008897278>
>> thing.methods
=> [:foo, :foo=, :bar, :bar=,

Attribute Shortcuts (cont.)

• Wait a second!
• Q: Where are attr_reader et al. defined?
• A: They are class methods of Object
• A: Or maybe they're instance methods of Class or Module; I'm not sure.

Attribute Shortcuts (cont.)

• Sadly, attr_accessor is misnamed
• "accessor" means reader, but attr_accessor makes a reader and a writer
• Should have been called just attribute

Lazy Initialization with Or-Equals

class Cookie
  def chips
    @chips ||= 10
  end
end

Query methods

class Person
  def child?
    @age < 18
  end
end

alice.age = 16
alice.child? #=> true

Note: query methods return a boolean by convention only

Bang methods

class Person
  def birthday!
    @age = @age + 1
  end
end

• "!" is pronounced "bang"
• usually means "watch out" or "destructive" or "side effect"
  • could also mean "may raise an exception"
  • no real rule, so watch out
• normally there's a non-bang equivalent
• in ActiveRecord, "!" means: raise exception if failure

A Poorly-Encapsulated Object

class BadStudent
  attr_accessor :first_name, :last_name
end

joe = BadStudent.new
joe.first_name = "Joe"
joe.last_name = "Blow"
puts joe.first_name + " " + joe.last_name

A Well-Encapsulated Object

class GoodStudent
  def initialize first_name, last_name
    @first_name, @last_name = first_name, last_name
  end

  def full_name
    "#{@first_name} #{@last_name}"
  end
end

jane = GoodStudent.new("Jane", "Brain")
puts jane.full_name

A Well-Encapsulated Object (cont)

• Why is this well-encapsulated?
  • initial state established by constructor
  • internal state used by methods, not exposed by getters
  • other objects do not have direct access to its internal state
  • if requirements change, code only changes in one place
    • e.g. adding a middle name
• Both shorter and safer than a poorly-encapsulated object

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