# Attr\_accessor not setting or being displayed in the layout

**URL:** <https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/attr-accessor-not-setting-or-being-displayed-in-the-layout/111261>\
**Category:** Rails\
**Created:** [August 4, 2007, 3:27pm UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/attr-accessor-not-setting-or-being-displayed-in-the-layout/111261 "2007-08-04T15:27:25Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 2\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Camo](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/c/ce7236/32.png) [@Camo](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/Camo)\
**Post date:** [August 4, 2007, 3:27pm UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/attr-accessor-not-setting-or-being-displayed-in-the-layout/111261/1 "2007-08-04T15:27:25Z")

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Hi there guys

I’ve been pulling my hair out all night with this one, I thought it  
would work?

If in my controller i do the following

class PagesController \< ApplicationController  
attr\_accessor :something  
helper\_attr :something

def show  
something = “display this!”

```
respond_to do |format|
    format.html
format.xml { render :xml => @page.to_xml }
end

```

end  
end

Then in my view

\<%= something %\>

Should “display this!” get displayed? becuase it doesn’t seem to be  
setting for me

Thanks in advance 🙂

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Camo](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/c/ce7236/32.png) [@Camo](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/Camo)\
**Post date:** [August 4, 2007, 3:35pm UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/attr-accessor-not-setting-or-being-displayed-in-the-layout/111261/2 "2007-08-04T15:35:27Z")

</div>

Camo wrote:

> class PagesController \< ApplicationController  
> attr\_accessor :something  
> helper\_attr :something
> 
> def show  
> something = “display this!”
> 
> ```
> respond_to do |format|
> format.html
> format.xml { render :xml => @page.to_xml }
> end
> 
> ```
> 
> end  
> end

Try self.something = “display this!”. Calling an assignment on just  
“something” will assign a variable that is local to that method instead  
of the object.

–  
Roderick van Domburg

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