# Do I overuse class methods? **URL:** \ **Category:** Ruby\ **Created:** [June 17, 2010, 4:22pm UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/do-i-overuse-class-methods/190166 "2010-06-17T16:22:07Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![MichaSSSSSZajSSSS\_S](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/m/919ad9/32.png) [@MichaSSSSSZajSSSS\_S](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/MichaSSSSSZajSSSS_S)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2010, 4:22pm UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/do-i-overuse-class-methods/190166/1 "2010-06-17T16:22:07Z")
Hello, I write in ruby for few weeks and I have noticed that in ruby I use class (static) methods more often than in “traditional” languages like java or c#. In java I use instance methods for two purposes - maintaining object state and to use polymorphic behaviour. In ruby polymorphism is available to class methods as well as for instance ones so I don’t see need for using instance methods in stateless classes (for example typical application / domain services). It is common for ruby programmers or maybe I have miss something? Best Regards, MichaÅ‚ ---
**Author:** ![MichaSSSSSZajSSSS\_S](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/m/919ad9/32.png) [@MichaSSSSSZajSSSS\_S](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/MichaSSSSSZajSSSS_S)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2010, 4:22pm UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/do-i-overuse-class-methods/190166/2 "2010-06-17T16:22:38Z")
On 2010-06-13 10:27:48 -0700, MichaÅ‚ ZajÄ…c said: > Best Regards, > MichaÅ‚ Classes are designed to instantiate objects. If you have classes that consist solely of class methods then they aren’t functioning as classes at all but rather as convenient globally-available namespaces for singleton methods, which is a very procedural style of progrmaming. Procedural programming is not necessarily bad, but you are missing out on a great deal of the power and flexibility of an OOP langauge by writing procedural code. Then again, if the system works for you and maintainability and other core values do not appear to suffer, who’s to say you’re doing it wrong? Even asking the question shows that you’re thinking critically about the tradeoffs involved here, which is a good start. ---
**Author:** ![MichaSSSSSZajSSSS\_S](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/m/919ad9/32.png) [@MichaSSSSSZajSSSS\_S](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/MichaSSSSSZajSSSS_S)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2010, 4:27pm UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/do-i-overuse-class-methods/190166/3 "2010-06-17T16:27:01Z")
2010/6/14 Rein H. [removed\_email\_address@domain.invalid](mailto:removed_email_address@domain.invalid): > > It is common for ruby programmers or maybe I have miss something? > > Classes are designed to instantiate objects. If you have classes that > consist solely of class methods then they aren’t functioning as classes at > all but rather as convenient globally-available namespaces for singleton > methods, which is a very procedural style of progrmaming. Procedural > programming is not necessarily bad, but you are missing out on a great deal > of the power and flexibility of an OOP langauge by writing procedural code. As a compromise Michael could use module Singleton and thus define instance methods without the overhead of creating new instances all the time. irb(main):001:0\> require ‘singleton’ =\> true irb(main):002:0\> class Foo;end =\> nil irb(main):003:0\> (1…3).map { Foo.new } =\> [#Foo:0x1029b494, #Foo:0x1029b478, #Foo:0x1029b45c] irb(main):004:0\> class Foo; include Singleton; end =\> Foo irb(main):005:0\> (1…3).map { Foo.new } NoMethodError: private method `new' called for Foo:Class from (irb):5:in `block in irb\_binding’ from (irb):5:in `each' from (irb):5:in `map’ from (irb):5 from /opt/bin/irb19:12:in `’ irb(main):006:0\> (1…3).map { Foo.instance } =\> [#Foo:0x10268b88, #Foo:0x10268b88, #Foo:0x10268b88] irb(main):007:0\> Singleton pattern allows for easier migration if at a later point in time instances need state. > Then again, if the system works for you and maintainability and other core > values do not appear to suffer, who’s to say you’re doing it wrong? Even > asking the question shows that you’re thinking critically about the > tradeoffs involved here, which is a good start. Absolutely agree! Kind regards robert ---
**Author:** ![MichaSSSSSZajSSSS\_S](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/m/919ad9/32.png) [@MichaSSSSSZajSSSS\_S](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/MichaSSSSSZajSSSS_S)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2010, 4:35pm UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/do-i-overuse-class-methods/190166/4 "2010-06-17T16:35:19Z")
W dniu 2010-06-14 15:33, Robert K. pisze: > As a compromise Michael could use module Singleton and thus define > instance methods without the overhead of creating new instances all > the time. I think this is interesting idea. I have spent much time in Java / C# environments with heavy use of dependency injection pattern so maybe this is source of my aversion to stateless classes manual instantiation - usually something else has done it for me 😃 Using Singleton pattern is more similar to Service Locator but it may be good alternative. Thanks ---
**Author:** ![MichaSSSSSZajSSSS\_S](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/m/919ad9/32.png) [@MichaSSSSSZajSSSS\_S](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/MichaSSSSSZajSSSS_S)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2010, 4:35pm UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/do-i-overuse-class-methods/190166/5 "2010-06-17T16:35:20Z")
On 2010-06-14 10:35:10 -0700, MichaÅ‚ ZajÄ…c said: > stateless classes manual instantiation - usually something else has > done it for me 😃 Using Singleton pattern is more similar to Service > Locator but it may be good alternative. > > Thanks Ruby’s design patterns (in the Gang of Four sense) are extremely lightweight compared to their Java equivalents. Rick Olsen’s Design Patterns in Ruby book shows good idiomatic Ruby implementations of the GoF patterns. That said, I don’t think you want a Pattern at all. I think you want a more _object oriented_ architecture. IRT Singleton: I think that Singleton is just a way to cheat and get global state that looks like instances. I didn’t present it as a solution because (imo) it’s really just a restatement of the problem. I try to avoid it for the same reasons that I try to avoid the classes you’re asking about. Let me put it this way: replace all of your pseudo-classes (these classes that don’t instantiate and are used as singleton method holders) with this: YourClass = Object.new def YourClass.some\_method … do stuff … end … more … This is functionally equivalent. Does this look like good Ruby code? Is this good OO design? If not, why not? The classes you’re asking about aren’t (functionally) classes at all: they’re just objects like this one. You should object to them for the same reasons that you (may) object to the above. Also, Ruby has far better mechanisms than dependency injection. So much so, in fact, that Rails core member and creator of two different Ruby dep. injection libraries, Jamis B., recently gave a great talk about why you don’t need dependency injection in Ruby. Summary is here, and is a good read if you’re coming from heavy, “enterprisey” languages like Java: [Buckblog: LEGOs, Play-Doh, and Programming](http://weblog.jamisbuck.org/2008/11/9/legos-play-doh-and-programming). Coming from a Java background, the best thing you can do is let go of the heavy pattern-driven architectures that are common in enterprise-land (the ServiceLocator, CachedTemplateFactoryProxyFactory, whatever) and enjoy the freedom of working with simple, lightweight classes and objects. ---
**Author:** ![MichaSSSSSZajSSSS\_S](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/m/919ad9/32.png) [@MichaSSSSSZajSSSS\_S](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/MichaSSSSSZajSSSS_S)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2010, 4:51pm UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/do-i-overuse-class-methods/190166/6 "2010-06-17T16:51:11Z")
On 2010-06-16 11:48:32 -0700, MichaÅ‚ ZajÄ…c said: > > end > > designed systems there is a place for stateless classes too (of course > > Back to your question - maybe it is _functionally_ equivalent of > > why you don’t need dependency injection in Ruby. Summary is here, and is > > a good read if you’re coming from heavy, “enterprisey” languages like > > Java: [Buckblog: LEGOs, Play-Doh, and Programming](http://weblog.jamisbuck.org/2008/11/9/legos-play-doh-and-programming). > > I never treat DI and automatic DI frameworks as the same thing - and I > repeat it to every programmer I am working with 🙂 Due to better > language mechanisms (open classes) in ruby we can make dependency > injection as described in article. What I like less is mixing business > code and collaborators construction (new calls) in one physical code > unit. I would prefer that you use modules for “stateless classes” that you don’t initialize. Modules are semantically for use in both “mixins” and namespacing, and the namespacing here is an appropriate use. They also don’t share the semantic baggage that classes do (initialization) for this use. ---
**Author:** ![MichaSSSSSZajSSSS\_S](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/m/919ad9/32.png) [@MichaSSSSSZajSSSS\_S](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/MichaSSSSSZajSSSS_S)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2010, 4:51pm UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/do-i-overuse-class-methods/190166/7 "2010-06-17T16:51:11Z")
W dniu 2010-06-15 01:06, Rein H. pisze: Let me put it this way: replace all of your > This is functionally equivalent. Does this look like good Ruby code? Is > this good OO design? If not, why not? The classes you’re asking about > aren’t (functionally) classes at all: they’re just objects like this > one. You should object to them for the same reasons that you (may) > object to the above. I can’t agree that using such classes is _always_ bad design. In well designed systems there is a place for stateless classes too (of course they are in minority). They main responsibility is not to encapsulate data but encapsulate dependencies - for example AbstractSmtpClient which encapsulates (wrapes) concrete SMTP client implementation. In Java this kind of encapsulation is needed to unit test classes those use SMTP communication. But what is more important to me is responsibility separation (SRP) - actual business code doesn’t have to create and configure SMTP client - it just gets ready for use AbstractSmtpClient object from outside (not necessary from heavy weight DI framework). Back to your question - maybe it is _functionally_ equivalent of defining methods inline one by one but it is not eqivalent in terms of code readability (in my “psuedo-classes” I separated code that you have mixed in one class) in this way we can treat every program (even written in ruby) as “functionally equivalent” of assembler or I have misunderstood your example 😃 > Also, Ruby has far better mechanisms than dependency injection. So much > so, in fact, that Rails core member and creator of two different Ruby > dep. injection libraries, Jamis B., recently gave a great talk about > why you don’t need dependency injection in Ruby. Summary is here, and is > a good read if you’re coming from heavy, “enterprisey” languages like > Java: [Buckblog: LEGOs, Play-Doh, and Programming](http://weblog.jamisbuck.org/2008/11/9/legos-play-doh-and-programming). I never treat DI and automatic DI frameworks as the same thing - and I repeat it to every programmer I am working with 🙂 Due to better language mechanisms (open classes) in ruby we can make dependency injection as described in article. What I like less is mixing business code and collaborators construction (new calls) in one physical code unit.