# Operating on strings using IO interface **URL:** \ **Category:** Ruby\ **Created:** [April 14, 2007, 12:06pm UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/operating-on-strings-using-io-interface/92005 "2007-04-14T12:06:11Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 4\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![samoht](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/s/ac8455/32.png) [@samoht](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/samoht)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2007, 12:06pm UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/operating-on-strings-using-io-interface/92005/1 "2007-04-14T12:06:11Z")
Hello, is there a means that a piece of software can use just the IO interface transparently without needing to know, whether the data to read (resp. to write) is coming from (resp. going to) a file or a string? Something comparable to stringstream in C++? Regards Thomas ---
**Author:** ![samoht](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/s/ac8455/32.png) [@samoht](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/samoht)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2007, 12:28pm UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/operating-on-strings-using-io-interface/92005/2 "2007-04-14T12:28:13Z")
On Apr 14, 2007, at 12:05 PM, Thomas H. wrote: > is there a means that a piece of software can use just the IO > interface transparently without needing to know, whether the data to > read (resp. to write) is coming from (resp. going to) a file or a > string? Something comparable to stringstream in C++? ri StringIO – fxn ---
**Author:** ![samoht](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/s/ac8455/32.png) [@samoht](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/samoht)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2007, 1:56pm UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/operating-on-strings-using-io-interface/92005/3 "2007-04-14T13:56:20Z")
On Apr 14, 12:27 pm, Xavier N. [removed\_email\_address@domain.invalid](mailto:removed_email_address@domain.invalid) wrote: > On Apr 14, 2007, at 12:05 PM, Thomas H. wrote: > > > is there a means that a piece of software can use just the IO > > interface transparently without needing to know, whether the data to > > read (resp. to write) is coming from (resp. going to) a file or a > > string? Something comparable to stringstream in C++? > > ri StringIO > > – fxn lol, funny, on my kubuntu-box, ri runned until yesterday, and now: ri StringIO /usr/lib/ruby/1.8/rdoc/ri/ri\_descriptions.rb:99:in `concat': can't convert nil into Array (TypeError) from /usr/lib/ruby/1.8/rdoc/ri/ri_descriptions.rb:99:in `merge\_in’ from /usr/lib/ruby/1.8/rdoc/ri/ri\_reader.rb:56:in `get_class' from /usr/lib/ruby/1.8/rdoc/ri/ri_reader.rb:52:in `get\_class’ from /usr/lib/ruby/1.8/rdoc/ri/ri\_reader.rb:31:in `find_class_by_name' from /usr/lib/ruby/1.8/rdoc/ri/ri_display.rb:97:in `display\_class\_info’ from /usr/lib/ruby/1.8/rdoc/ri/ri\_display.rb:96:in `display_class_info' from /usr/lib/ruby/1.8/rdoc/ri/ri_display.rb:199:in `page’ from /usr/lib/ruby/1.8/rdoc/ri/ri\_display.rb:77:in `display_class_info' from /usr/lib/ruby/1.8/rdoc/ri/ri_driver.rb:71:in `report\_class\_stuff’ from /usr/lib/ruby/1.8/rdoc/ri/ri\_driver.rb:106:in `get_info_for' from /usr/lib/ruby/1.8/rdoc/ri/ri_driver.rb:135:in `process\_args’ from /usr/lib/ruby/1.8/rdoc/ri/ri\_driver.rb:134:in `process\_args’ from /usr/bin/ri:48 Sometimes I hate those automatic updates… ---
**Author:** ![samoht](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/s/ac8455/32.png) [@samoht](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/samoht)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2007, 4:45pm UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/operating-on-strings-using-io-interface/92005/4 "2007-04-14T16:45:33Z")
Xavier N. [removed\_email\_address@domain.invalid](mailto:removed_email_address@domain.invalid) wrote/schrieb [removed\_email\_address@domain.invalid](mailto:removed_email_address@domain.invalid): > ri StringIO Thanks, that’s exacly what I was looking for. Regards Thomas