Ruby/smalltalk: method_missing/doesNotUnderstand

Hi all - this is for the Smalltalkers and the people interested in
Ruby’s genealogy, as it were. Is it fair for me to tell people that
method_missing is a Ruby translation of Smalltalk’s doesNotUnderstand?
Or is it more a totally unique feature? I was going to say the first,
but now I think it’s the latter. I don’t think you can rewrite
doesNotUnderstand the way you can rewrite method_missing - or,
actually, I think you can, but I think in practice it happens much
less. Anyway, help me out if you know the answer to this one.


Giles B.

Blog: http://gilesbowkett.blogspot.com
Portfolio: http://www.gilesgoatboy.org

On 6/10/07, Giles B. [email protected] wrote:

Hi all - this is for the Smalltalkers and the people interested in
Ruby’s genealogy, as it were. Is it fair for me to tell people that
method_missing is a Ruby translation of Smalltalk’s doesNotUnderstand?
Or is it more a totally unique feature? I was going to say the first,
but now I think it’s the latter. I don’t think you can rewrite
doesNotUnderstand the way you can rewrite method_missing - or,
actually, I think you can, but I think in practice it happens much
less. Anyway, help me out if you know the answer to this one.

Actually overriding doeNotUnderstand: in Smalltalk is rather common
for much the same reasons it’s used in Ruby.

For example, when I wrote the Smalltalk distributed feature for IBM
Smalltalk about 10 years ago, doesNotUnderstand was a key underpinning
of the implementation.

As to where Matz got the idea you’d have to ask him, but it’s very
much the same mechanism.


Rick DeNatale

My blog on Ruby
http://talklikeaduck.denhaven2.com/

On Jun 11, 2007, at 08:26 , Rick DeNatale wrote:

Actually overriding doeNotUnderstand: in Smalltalk is rather common
for much the same reasons it’s used in Ruby.

For example, when I wrote the Smalltalk distributed feature for IBM
Smalltalk about 10 years ago, doesNotUnderstand was a key underpinning
of the implementation.

seconded.

Actually overriding doeNotUnderstand: in Smalltalk is rather common
for much the same reasons it’s used in Ruby.

For example, when I wrote the Smalltalk distributed feature for IBM
Smalltalk about 10 years ago, doesNotUnderstand was a key underpinning
of the implementation.

As to where Matz got the idea you’d have to ask him, but it’s very
much the same mechanism.

Gracias! That’s kind of what I suspected.


Giles B.

Blog: http://gilesbowkett.blogspot.com
Portfolio: http://www.gilesgoatboy.org