Ruby Mixin and monkey patching examples

Let's explore a couple of solutions to dynamically add a split_by_half behaviour to an array object. The first technique is the mixin: it allows to add the method to a single array instance. The second one is called monkey patching, and adds the method directly to the Array class, adding this behaviour to every array instance.

	######### MIXIN
	module SplittableArray
	def split_by_half
	middle = (self.size.to_f / 2).floor
	return [self[0..middle], self[middle+1..self.size]]
	end
	end
	some_array = [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]
	some_array.extend SplittableArray
	some_array.split_by_half # => [[1, 2, 3], [4, 5]]
	######### MONKEY PATCH ARRAY
	class Array
	def split_by_half
	middle = (self.size.to_f / 2).floor
	return [self[0..middle], self[middle+1..self.size]]
	end
	end
	another_array = [6, 7, 8, 9, 10]
	another_array.split_by_half # => [[6, 7, 8], [9, 10]]

view raw mixin_vs_monkey_patch.rb hosted with ❤ by GitHub

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