On Sat, Sep 15, 2007 at 07:28:20AM +0900, Michael Neumann wrote:
> David Flanagan schrieb:
> >Nikolai Weibull wrote:
> >>On 9/13/07, Christian Neukirchen <chneukirchen / gmail.com> wrote:
> >>
> >>>rand.rb uses #pick.
> >>
> >>To me, "to pick" is the act of selecting with discrimination.

I agree. I would assume a #pick method to take a block. And I would
NEVER be able to guess that #pick and #select are different, they are
synonyms in English. I always thought select was too long a method name,
maybe it can be renamed to pick? ;-)

> >>How about #any?
> >>
> >>  nikolai
> >>
> >
> >+1 for the name #any
> >
> >I also like Jon Olson's suggestion that the method take an optional 
> >integer argument, and return an array with that many elements chosen at 
> >random.  (And with no argument, it returns just a random element, 
> >without a containing array.)  I still think it would be useful to have 
> >any! which would remove the returned elements from the array.
> 
> -2 for #any, as we already have Enumerable#any?

I very much agree.

Is this method really that useful? The fact that its hard to describe
suggests its not.

Sam


dict says of pick:

7. To choose; to select; to separate as choice or desirable; to cull; as, to
pick one's company; to pick one's way; -- often with out. "One man picked out
of ten thousand." --Shak.  [1913 Webster]

4. Choice; right of selection; as, to have one's pick; in cat breeding, the
owner of a stud gets the pick of the litter.  [1913 Webster +PJC]

5. Hence: That which would be picked or chosen first; the best; as, the pick of
the flock.  [1913 Webster]


2. To do anything nicely or carefully, or by attending to small things; to
select something with care.  [1913 Webster]

n 1: the person or thing chosen or selected; "he was my pick for mayor" [syn:
{choice}, {selection}]