2009/1/8  <kazaam / oleco.net>:
> Hi,
> I'm writing a little tcp-client which connects to a tcp-server, sends a command and recieves an answer. If I do something like that:
>
> #!/usr/bin/env ruby
>
> $VERBOSE=true
>
> require 'socket'
> ...
> begin
>        socket = TCPSocket.new($ip,$port)
> rescue
>        puts "error: #{$!}"
>        exit 1
> end
>
> socket.print command
>
> answer=socket.gets
>
> socket.close
>
>
> It works if the server sends just one line. But I don't know how many lines the server answers. So I tried something like that:
>
> answers=[]
> while answer=socket.gets
>        answers<<answer
> end
>
> But this results in the while-loop never ending. Even if just one line is the answer the while loop does simply never end :( Any idea how to do this?

Basically you need to define a protocol of your own which handles
this. There are many ways to do that.  One option is to define that
there will be only one line ever.  Another option is to include
something in each like which indicates whether there is more to
follow.  Yet another option is to define a terminator sequence and use
gets or IO#each with terminator argument similar to this:

RKlemme@padrklemme1 ~
$ cat <<EOF | ruby -e 'ARGF.each("EOM") {|msg| p msg}'
> foo
> bar
> baz
> EOM
> dada
> dodo
> xxx
> EOM
> EOF
"foo\nbar\nbaz\nEOM"
"\ndada\ndodo\nxxx\nEOM"
"\n"

RKlemme@padrklemme1 ~
$

Here "EOM" is the message terminator.

Or you can use DRb if all processes are Ruby processes.  Then it's
handled by DRb and you just invoke methods.

Kind regards

robert

-- 
remember.guy do |as, often| as.you_can - without end