On Sun, Jul 18, 2010 at 6:46 AM, James O'Brien <jeob32 / gmail.com> wrote: > David, > > many thanks! i found your explanation very useful.. and an article on duck > typing is well worth reading e.g http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duck_typing for > any other ruby newbies out there! FWIW, I wrote a paper about role-based 'types' nearly 20 years ago, when I was at IBM. I've shared it with a few experienced Rubyists who seemed to find a certain resonance with the ideas. Recently Alexander Cockburn (of Crystal fame) with whom I have a shared hertitage at IBM back then, tells me he still uses the paper when talking to clients about dynamic typing. http://talklikeaduck.denhaven2.com/files/TypesFromTheClientsViewpoint.PDF -- Rick DeNatale Blog: http://talklikeaduck.denhaven2.com/ Github: http://github.com/rubyredrick Twitter: @RickDeNatale WWR: http://www.workingwithrails.com/person/9021-rick-denatale LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/rickdenatale