ruby-core

Issue #17330 has been updated by mame (Yusuke Endoh).


I understand the logic, but the result of your generalization, `&.non(&:empty?)`, is hard to read anyway. @matz says it too in #note-7. The short idiom includes a branch (`&.`), negation (`non`), and implicit Symbol#to_proc hack. It is very brain-intensive, and reminiscent of Perl.

I guess the generalization is an impossible idea. I like the specific `container#nonempty?` in #12075 (except its name). If we were to introduce something even slightly generalized to this problem, `x.empty?.not` that @akr proposed in #note-6 would be a reasonable compromise, IMO.

> The existence of `nonzero?` highlights that Ruby core devs also tried to address the problem.

The birth of `nonzero?` is a bit more particular, and it is considered no longer needed in modern times. I wrote its history in https://bugs.ruby-lang.org/issues/9123#change-43083 . It is not so related to this topic, but you may be interested.

----------------------------------------
Feature #17330: Object#non
https://bugs.ruby-lang.org/issues/17330#change-98673

* Author: zverok (Victor Shepelev)
* Status: Open
* Priority: Normal
----------------------------------------
(As always "with core" method proposals, I don't expect quick success, but hope for a fruitful discussion)

### Reasons:

Ruby always tried to be very chainability-friendly. Recently, with introduction of `.then` and `=>`, even more so. But one pattern that frequently emerges and doesn't have good idiomatic expression: calculate something, and if it is not a "good" value, return `nil` (or provide default value with `||`). There are currently two partial solutions:

1. `nonzero?` in Ruby core (frequently mocked for "inadequate" behavior, as it is looking like predicate method, but instead of `true`/`false` returns an original value or `nil`)
2. ActiveSupport `Object#presence`, which also returns an original value or `nil` if it is not "present" (e.g. `nil` or `empty?` in AS-speak)

Both of them prove themselves quite useful in some domains, but they are targeting only those particular domains, look unlike each other, and can be confusing.

### Proposal:

Method `Object#non` (or `Kernel#non`), which receives a block, calls it with receiver and returns `nil` (if block matched) or receiver otherwise.

##### Prototype implementation:

```ruby
class Object
  def non
    self unless yield(self)
  end
end
```

##### Usage examples:

1. With number:

    ```ruby
    limit = calculate.some.limit
    limit.zero? ? DEFAULT_LIMIT : limit
    # or, with nonzero?
    calculate.some.limit.nonzero? || DEFAULT_LIMIT
    # with non:
    calculate.some.limit.non(&:zero?) || DEFAULT_LIMIT
    # ^ Note here, how, unlike `nonzero?`, we see predicate-y ?, but it is INSIDE the `non()` and less confusing
    ```

2. With string:

    ```ruby
    name = params[:name] if params[:name] && !params[:name].empty?
    # or, with ActiveSupport:
    name = params[:name].presence
    # with non:
    name = params[:name]&.non(&:empty?)
    ```

3. More complicated example

    ```ruby
    action = payload.dig('action', 'type')
    return if PROHIBITED_ACTIONS.include?(action)
    send("do_#{action}")
    # with non & then:
    payload.dig('action', 'type')
      .non { |action| PROHIBITED_ACTIONS.include?(action) }
      &.then { |action| send("do_#{action}") }
    ```

Basically, the proposal is a "chainable guard clause" that allows to "chain"ify and DRYify code like:

```ruby
value = fetch_something
return value unless value.with_problems?
# which turns into
fetch_something.non(&:with_problems?)

# or
value = fetch_something
value = reasonable_default if value.with_problems?
# turns into
value = fetch_something.non(&:with_problems?) || reasonable_default
```

I believe that this idiom is frequent enough, in combinations like (assorted examples) "read config file but return `nil` if it is empty/wrong version", "fetch latest invoice, but ignore if it has an `unpayable` flag", "fetch a list of last user's searches, but if it is empty, provide default search hints" etc.

I believe there _is_ un unreflected need for idiom like this, the need that is demonstrated by the existence of `nonzero?` and `presence`.



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