Stefan Reindl StefanReindl

Self

self - is what's called a reflective method - refers to the instance on which it is called.

self.variable refers to the most current attribute of that object
- useful when you are overwriting or changing variables often.
Calling @variable instead of self.variable will return the original instance variable defined in the class.
self.method is a Class Method - in this case, 'self' refers to the Class itself
- identical to writing Class_Name.method (which you shouldn't do inside a Class)

Two uses for 'self':

	class SiegeEngine < Unit
	attr_reader :health_points, :attack_power

	def initialize
	@health_points = 400
	@attack_power = 50
	end

	def can_attack?(enemy_unit)
	enemy_unit.class == SiegeEngine \|\| Barracks