[erlang-questions] Improve $handle_undefined_function

[Vlad Dumitrescu]

On Tue, Jan 22, 2013 at 1:02 PM, Loïc Hoguin <essen@REDACTED> wrote:

> On 01/22/2013 12:57 PM, Vlad Dumitrescu wrote:
>
>> Hi,
>>
>> On Tue, Jan 22, 2013 at 12:10 PM, Loïc Hoguin <essen@REDACTED
>> <mailto:essen@REDACTED>> wrote:
>>
>>     On 01/22/2013 07:34 AM, Björn Gustavsson wrote:
>>
>>         Why not use the existing -export() attribute and write like
>>
>>         this:
>>
>>         -export([monitor/2,demonitor/_**_1]).
>>
>>
>>         monitor(process, Pid) ->
>>              do_something.
>>
>>         demonitor(Pid) ->
>>              do_something_else().
>>
>>         So what would be the advantage of your version?
>>
>>
>>     It still allows Evan Miller to write this:
>>
>>     -attr([first_name/1, last_name/1, ...]).
>>
>>     $handle_undefined_function(F, [Model]) ->
>>          {_, Value} = lists:keyfind(F, 1, Model),
>>          Value.
>>
>>
>> I'm sorry, but I don't think you are answering Björn's question. For
>> this particular case, why not write regular Erlang like
>>
>> first_name(Model) -> get(first_name, Model).
>> last_name(Model) -> get(last_name, Model).
>> get(F, [Model]) ->
>>      {_, Value} = lists:keyfind(F, 1, Model),
>>      Value.
>> which is much clearer to understand. One argument might be that there is
>> some duplication, but I think that it could be handled with much more
>> elegance if we had abstract patterns implemented.
>>
>> Do you have a more relevant example where using
>> $handle_undefined_function gives significant advantage?
>>
>
> That's a question about $handle_undefined_function in general, not about
> this specific implementation proposal. Björn is the one who wrote the
> current implementation that's now in master, I don't have to tell him what
> can be done with it, he knows. I do have to tell him how implementing it
> this way improves the usage, though. Which is the sole reason of this
> thread.
>

Maybe I'm confused, but your answer would make 100% sense if Björn's
question would have been

"
  Why not use the existing -export() attribute and write like this:
        -export([monitor/2,demonitor/1]).
        $handle_undefined_function(**monitor, [process, Pid]) ->
            do_something();
        $handle_undefined_function(**demonitor, Pid) ->
            do_something_else().
"

My question is a follow-up on his own formulation, where your suggestion is
compared with an implementation not using $handle_undefined_function at all.

best regards,
Vlad
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