[erlang-questions] How do I elegantly check many conditions?

[Hynek Vychodil]

On Tue, Mar 24, 2009 at 9:24 PM, mats cronqvist <masse@REDACTED> wrote:

> Hynek Vychodil <vychodil.hynek@REDACTED> writes:
>
> > code
> >
> > ok = is_new_email1(Email).
> >
> > doesn't looks like same amount of code
> >
> > try is_new_email2(Email) catch throw:email_in_use -> email_in_use end.
> >
> > First one turns return value to exception, second one turns exception to
> > return value. Second one seems more code, does not?
>
>   but the exception generated in example 1 is a worthless 'badmatch'.
>

I can flexible choose which worth-full 'badmatch'  will be generated just
using {ok, Email} = {is_new_email1(Email), Email}. It all up to me. It is
meaning of word 'flexible'.


> > Even code
> >
> > is_new_email1(Email) ->
> >   case mnesia:dirty_read(email, Email) of
> >     []    -> ok;
> >     _ -> email_in_use
> >   end.
> >
> > seems less than
> >
> > is_new_email2(Email) ->
> >   case mnesia:dirty_read(email, Email) of
> >     []    -> ok;
> >     _ -> throw(email_in_use)
> >   end.
>
>   I think it should be written like this;
>
> is_new_email2(Email) ->
>  try [] = mnesia:dirty_read(email, Email)
>  catch _:_ -> throw({email_in_use,Email})
>  end.
>
>  This is how your example 1 above has to be written too, if it is to
>  give a helpful error message.
>

Yes, but what prevent me

is_new_email1(Email) ->
  case mnesia:dirty_read(email, Email) of
    [] -> ok;
    _ -> {email_in_use,Email}
  end.

and again, less code and more flexible. Each variant with throw can be
written without throw in far flexible way.


>  mats
>



-- 
--Hynek (Pichi) Vychodil

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