This post is based on design patterns, that are described in the excellent book - “Design Patterns in Ruby” (by Russ Olsen). When i was reading the book, i decided to write brief post that shows UML diagram and realization for some patterns, and add some tips in which way would be better, on my opinion, to realize some patterns in Ruby. Also i use description of each pattern from the book by The “Gang of Four” - “Design Patterns: Elements of Reusable Object-Oriented Software (by Erich Gamma, Richard Helm, Ralph Johnson, John Vlissides)”. I think this post is a good idea and it will be useful for someone and for me.

NOTE: I asked about permission to use content from “Design Patterns in Ruby” (by Russ Olsen) in this post. Thanks for the permission @russolsen!

NOTE: Not all of the patterns are covered in the book “Design Patterns in Ruby” (by Russ Olsen). There really was a number of reasons. Read the post “The Lost Patterns” for more information.

Read “Object-Oriented Design Patterns in Life”.

Patterns

Abstract Factory

Creates an instance of several families of classes. Provide an interface for creating families of related or dependent objects without specifying their concrete classes.

Example:

class Animal
  attr_accessor :name

  def initialize(name)
    @name = name
  end

  def eat
  end

  def speak
  end

  def sleep
  end
end

class Tiger < Animal
  def eat
    puts "Tiger #{name} is eating anything it wants."
  end

  def speak
    puts "Tiger #{name} Roars!"
  end

  def sleep
    puts "Tiger #{name} sleeps anywhere it wants."
  end
end

class Plant
  attr_accessor :name

  def initialize(name)
    @name = name
  end

  def grow
  end
end

class Tree < Plant
  def grow
    puts "The tree #{name} grows tall."
  end
end

class Habitat
  def initialize(organism_factory, number_animals: 0, number_plants: 0)
    @organism_factory = organism_factory

    @animals = []
    number_animals.times do |i|
      animal = @organism_factory.new_animal("Animal#{i}")
      @animals << animal
    end

    @plants = []
    number_plants.times do |i|
      plant  = @organism_factory.new_plant("Plant#{i}")
      @plants << plant
    end
  end

  def simulate_one_day
    @plants.each { |plant| plant.grow }
    @animals.each { |animal| animal.speak }
    @animals.each { |animal| animal.eat }
    @animals.each { |animal| animal.sleep }
  end
end

class JungleOrganismFactory
  def new_animal(name)
    Tiger.new(name)
  end

  def new_plant(name)
    Tree.new(name)
  end
end

class PondOrganismFactory
  def new_animal(name)
    Frog.new(name)
  end

  def new_plant(name)
    Algae.new(name)
  end
end

jungle = Habitat.new(JungleOrganismFactory.new, number_animals: 1, number_plants: 4)
jungle.simulate_one_day

pond = Habitat.new(PondOrganismFactory.new, number_animals: 2, number_plants: 4)
pond.simulate_one_day

Builder

Separates object construction from its representation. Separate the construction of a complex object from its representation so that the same construction processes can create different representations.

Example:

class CPU
end

class BasicCPU < CPU
end

class TurboCPU < CPU
end

class Motherboard
  attr_accessor :cpu
  attr_accessor :memory_size

  def initialize(cpu=BasicCPU.new, memory_size=1024)
    @cpu = cpu
    @memory_size = memory_size
  end
end

class Drive
  attr_reader :type # either :cd, :dvd or :hard_disk
  attr_reader :size # in Mb
  attr_reader :writable # true if this drive is writable

  def initialize(type, size, writable)
    @type = type
    @size = size
    @writable = writable
  end
end

class Computer
  attr_accessor :display
  attr_accessor :motherboard
  attr_reader   :drives

  def initialize(display=:crt, motherboard=Motherboard.new, drives=[])
    @motherboard = motherboard
    @drives = drives
    @display = display
  end
end

class ComputerBuilder
  attr_reader :computer

  def initialize
    @computer = Computer.new
  end

  def basic_cpu
    computer.motherboard.cpu = BasicCPU.new
  end

  def turbo_cpu
    computer.motherboard.cpu = TurboCPU.new
  end

  def display=(display)
    computer.display = display
  end

  def memory_size=(size_in_mb)
    computer.motherboard.memory_size = size_in_mb
  end

  def add_cd(writer=false)
    computer.drives << Drive.new(:cd, 760, writer)
  end

  def add_dvd(writer=false)
    computer.drives << Drive.new(:dvd, 4000, writer)
  end

  def add_hard_disk(size_in_mb)
    computer.drives << Drive.new(:hard_disk, size_in_mb, true)
  end
end

builder = ComputerBuilder.new
builder.turbo_cpu
builder.add_hard_disk(1_000_000)
builder.memory_size = 16000
builder.add_cd(true)
builder.add_dvd
computer = builder.computer

Factory Method

Creates an instance of several derived classes. Define an interface for creating an object, but let subclasses decide which class to instantiate. Factory Method lets a class defer instantiation to subclasses.

Example:

class Animal
  attr_accessor :name

  def initialize(name)
    @name = name
  end

  def eat
  end

  def speak
  end

  def sleep
  end
end

class Duck < Animal
  def eat
    puts "Duck #{name} is eating."
  end

  def speak
    puts "Duck #{name} says Quack!"
  end

  def sleep
    puts "Duck #{name} sleeps quietly."
  end
end


class Frog < Animal
  def eat
    puts "Frog #{name} is eating."
  end

  def speak
    puts "Frog #{name} says Crooooaaaak!"
  end

  def sleep
    puts "Frog #{name} doesn't sleep, he croaks all night!"
  end
end

class Plant
  attr_accessor :name

  def initialize(name)
    @name = name
  end

  def grow
  end
end

class Algae < Plant
  def grow
    puts "The Algae #{name} soaks up the sun and grows."
  end
end

class WaterLily < Plant
  def grow
    puts "The water lily #{name} floats, soaks up the sun and grows."
  end
end

class Pond
  def initialize(number_animals: 0, number_plants: 0)
    @animals = []
    number_animals.times do |i|
      animal = new_organism(:animal, "Animal#{i}")
      @animals << animal
    end

    @plants = []
    number_plants.times do |i|
      plant = new_organism(:plant, "Plant#{i}")
      @plants << plant
    end
  end

  def simulate_one_day
    @plants.each { |plant| plant.grow }
    @animals.each { |animal| animal.speak }
    @animals.each { |animal| animal.eat }
    @animals.each { |animal| animal.sleep }
  end
end

class DuckWaterLilyPond < Pond
  def new_organism(type, name)
    if type == :animal
      Duck.new(name)
    elsif type == :plant
      WaterLily.new(name)
    else
      raise "Unknown organism type: #{type}"
    end
  end
end

class FrogAlgaePond < Pond
  def new_organism(type, name)
    if type == :animal
      Frog.new(name)
    elsif type == :plant
      Algae.new(name)
    else
      raise "Unknown organism type: #{type}"
    end
  end
end

DuckWaterLilyPond.new(number_animals: 4, number_plants: 2)
FrogAlgaePond.new(number_animals: 3, number_plants: 7)

Prototype

A fully initialized instance to be copied or cloned. Specify the kinds of objects to create using a prototypical instance, and create new objects by copying this prototype.

Singleton

A class of which only a single instance can exist. Ensure a class only has one instance, and provide a global point of access to it.

Using Singleton module for realizing Singleton pattern in Ruby is a good idea.

Adapter

Match interfaces of different classes. Convert the interface of a class into another interface clients expect. Adapter lets classes work together that couldn’t otherwise because of incompatible interfaces.

Example:

class Encrypter
  def initialize(key)
    @key = key
  end

  def encrypt(reader, writer)
    key_index = 0
    while not reader.eof?
      clear_char = reader.getc
      encrypted_char = clear_char.ord ^ @key[key_index].ord
      writer.putc(encrypted_char.chr)
      key_index = (key_index + 1) % @key.size
    end
  end
end

class StringIOAdapter
  def initialize(string)
    @string = string
    @position = 0
  end

  def getc
    if @position >= @string.length
      raise EOFError
    end
    ch = @string[@position]
    @position += 1
    return ch
  end

  def eof?
    return @position >= @string.length
  end
end

encrypter = Encrypter.new('SECRET_KEY')

reader = File.open('message.txt')
writer = File.open('message.encrypted','w')
encrypter.encrypt(reader, writer)

reader = StringIOAdapter.new('We attack at dawn')
writer = File.open('out.txt', 'w')
encrypter.encrypt(reader, writer)

Bridge

Separates an object’s interface from its implementation. Decouple an abstraction from its implementation so that the two can vary independently.

Composite

A tree structure of simple and composite objects. Compose objects into tree structures to represent part-whole hierarchies. Composite lets clients treat individual objects and compositions of objects uniformly.

Example:

class Task
  attr_accessor :name, :parent

  def initialize(name)
    @name = name
    @parent = nil
  end

  def get_time_required
    0.0
  end
end

class CompositeTask < Task
  def initialize(name)
    super(name)
    @sub_tasks = []
  end

  def add_sub_task(task)
    @sub_tasks << task
    task.parent = self
  end

  def remove_sub_task(task)
    @sub_tasks.delete(task)
    task.parent = nil
  end

  def get_time_required
    time = 0.0
    @sub_tasks.each { |task| time += task.get_time_required }
    time
  end
end

class AddDryIngredientsTask < Task
  def initialize
    super('Add dry ingredients')
  end

  def get_time_required
    1.0
  end
end

class MixTask < Task
  def initialize
    super('Mix that batter up')
  end

  def get_time_required
    3.0
  end
end

class AddLiquidsTask < Task
  def initialize
    super('Add Liquids')
  end

  def get_time_required
    4.0
  end
end

class MakeBatterTask < CompositeTask
  def initialize
    super('Make batter')
    add_sub_task(AddDryIngredientsTask.new)
    add_sub_task(AddLiquidsTask.new)
    add_sub_task(MixTask.new)
  end
end

class FillPanTask < Task
  def initialize
    super('Fill pan')
  end

  def get_time_required
    2.0
  end
end

class FrostTask < Task
  def initialize
    super('Frost')
  end

  def get_time_required
    2.0
  end
end

class BakeTask < Task
  def initialize
    super('Bake')
  end

  def get_time_required
    2.0
  end
end

class LickSpoonTask < Task
  def initialize
    super('Bake')
  end

  def get_time_required
    100.0
  end
end

class MakeCakeTask < CompositeTask
  def initialize
    super('Make cake')
    add_sub_task(MakeBatterTask.new)
    add_sub_task(FillPanTask.new)
    add_sub_task(BakeTask.new)
    add_sub_task(FrostTask.new)
    add_sub_task(LickSpoonTask.new)
  end
end

Decorator

Add responsibilities to objects dynamically. Attach additional responsibilities to an object dynamically. Decorators provide a flexible alternative to subclassing for extending functionality.

I think to use SimpleDelegator class for realizing Decorator pattern in Ruby is a good idea. You can read my post “Decorator Pattern in Ruby” for more information.

Also good idea to use Forwardable module for realizing Decorator pattern in Ruby.

Facade

A single class that represents an entire subsystem. Provide a unified interface to a set of interfaces in a system. Facade defines a higher-level interface that makes the subsystem easier to use.

Flyweight

A fine-grained instance used for efficient sharing. Use sharing to support large numbers of fine-grained objects efficiently. A flyweight is a shared object that can be used in multiple contexts simultaneously. The flyweight acts as an independent object in each context — it’s indistinguishable from an instance of the object that’s not shared.

Proxy

An object representing another object. Provide a surrogate or placeholder for another object to control access to it.

Example:

class Account
  attr_reader :balance

  def initialize(starting_balance=0)
    @balance = starting_balance
  end

  def deposit(amount)
    @balance += amount
  end

  def withdraw(amount)
    @balance -= amount
  end
end

require 'etc'

class AccountProtectionProxy
  def initialize(real_account, owner_name)
    @subject = real_account
    @owner_name = owner_name
  end

  def deposit(amount)
    check_access
    return @subject.deposit(amount)
  end

  def withdraw(amount)
    check_access
    return @subject.withdraw(amount)
  end

  def balance
    check_access
    return @subject.balance
  end

  def check_access
    if Etc.getlogin != @owner_name
      raise "Illegal access: #{Etc.getlogin} cannot access account."
    end
  end
end

account = Account.new(100)
account.deposit(50)
account.withdraw(10)

proxy = AccountProtectionProxy.new(account, 'russolsen')
proxy.deposit(50)
proxy.withdraw(10)

Chain of responsibility

A way of passing a request between a chain of objects. Avoid coupling the sender of a request to its receiver by giving more than one object a chance to handle the request. Chain the receiving objects and pass the request along the chain until an object handles it.

Command

Encapsulate a command request as an object. Encapsulate a request as an object, thereby letting you parameterize clients with different requests, queue or log requests, and support undoable operations.

Example:

class Command
  attr_reader :description

  def initialize(description)
    @description = description
  end

  def execute
  end
end

class CreateFile < Command
  def initialize(path, contents)
    super("Create file: #{path}")
    @path = path
    @contents = contents
  end

  def execute
    f = File.open(@path, "w")
    f.write(@contents)
    f.close
  end
end

class DeleteFile < Command
  def initialize(path)
    super("Delete file: #{path}")
    @path = path
  end

  def execute
    File.delete(@path)
  end
end

require 'fileutils'

class CopyFile < Command
  def initialize(source, target)
    super("Copy file: #{source} to #{target}")
    @source = source
    @target = target
  end

  def execute
    FileUtils.copy(@source, @target)
  end
end

Interpreter

A way to include language elements in a program. Given a language, define a representation for its grammar along with an interpreter that uses the representation to interpret sentences in the language.

Example:

class Expression
  def |(other)
    Or.new(self, other)
  end

  def &(other)
    And.new(self, other)
  end
end

require 'find'

class All < Expression
  def evaluate(dir)
    results = []
    Find.find(dir) do |p|
      next unless File.file?(p)
      results << p
    end
    results
  end
end

require 'find'

class FileName < Expression
  def initialize(pattern)
    @pattern = pattern
  end

  def evaluate(dir)
    results = []
    Find.find(dir) do |p|
      next unless File.file?(p)
      name = File.basename(p)
      results << p if File.fnmatch(@pattern, name)
    end
    results
  end
end

class Not < Expression
  def initialize(expression)
    @expression = expression
  end

  def evaluate(dir)
    All.new.evaluate(dir) - @expression.evaluate(dir)
  end
end

require 'find'

class Bigger < Expression
  def initialize(size)
    @size = size
  end

  def evaluate(dir)
    results = []
    Find.find(dir) do |p|
      next unless File.file?(p)
      results << p if(File.size(p) > @size)
    end
    results
  end
end

require 'find'

class Writable < Expression
  def evaluate(dir)
    results = []
    Find.find(dir) do |p|
      next unless File.file?(p)
      results << p if(File.writable?(p))
    end
    results
  end
end

class Or < Expression
  def initialize(expression1, expression2)
    @expression1 = expression1
    @expression2 = expression2
  end

  def evaluate(dir)
    result1 = @expression1.evaluate(dir)
    result2 = @expression2.evaluate(dir)
    (result1 + result2).sort.uniq
  end
end

class And < Expression
  def initialize(expression1, expression2)
    @expression1 = expression1
    @expression2 = expression2
  end

  def evaluate(dir)
    result1 = @expression1.evaluate(dir)
    result2 = @expression2.evaluate(dir)
    (result1 & result2)
  end
end

module ExpressionSugar
  def all
    All.new
  end

  def bigger(size)
    Bigger.new(size)
  end

  def file_name(pattern)
    FileName.new(pattern)
  end

  def except(expression)
    Not.new(expression)
  end

  def writable
    Writable.new
  end
end

expression1 = Or.new(
  And.new(Bigger.new(2000), Not.new(Writable.new)),
  FileName.new('*.mp3')
)

expression1.evaluate('.')

include ExpressionSugar

expression2 = (bigger(2000) & except(writable)) | file_name('*.mp3')

expression2.evaluate('.')

Iterator

Sequentially access the elements of a collection. Provide a way to access the elements of an aggregate object sequentially without exposing its underlying representation.

In Ruby the Enumerable mixin provides collection classes with several traversal and searching methods, and with the ability to sort. The class must provide a method each, which yields successive members of the collection. If Enumerable#max, #min, or #sort is used, the objects in the collection must also implement a meaningful <=> operator, as these methods rely on an ordering between members of the collection.

Example:

class Account
  attr_accessor :name, :balance

  def initialize(name, balance)
    @name = name
    @balance = balance
  end

  def <=>(other)
    balance <=> other.balance
  end
end

class Portfolio
  include Enumerable

  def initialize
    @accounts = []
  end

  def each(&block)
    @accounts.each(&block)
  end

  def add_account(account)
    @accounts << account
  end
end

my_portfolio =  Portfolio.new
my_portfolio.add_account(Account.new('Bonds', 200))
my_portfolio.add_account(Account.new('Stocks', 100))
my_portfolio.add_account(Account.new('Real Estate', 1000))

my_portfolio.any? { |account| account.balance > 2000 }
my_portfolio.all? { |account| account.balance >= 10 }
my_portfolio.each { |account| puts "#{account.name}: #{account.balance}" }
my_portfolio.map { |account| account.balance }
my_portfolio.max
my_portfolio.min

Mediator

Defines simplified communication between classes. Define an object that encapsulates how a set of objects interact. Mediator promotes loose coupling by keeping objects from referring to each other explicitly, and it lets you vary their interaction independently.

Memento

Capture and restore an object’s internal state. Without violating encapsulation, capture and externalize an object’s internal state so that the object can be restored to this state later.

Observer

A way of notifying change to a number of classes. Define a one-to-many dependency between objects so that when one object changes state, all its dependents are notified and updated automatically.

Example:

module Subject
  def initialize
    @observers = []
  end

  def add_observer(observer)
    @observers << observer
  end

  def delete_observer(observer)
    @observers.delete(observer)
  end

  def notify_observers
    @observers.each do |observer|
      observer.update(self)
    end
  end
end

class Employee
  include Subject

  attr_reader :name, :address
  attr_reader :salary

  def initialize(name, title, salary)
   super()
   @name = name
   @title = title
   @salary = salary
  end

  def salary=(new_salary)
    @salary = new_salary
    notify_observers
  end
end

class Payroll
  def update(changed_employee)
    puts "Cut a new check for #{changed_employee.name}!"
    puts "His salary is now #{changed_employee.salary}!"
  end
end

class TaxMan
  def update(changed_employee)
    puts "Send #{changed_employee.name} a new tax bill!"
  end
end

fred = Employee.new('Fred', 'Crane Operator', 30000.0)

payroll = Payroll.new
tax_man = TaxMan.new

fred.add_observer(payroll)
fred.add_observer(tax_man)

fred.salary = 90000.0

The Ruby standard library comes with a fine, prebuilt Observable module that provides all of the support you need to make your object, well, observable. I think to use Observable module for realizing Observer pattern in Ruby is a good idea.

State

Alter an object’s behavior when its state changes. Allow an object to alter its behavior when its internal state changes. The object will appear to change its class.

Strategy

Encapsulates an algorithm inside a class. Define a family of algorithms, encapsulate each one, and make them interchangeable. Strategy lets the algorithm vary independently from clients that use it.

Example:

class Formatter
  def output_report(context)
    raise 'Abstract method called'
  end
end

class HTMLFormatter < Formatter
  def output_report(context)
    puts('<html>')
    puts('  <head>')
    puts("    <title>#{context.title}</title>")
    puts('  </head>')
    puts('  <body>')
    context.text.each do |line|
      puts("    <p>#{line}</p>")
    end
    puts('  </body>')
    puts('</html>')
  end
end

class PlainTextFormatter < Formatter
  def output_report(context)
    puts("***** #{context.title} *****")
    context.text.each do |line|
      puts(line)
    end
  end
end

class Report
  attr_reader :title, :text

  attr_accessor :formatter

  def initialize(formatter)
    @title = 'Monthly Report'
    @text =  ['Things are going', 'really, really well.']
    @formatter = formatter
  end

  def output_report
    @formatter.output_report(self)
  end
end

report = Report.new(HTMLFormatter.new)
report.output_report

report = Report.new(PlainTextFormatter.new)
report.output_report

Template Method

Defer the exact steps of an algorithm to a subclass. Define the skeleton of an algorithm in an operation, deferring some steps to subclasses. Template Method lets subclasses redefine certain steps of an algorithm without changing the algorithm’s structure.

Example:

class Report
  def initialize
    @title = 'Monthly Report'
    @text =  ['Things are going', 'really, really well.']
  end

  def output_report
    output_start
    output_head
    output_body_start
    output_body
    output_body_end
    output_end
  end

  def output_body
    @text.each do |line|
      output_line(line)
    end
  end

  def output_start
    raise 'Called abstract method: output_start'
  end

  def output_head
    raise 'Called abstract method: output_head'
  end

  def output_body_start
    raise 'Called abstract method: output_body_start'
  end

  def output_line(line)
    raise 'Called abstract method: output_line'
  end

  def output_body_end
    raise 'Called abstract method: output_body_end'
  end

  def output_end
    raise 'Called abstract method: output_end'
  end
end

class HTMLReport < Report
  def output_start
    puts('<html>')
  end

  def output_head
    puts('  <head>')
    puts("    <title>#{@title}</title>")
    puts('  </head>')
  end

  def output_body_start
    puts('<body>')
  end

  def output_line(line)
    puts("  <p>#{line}</p>")
  end

  def output_body_end
    puts('</body>')
  end

  def output_end
    puts('</html>')
  end
end

class PlainTextReport < Report
  def output_start
  end

  def output_head
    puts("**** #{@title} ****")
    puts
  end

  def output_body_start
  end

  def output_line(line)
    puts line
  end

  def output_body_end
  end

  def output_end
  end
end

report = HTMLReport.new
report.output_report

report = PlainTextReport.new
report.output_report

Visitor

Defines a new operation to a class without change. Represent an operation to be performed on the elements of an object structure. Visitor lets you define a new operation without changing the classes of the elements on which it operates.

Acknowledgment

Thanks for the book @russolsen!