Difference between return and puts?

I think I understand the flow, but what isn't making sense to me is what is happening with the return. It seems to me like a pointless exercise if all you're doing is making a program that creates a string that gets completed by the computer and then seems to go nowhere and do nothing. What is the return method for?

I'm trying to find some explanations online of return and coming up with very little. As far as I can tell, putting code like this into a larger program creates a kind of "mini program" (algorithm, i think is what it would be called?) that you can call up later somehow. Perhaps that's what you were alluding to with your remark about changing puts mod() to value = mod()? I tried changing my code to reflect this and found that I can then type puts value and it will print the string. I also found that I can create multiple values such as value1 = mod(a, b) and value2 = mod(a, b), assign different variables to each and then use puts value1 or puts value2 to print the resulting string. Maybe this is useful but right now I don't understand how.

I know it's probably too much to get into and it may be explained more thoroughly later so I don't want to compel you to write a lengthy response! Am I on the right track with this?

You are on the right track and will learn more advanced uses of functions other than just returning a hard-coded string. Functions can perform very complex 'functions' and just kind of wait for you to 'call' on them.

Your example of creating multiple variables and using the same function (but with different arguments) is one of the things that make functions so useful and important in programming. Instead of having to code that equation every time you want to figure the remainder of two numbers, you just call the function and pass in the arguments.

Granted this is a very simple function with only one line of code, but think about a highly advanced/complex function that could have 20, 30, or even more lines of code (conditionals, formulas, etc) that can take any number of arguments... That's not something you'd want to have to write out multiple times.

Now most functions will just return something, usually into a variable you declare. This way, if needed, you can manipulate the returned value (now the variable) and use it anyway that is needed, without altering or affecting the actual function. That's the main reason for the return.

You're getting there. There are much more complex and wonderful things to come! Keep Coding! :)

Thank you for your help, Jason!

Thanks for your reply, Jason, but I'm still confused about what's going on here. What values are going where in the following code?

My programming vocab is still weak so what's a variable and what's a value is a little confused for me. If you can tell me something along the lines of "33 is going to def mod(a) and then that's going to #{a} in the string" (I use this as an example because this is what I'm pretty sure I'm understanding properly about how the code is being read by the computer) to explain to me what the computer is doing with the return method then I think I might be able to wrap my head around it!

def mod(a, b)

   c = a%b
   return "The remainder of #{a} divided by #{b} is #{c}."

end

puts mod(33, 5)

Thanks!