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Ruby Ruby Basics (Retired) Ruby Methods Method Arguments

Gareth Powell
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Gareth Powell
Courses Plus Student 7,016 Points
Posted by Gareth Powell
Gareth Powell
Courses Plus Student 7,016 Points

Is a method in Ruby the same as a function in other programming languages?

Hi All. Is the method used in this video (Method Arguments) the same as a function as found in other programming languages? It seems like the purpose of it is the same, i.e., it is reusable, but was unsure on the whether there is more to it and/or it is simply a naming thing? Thanks.

2 Answers

Ryan Field
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Ryan Field
Courses Plus Student 21,242 Points
Ryan Field
Ryan Field
Courses Plus Student 21,242 Points

Methods and functions are fundamentally the same thing, with a few key differences. A function is independent of any other code and can (usually) be called anywhere. Methods are functions, but are located within an object. An object can contain an assortment of variables and functions, but when you call those functions on the object, it is called a method.

In JavaScript, for example, you can define a function such as foo() and call it anywhere. JavaScript also has a Math object that is used for calculations such as rounding, but when you want to use Math.round(), we say that you are calling the .round() method (which is a function defined within the Math object).