Conversion Methods in Ruby

When working with Ruby, it is common to encounter situations where you need to convert data from one type to another. Fortunately, Ruby provides a variety of built-in methods to help you easily convert between different data types. In this article, we will explore some of the most commonly used conversion methods in Ruby.

String to Integer

One of the most common conversions in Ruby is converting a string to an integer. This can be done using the to_i method. Here is an example:

"42".to_i
# Output: 42

Integer to String

Conversely, you can convert an integer to a string using the to_s method. Here is an example:

42.to_s
# Output: "42"

String to Float

If you need to convert a string to a float, you can use the to_f method. Here is an example:

"3.14".to_f
# Output: 3.14

Array to String

To convert an array to a string, you can use the join method. This method concatenates all elements of the array into a single string. Here is an example:

[1, 2, 3].join(", ")
# Output: "1, 2, 3"

String to Array

If you have a string that you want to convert to an array, you can use the split method. This method splits the string into an array based on a specified delimiter. Here is an example:

"apple, banana, cherry".split(", ")
# Output: ["apple", "banana", "cherry"]

Hash to Array

To convert a hash to an array, you can use the to_a method. This method converts the key-value pairs of the hash into an array of arrays. Here is an example:

{a: 1, b: 2, c: 3}.to_a
# Output: [[:a, 1], [:b, 2], [:c, 3]]

Array to Hash

If you have an array of arrays and you want to convert it to a hash, you can use the to_h method. This method converts the array of arrays into a hash where the first element of each sub-array is the key and the second element is the value. Here is an example:

[[:a, 1], [:b, 2], [:c, 3]].to_h
# Output: {a: 1, b: 2, c: 3}

Conclusion

These are just a few examples of the many conversion methods available in Ruby. By understanding and utilizing these methods, you can easily convert data between different types to suit your needs. Experiment with these methods in your own Ruby projects to see how they can help streamline your code and make your programming tasks more efficient.