VBScript vs. Ruby - Ruby rules!

[vass0922]

Ok came across a problem today
We have one service that runs when a user logs on that drops a flag file in a directory.
We have another service that runs that looks for those flag files and then does some work, then deletes the flag file.

Well sometimes the 2nd service dies.
So I wanted to put together a quick monitor script that will keep an eye on the folder to check for thenumber of flag files in this directory

Mind you there are about 7000 files in this directory.. and the flag files are building up so we were at about 4000 flag files when I ran it.

VBScript ~10 MINUTES
Ruby ~ 10 SECONDS


Now.. thats not all!

VBScript Code

Set objFSO = CreateObject("Scripting.FileSystemObject")
Set objFolder = objFSO.GetFolder("f:\pathto\files")
Set objFilesColl = objFolder.Files

iFlgCount = 0
For Each objFile In objFilesColl
  If UCase(objFSO.GetExtensionName(objFile.Name)) = "FLG" Then
    iFlgCount = iFlgCount + 1
  End If
Next

WScript.Echo iFlgCount

Now for the ruby script

bah.. don't need no stinkin' code tag for it
too short

------------
files = Dir.open("f:\\pathto\\server").entries.grep(/\.flg$/)
puts files.size
-----------


Thats it!

Now note I could of wrote the vbscript a little less verbose, and the ruby a little bit more verbose.. BUT it gives me the same number!
I couldn't find a way to filter the collection in vbscript so I had to loop through each file manually taking quite a bit of time
But with Ruby I just use the grep method and WHAM done!

www.ruby-lang.org

(note:
--------------------------
puts Dir.open("f:\\pathto\\server").entries.grep(/\.flg$/).size
------------------------
also works )
ONE LINE!

[Creosote]

Are you saying it took VBScript 10 minutes to count the files? How come you can't use a database.

[Praetorian]

Awesome vass. This may or may not be a fair comparison, but I'm writing a script in Python (newbie python programmer) logs information for the user currently logged in on a *nix box, and then logs some more information on the user's way out, then puts it into a MySQL db. There are two files, each with 20 some odd lines, so 40-50 lines total. A friend of mine is writing the same program on Windows in VB (newbie VB programmer too), and his program is already over 100 lines, and he's almost got the db connection working. Mind you we're both newbie programmers in these languages, and we're programming on different operating systems. Someone who is an expert in these langs could probably accomplish this same task in fewer lines....

[vass0922]

errr huh?
I'd still have to loop through the collection putting the data into the recordset then do a query?

or are you talking about putting the flags into a DB?
I didn't create the flag service/script but I do need to monitor it because of some stuff I added to it.
So doing the DB thign would just add more unnecessary code when this monitor will work quite fine
Especially in ruby
I just added code to email me and it was only a few more lines

[vass0922]

ya VB's DB connections are quite verbose unfortunalty.

I'm still a bit leery of ruby/python because they don't use variable declaration.
But ruby does have a method that echo's all of the variables in the script so I could put that at the beginning to make sure I'm not misspelling something.
like misspelling and mispeling are two distinct variables
In VB you can put Option Explicit at the topand it requires variable declaration so the compiler will catch problems like that.
But its pretty cool

[Scott Tiger]

I'll have to say I'm jealous not because of your scripting language skills - I'm jealous because you can just drop whatever interrepter you feel like in the box because you felt like it.

We have strick standards at the railroad and we're not allowed to deviate from them even if it did make the job a lot easier.

[vass0922]

ah, well its not standard here by any means.. and I certainly couldn't just go and start installing it on user machines.

However, yes they do give me some leniancy.
Just talked to one of our supervisors and he wants me to re-write to monitor the exchange IMC folders

We have 5 bridgehead servers and a LOT of mail flow so its critical they don't die on us!


If somebody can prove me wrong on the vbscript I'd be more than willing to try out other options

[maface]

Is Ruby similar to Python?

[vass0922]

Not entirely sure quite honestly.

Ruby was developed to be 100% object oriented
So you can literally put "Some sort of string".to_i and it will convert the string to an integer.

I only briefly looked at python before checking out ruby.
There was never anything in python that made me go Ohhhh thats COOL!
Now with ruby I say it all the time

This may help you a bit
http://www.ruby-doc.org/RubyEyeForThePythonGuy.html

[crouse]

That URL was titled FUNNY VASS LOL


Open Source RULES


------------------
Ruby is the interpreted scripting language for quick and easy object-oriented programming. It has many features to process text files and to do system management tasks (as in Perl). It is simple, straight-forward, extensible, and portable.

Oh, I need to mention, it's totally free, which means not only free of charge, but also freedom to use, copy, modify, and distribute it.
Features of Ruby

* Ruby has simple syntax, partially inspired by Eiffel and Ada.
* Ruby has exception handling features, like Java or Python, to make it easy to handle errors.
* Ruby's operators are syntax sugar for the methods. You can redefine them easily.
* Ruby is a complete, full, pure object oriented language: OOL. This means all data in Ruby is an object, not in the sense of Python or Perl, but in the sense of Smalltalk: no exceptions. Example: In Ruby, the number 1 is an instance of class Fixnum.
* Ruby's OO is carefully designed to be both complete and open for improvements. Example: Ruby has the ability to add methods to a class, or even to an instance during runtime. So, if needed, an instance of one class *can* behave differently from other instances of the same class.
* Ruby features single inheritance only, *on purpose*. But Ruby knows the concept of modules (called Categories in Objective-C). Modules are collections of methods. Every class can import a module and so gets all its methods for free. Some of us think that this is a much clearer way than multiple inheritance, which is complex, and not used very often compared with single inheritance (don't count C++ here, as it has often no other choice due to strong type checking!).
* Ruby features true closures. Not just unnamed function, but with present variable bindings.
* Ruby features blocks in its syntax (code surrounded by '{' ... '}' or 'do' ... 'end'). These blocks can be passed to methods, or converted into closures.
* Ruby features a true mark-and-sweep garbage collector. It works with all Ruby objects. You don't have to care about maintaining reference counts in extension libraries. This is better for your health. ;-)
* Writing C extensions in Ruby is easier than in Perl or Python, due partly to the garbage collector, and partly to the fine extension API. SWIG interface is also available.
* Integers in Ruby can (and should) be used without counting their internal representation. There *are* small integers (instances of class Fixnum) and large integers (Bignum), but you need not worry over which one is used currently. If a value is small enough, an integer is a Fixnum, otherwise it is a Bignum. Conversion occurs automatically.
* Ruby needs no variable declarations. It uses simple naming conventions to denote the scope of variables. Examples: simple 'var' = local variable, '@var' = instance variable, '$var' = global variable. So it is also not necessary to use a tiresome 'self.' prepended to every instance member.
* Ruby can load extension libraries dynamically if an OS allows.
* Ruby features OS independent threading. Thus, for all platforms on which Ruby runs, you also have multithreading, regardless of if the OS supports it or not, even on MS-DOS! ;-)
* Ruby is highly portable: it is developed mostly on Linux, but works on many types of UNIX, DOS, Windows 95/98/NT, Mac, BeOS, OS/2, etc.

The Creator of Ruby

Yukihiro Matsumoto, a.k.a Matz

---------- http://www.ruby-lang.org/en/20020101.html