RedDotRuby 2015 - Refinements - the Worst Feature You Ever Loved by Paolo Perrotta
Channel: Confreaks
Date: 10/06/2015

Refinements - the Worst Feature You Ever Loved by Paolo Perrotta

Refinements are cool. They are the biggest new language feature in Ruby 2. They help you avoid some of Ruby's most dangerous pitfalls. They make your code cleaner and safer. 

Oh, and some people really hate them. 

We're talking important people here. A few prominent community members tried to convince Matz to remove Refinements from Ruby. The latest JRuby is compatible with Matz's Ruby 2... except that it lacks Refinements. This innocent feature might end up splitting the Ruby ecosystem. 

Are Refinements the best idea since blocks and modules, or a terrible mistake? Decide for yourself. In twenty minutes, I'll tell you the good, the bad and the ugly about refinements. At the end of this speech, you'll understand the trade-offs of this controversial feature – and know what all the fuss is about.