prepend_vs_include

🛠️ Choosing prepend vs include for Method Lookup Order

Ruby 2.0+ lets you inject behavior before or after a class’s existing methods. include inserts the module after the class, while prepend puts it before, allowing you to wrap or override methods.

module Logger
  def save
    puts "Logging before save"
    super
  end
end

class Record
  def save
    puts "Original save"
  end
end

class A < Record
  include Logger
end

class B < Record
  prepend Logger
end

A.new.save  # => "Original save" then "Logging before save"
B.new.save  # => "Logging before save" then "Original save"

Use prepend for aspect-oriented patterns and include for simple mixins.