model update method in rails

Question

for example, I have a table 'post' and column 'views'. When people view the post each time, the 'views' will be added 1. Now my step is

@post = Post.find_by_id(params[:id])
@post.views += 1
@post.save

Is there any better way to add 'views'?

Answer 1

It depends on your needs. If you just need to count views of the post, then I would just advise to move that line into a method in your model. If you need something more complex, you may have to introduce a model for a view, including the user that viewed the post, a timestamp of the view, etc.

Answer 2

Use increment method:

@post.increment!(:views)

You can make it shorter

Post.find(params[:id]).try(:increment!,:views)

Notice the use of try method cause a post record with that id might not exist.

Answer 3

I second neutrino -- you should move that logic into a method inside the model. And probable use khelll's suggestion of using increment. Something like:

class Post < ActiveRecord::Base
  ...

  def increment_views
    self.increment!(:views)
  end
  ...
end

This way if you ever need to do more stuff then you need to change the model method only.