Convert Hash Keys to Strings

1. Introduction

In Ruby, hashes are incredibly versatile, allowing keys of any object type. However, you might encounter situations where you need hash keys to be of a specific type, such as strings, especially when interfacing with other systems or APIs. Ruby provides easy ways to transform hash keys from various types into strings.

A Ruby hash is a collection of key-value pairs, with the key acting as the identifier for the value. Converting hash keys to strings involves transforming each key in the hash, regardless of its original type, to a string.

2. Program Steps

1. Define the hash with keys that need to be converted to strings.

2. Iterate over the hash, converting each key to a string and preserving the associated value.

3. Store the transformed key-value pairs in a new hash.

3. Code Program

# Step 1: Define the hash with various key types
hash_with_symbols = {a: 1, b: 2, c: 3}

# Step 2: Iterate over the hash and convert each key to a string
hash_with_string_keys = hash_with_symbols.each_with_object({}) do |(key, value), new_hash|
  new_hash[key.to_s] = value
end

# Step 3: Output the new hash to verify the keys are now strings
puts hash_with_string_keys.inspect

Output:

{"a"=>1, "b"=>2, "c"=>3}

Explanation:

1. hash_with_symbols is the original hash with symbol keys.

2. each_with_object({}) is used to iterate over hash_with_symbols. Within the block, key.to_s converts each symbol key to a string.

3. new_hash[key.to_s] = value sets the value in the new hash with the string key.

4. puts hash_with_string_keys.inspect prints out the new hash to verify the conversion.