More Complex Matches
First, a little background syntax. Elixir lists can be created using square brackets containing a comma-separated set of values. Here are some lists:
| | [ "Humperdinck", "Buttercup", "Fezzik" ] |
| | [ "milk", "butter", [ "iocane", 12 ] ] |
Back to the match operator.
| | iex> list = [ 1, 2, 3 ] |
| | [1, 2, 3] |
To make the match true, Elixir bound the variable list to the list [1, 2, 3].
But let’s try something else:
| | iex> list = [1, 2, 3] |
| | [1, 2, 3] |
| | iex> [a, b, c ] = list |
| | [1, 2, 3] |
| | iex> a |
| | 1 |
| | iex> b |
| | 2 |
| | iex> c |
| | 3 |
Elixir looks for a way to make the value of the left side the same as on the right. The left side is a list containing three variables, and the right is a list of three values, so the two sides ...
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