activeresource 2.0.5 → 2.1.0

data/CHANGELOG

@@ -1,9 +1,12 @@
-*2.0.5* (October 19th, 2008)
+*2.1.0 (May 31st, 2008)*
 
-* Included in Rails 2.0.5
+* Fixed response logging to use length instead of the entire thing (seangeo) [#27]
 
+* Fixed that to_param should be used and honored instead of hardcoding the id #11406 [gspiers]
 
-*2.0.4* (2nd September 2008)
+* Improve documentation. [Radar, Jan De Poorter, chuyeow, xaviershay, danger, miloops, Xavier Noria,  Sunny Ripert]
+
+* Use HEAD instead of GET in exists? [bscofield]
 
 * Fix small documentation typo.  Closes #10670 [l.guidi]
 

data/Rakefile

@@ -5,7 +5,7 @@ require 'rake/rdoctask'
 require 'rake/packagetask'
 require 'rake/gempackagetask'
 require 'rake/contrib/sshpublisher'
-require 'rake/contrib/rubyforgepublisher'
+
 require File.join(File.dirname(__FILE__), 'lib', 'active_resource', 'version')
 
 PKG_BUILD     = ENV['PKG_BUILD'] ? '.' + ENV['PKG_BUILD'] : ''
@@ -64,7 +64,7 @@ spec = Gem::Specification.new do |s|
     s.files = s.files + Dir.glob( "#{dir}/**/*" ).delete_if { |item| item.include?( "\.svn" ) }
   end
   
-  s.add_dependency('activesupport', '= 2.0.5' + PKG_BUILD)
+  s.add_dependency('activesupport', '= 2.1.0' + PKG_BUILD)
 
   s.require_path = 'lib'
   s.autorequire = 'active_resource'
@@ -114,8 +114,8 @@ end
 
 desc "Publish the beta gem"
 task :pgem => [:package] do 
-  Rake::SshFilePublisher.new("david@greed.loudthinking.com", "/u/sites/gems/gems", "pkg", "#{PKG_FILE_NAME}.gem").upload
-  `ssh david@greed.loudthinking.com '/u/sites/gems/gemupdate.sh'`
+  Rake::SshFilePublisher.new("davidhh@wrath.rubyonrails.org", "public_html/gems/gems", "pkg", "#{PKG_FILE_NAME}.gem").upload
+  `ssh davidhh@wrath.rubyonrails.org './gemupdate.sh'`
 end
 
 desc "Publish the API documentation"

data/lib/active_resource/base.rb

@@ -14,12 +14,19 @@ module ActiveResource
   # Person maps to the resources people, very similarly to Active Record) and a +site+ value, which holds the
   # URI of the resources.
   # 
-  #     class Person < ActiveResource::Base
-  #       self.site = "http://api.people.com:3000/"
-  #     end
+  #   class Person < ActiveResource::Base
+  #     self.site = "http://api.people.com:3000/"
+  #   end
   # 
   # Now the Person class is mapped to RESTful resources located at <tt>http://api.people.com:3000/people/</tt>, and
-  # you can now use Active Resource's lifecycles methods to manipulate resources.  
+  # you can now use Active Resource's lifecycles methods to manipulate resources. In the case where you already have 
+  # an existing model with the same name as the desired RESTful resource you can set the +element_name+ value.
+  #
+  #   class PersonResource < ActiveResource::Base
+  #     self.site = "http://api.people.com:3000/"
+  #     self.element_name = "person"
+  #   end
+  #  
   # 
   # == Lifecycle methods
   #
@@ -27,18 +34,18 @@ module ActiveResource
   # from REST web services.
   # 
   #   ryan = Person.new(:first => 'Ryan', :last => 'Daigle')
-  #   ryan.save  #=> true
-  #   ryan.id  #=> 2
-  #   Person.exists?(ryan.id)  #=> true
-  #   ryan.exists?  #=> true
+  #   ryan.save                # => true
+  #   ryan.id                  # => 2
+  #   Person.exists?(ryan.id)  # => true
+  #   ryan.exists?             # => true
   # 
   #   ryan = Person.find(1)
-  #   # => Resource holding our newly created Person object
+  #   # Resource holding our newly created Person object
   # 
   #   ryan.first = 'Rizzle'
-  #   ryan.save  #=> true
+  #   ryan.save                # => true
   # 
-  #   ryan.destroy  #=> true
+  #   ryan.destroy             # => true
   #
   # As you can see, these are very similar to Active Record's lifecycle methods for database records.
   # You can read more about each of these methods in their respective documentation.
@@ -72,29 +79,39 @@ module ActiveResource
   #
   # You can validate resources client side by overriding validation methods in the base class.
   # 
-  #     class Person < ActiveResource::Base
-  #        self.site = "http://api.people.com:3000/"
-  #        protected
-  #          def validate
-  #            errors.add("last", "has invalid characters") unless last =~ /[a-zA-Z]*/
-  #          end
-  #     end
+  #   class Person < ActiveResource::Base
+  #      self.site = "http://api.people.com:3000/"
+  #      protected
+  #        def validate
+  #          errors.add("last", "has invalid characters") unless last =~ /[a-zA-Z]*/
+  #        end
+  #   end
   # 
   # See the ActiveResource::Validations documentation for more information.
   #
   # == Authentication
   # 
   # Many REST APIs will require authentication, usually in the form of basic
-  # HTTP authentication.  Authentication can be specified by putting the credentials
-  # in the +site+ variable of the Active Resource class you need to authenticate.
+  # HTTP authentication.  Authentication can be specified by:
+  # * putting the credentials in the URL for the +site+ variable.
   # 
-  #   class Person < ActiveResource::Base
-  #     self.site = "http://ryan:password@api.people.com:3000/"
-  #   end
+  #    class Person < ActiveResource::Base
+  #      self.site = "http://ryan:password@api.people.com:3000/"
+  #    end
   # 
+  # * defining +user+ and/or +password+ variables
+  #
+  #    class Person < ActiveResource::Base
+  #      self.site = "http://api.people.com:3000/"
+  #      self.user = "ryan"
+  #      self.password = "password"
+  #    end
+  #
   # For obvious security reasons, it is probably best if such services are available 
   # over HTTPS.
   # 
+  # Note: Some values cannot be provided in the URL passed to site.  e.g. email addresses 
+  # as usernames.  In those situations you should use the seperate user and password option.
   # == Errors & Validation
   #
   # Error handling and validation is handled in much the same manner as you're used to seeing in
@@ -108,18 +125,17 @@ module ActiveResource
   # exception.
   # 
   #   # GET http://api.people.com:3000/people/999.xml
-  #   ryan = Person.find(999) # => Raises ActiveResource::ResourceNotFound
-  #   # => Response = 404
+  #   ryan = Person.find(999) # 404, raises ActiveResource::ResourceNotFound
   # 
-  # <tt>404</tt> is just one of the HTTP error response codes that ActiveResource will handle with its own exception. The
+  # <tt>404</tt> is just one of the HTTP error response codes that Active Resource will handle with its own exception. The
   # following HTTP response codes will also result in these exceptions:
   # 
-  # 200 - 399:: Valid response, no exception
-  # 404:: ActiveResource::ResourceNotFound
-  # 409:: ActiveResource::ResourceConflict
-  # 422:: ActiveResource::ResourceInvalid (rescued by save as validation errors)
-  # 401 - 499:: ActiveResource::ClientError
-  # 500 - 599:: ActiveResource::ServerError
+  # * 200..399 - Valid response, no exception
+  # * 404 - ActiveResource::ResourceNotFound
+  # * 409 - ActiveResource::ResourceConflict
+  # * 422 - ActiveResource::ResourceInvalid (rescued by save as validation errors)
+  # * 401..499 - ActiveResource::ClientError
+  # * 500..599 - ActiveResource::ServerError
   #
   # These custom exceptions allow you to deal with resource errors more naturally and with more precision
   # rather than returning a general HTTP error.  For example:
@@ -140,8 +156,8 @@ module ActiveResource
   # then fail (with a <tt>false</tt> return value) and the validation errors can be accessed on the resource in question.
   # 
   #   ryan = Person.find(1)
-  #   ryan.first #=> ''
-  #   ryan.save  #=> false
+  #   ryan.first # => ''
+  #   ryan.save  # => false
   #
   #   # When 
   #   # PUT http://api.people.com:3000/people/1.xml
@@ -151,19 +167,57 @@ module ActiveResource
   #   # <errors type="array"><error>First cannot be empty</error></errors>
   #   #
   #
-  #   ryan.errors.invalid?(:first)  #=> true
-  #   ryan.errors.full_messages  #=> ['First cannot be empty']
+  #   ryan.errors.invalid?(:first)  # => true
+  #   ryan.errors.full_messages     # => ['First cannot be empty']
   # 
   # Learn more about Active Resource's validation features in the ActiveResource::Validations documentation.
   #
+  # === Timeouts
+  #
+  # Active Resource relies on HTTP to access RESTful APIs and as such is inherently susceptible to slow or
+  # unresponsive servers. In such cases, your Active Resource method calls could timeout. You can control the
+  # amount of time before Active Resource times out with the +timeout+ variable.
+  #
+  #   class Person < ActiveResource::Base
+  #     self.site = "http://api.people.com:3000/"
+  #     self.timeout = 5
+  #   end
+  #
+  # This sets the +timeout+ to 5 seconds. You can adjust the +timeout+ to a value suitable for the RESTful API
+  # you are accessing. It is recommended to set this to a reasonably low value to allow your Active Resource
+  # clients (especially if you are using Active Resource in a Rails application) to fail-fast (see
+  # http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fail-fast) rather than cause cascading failures that could incapacitate your
+  # server.
+  #
+  # When a timeout occurs, an ActiveResource::TimeoutError is raised. You should rescue from
+  # ActiveResource::TimeoutError in your Active Resource method calls.
+  #
+  # Internally, Active Resource relies on Ruby's Net::HTTP library to make HTTP requests. Setting +timeout+
+  # sets the <tt>read_timeout</tt> of the internal Net::HTTP instance to the same value. The default
+  # <tt>read_timeout</tt> is 60 seconds on most Ruby implementations.
   class Base
     # The logger for diagnosing and tracing Active Resource calls.
     cattr_accessor :logger
 
     class << self
       # Gets the URI of the REST resources to map for this class.  The site variable is required 
-      # ActiveResource's mapping to work.
+      # Active Resource's mapping to work.
       def site
+        # Not using superclass_delegating_reader because don't want subclasses to modify superclass instance
+        #
+        # With superclass_delegating_reader
+        #
+        #   Parent.site = 'http://anonymous@test.com'
+        #   Subclass.site # => 'http://anonymous@test.com'
+        #   Subclass.site.user = 'david'
+        #   Parent.site # => 'http://david@test.com'
+        #
+        # Without superclass_delegating_reader (expected behaviour)
+        #
+        #   Parent.site = 'http://anonymous@test.com'
+        #   Subclass.site # => 'http://anonymous@test.com'
+        #   Subclass.site.user = 'david' # => TypeError: can't modify frozen object
+        #
         if defined?(@site)
           @site
         elsif superclass != Object && superclass.site
@@ -172,13 +226,51 @@ module ActiveResource
       end
 
       # Sets the URI of the REST resources to map for this class to the value in the +site+ argument.
-      # The site variable is required ActiveResource's mapping to work.
+      # The site variable is required Active Resource's mapping to work.
       def site=(site)
         @connection = nil
-        @site = site.nil? ? nil : create_site_uri_from(site)
+        if site.nil?
+          @site = nil
+        else
+          @site = create_site_uri_from(site)
+          @user = URI.decode(@site.user) if @site.user
+          @password = URI.decode(@site.password) if @site.password
+        end
+      end
+
+      # Gets the user for REST HTTP authentication.
+      def user
+        # Not using superclass_delegating_reader. See +site+ for explanation
+        if defined?(@user)
+          @user
+        elsif superclass != Object && superclass.user
+          superclass.user.dup.freeze
+        end
+      end
+
+      # Sets the user for REST HTTP authentication.
+      def user=(user)
+        @connection = nil
+        @user = user
       end
 
-      # Sets the format that attributes are sent and received in from a mime type reference. Example:
+      # Gets the password for REST HTTP authentication.
+      def password
+        # Not using superclass_delegating_reader. See +site+ for explanation
+        if defined?(@password)
+          @password
+        elsif superclass != Object && superclass.password
+          superclass.password.dup.freeze
+        end
+      end
+
+      # Sets the password for REST HTTP authentication.
+      def password=(password)
+        @connection = nil
+        @password = password
+      end
+
+      # Sets the format that attributes are sent and received in from a mime type reference:
       #
       #   Person.format = :json
       #   Person.find(1) # => GET /people/1.json
@@ -186,7 +278,7 @@ module ActiveResource
       #   Person.format = ActiveResource::Formats::XmlFormat
       #   Person.find(1) # => GET /people/1.xml
       #
-      # Default format is :xml.
+      # Default format is <tt>:xml</tt>.
       def format=(mime_type_reference_or_format)
         format = mime_type_reference_or_format.is_a?(Symbol) ? 
           ActiveResource::Formats[mime_type_reference_or_format] : mime_type_reference_or_format
@@ -194,18 +286,36 @@ module ActiveResource
         write_inheritable_attribute("format", format)
         connection.format = format if site
       end
-      
-      # Returns the current format, default is ActiveResource::Formats::XmlFormat
+
+      # Returns the current format, default is ActiveResource::Formats::XmlFormat.
       def format # :nodoc:
         read_inheritable_attribute("format") || ActiveResource::Formats[:xml]
       end
 
+      # Sets the number of seconds after which requests to the REST API should time out.
+      def timeout=(timeout)
+        @connection = nil
+        @timeout = timeout
+      end
+
+      # Gets tthe number of seconds after which requests to the REST API should time out.
+      def timeout
+        if defined?(@timeout)
+          @timeout
+        elsif superclass != Object && superclass.timeout
+          superclass.timeout
+        end
+      end
+
       # An instance of ActiveResource::Connection that is the base connection to the remote service.
       # The +refresh+ parameter toggles whether or not the connection is refreshed at every request
       # or not (defaults to <tt>false</tt>).
       def connection(refresh = false)
         if defined?(@connection) || superclass == Object
           @connection = Connection.new(site, format) if refresh || @connection.nil?
+          @connection.user = user if user
+          @connection.password = password if password
+          @connection.timeout = timeout if timeout
           @connection
         else
           superclass.connection
@@ -266,9 +376,9 @@ module ActiveResource
       # will split from the prefix options.
       #
       # ==== Options
-      # +prefix_options+:: A hash to add a prefix to the request for nested URL's (e.g., <tt>:account_id => 19</tt>
+      # +prefix_options+ - A hash to add a prefix to the request for nested URLs (e.g., <tt>:account_id => 19</tt>
       #                    would yield a URL like <tt>/accounts/19/purchases.xml</tt>).
-      # +query_options+:: A hash to add items to the query string for the request.
+      # +query_options+ - A hash to add items to the query string for the request.
       #
       # ==== Examples
       #   Post.element_path(1) 
@@ -285,16 +395,16 @@ module ActiveResource
       #
       def element_path(id, prefix_options = {}, query_options = nil)
         prefix_options, query_options = split_options(prefix_options) if query_options.nil?
-        "#{prefix(prefix_options)}#{collection_name}/#{id}.#{format.extension}#{query_string(query_options)}"
+        "#{prefix(prefix_options)}#{collection_name}/#{id}.#{format.extension}#{query_string(query_options)}"        
       end
 
       # Gets the collection path for the REST resources.  If the +query_options+ parameter is omitted, Rails
       # will split from the +prefix_options+.
       #
       # ==== Options
-      # +prefix_options+:: A hash to add a prefix to the request for nested URL's (e.g., <tt>:account_id => 19</tt>
-      #                    would yield a URL like <tt>/accounts/19/purchases.xml</tt>).
-      # +query_options+:: A hash to add items to the query string for the request.
+      # * +prefix_options+ - A hash to add a prefix to the request for nested URL's (e.g., <tt>:account_id => 19</tt>
+      #   would yield a URL like <tt>/accounts/19/purchases.xml</tt>).
+      # * +query_options+ - A hash to add items to the query string for the request.
       #
       # ==== Examples
       #   Post.collection_path
@@ -330,39 +440,34 @@ module ActiveResource
       # ==== Examples
       #   Person.create(:name => 'Jeremy', :email => 'myname@nospam.com', :enabled => true)
       #   my_person = Person.find(:first)
-      #   my_person.email
-      #   # => myname@nospam.com
+      #   my_person.email # => myname@nospam.com
       #
       #   dhh = Person.create(:name => 'David', :email => 'dhh@nospam.com', :enabled => true)
-      #   dhh.valid?
-      #   # => true
-      #   dhh.new?
-      #   # => false
+      #   dhh.valid? # => true
+      #   dhh.new?   # => false
       #
       #   # We'll assume that there's a validation that requires the name attribute
       #   that_guy = Person.create(:name => '', :email => 'thatguy@nospam.com', :enabled => true)
-      #   that_guy.valid?
-      #   # => false
-      #   that_guy.new?
-      #   # => true
-      #
+      #   that_guy.valid? # => false
+      #   that_guy.new?   # => true
       def create(attributes = {})
         returning(self.new(attributes)) { |res| res.save }        
       end
 
-      # Core method for finding resources.  Used similarly to Active Record's find method.
+      # Core method for finding resources.  Used similarly to Active Record's +find+ method.
       #
       # ==== Arguments
       # The first argument is considered to be the scope of the query.  That is, how many 
       # resources are returned from the request.  It can be one of the following.
       #
-      # +:one+:: Returns a single resource.
-      # +:first+:: Returns the first resource found.
-      # +:all+:: Returns every resource that matches the request.
+      # * <tt>:one</tt> - Returns a single resource.
+      # * <tt>:first</tt> - Returns the first resource found.
+      # * <tt>:all</tt> - Returns every resource that matches the request.
       # 
       # ==== Options
-      # +from+:: Sets the path or custom method that resources will be fetched from.
-      # +params+:: Sets query and prefix (nested URL) parameters.
+      #
+      # * <tt>:from</tt> - Sets the path or custom method that resources will be fetched from.
+      # * <tt>:params</tt> - Sets query and prefix (nested URL) parameters.
       #
       # ==== Examples
       #   Person.find(1)                                         
@@ -409,19 +514,14 @@ module ActiveResource
       # All options specify prefix and query parameters.
       #
       # ==== Examples
-      #   Event.delete(2)
-      #   # => DELETE /events/2
+      #   Event.delete(2) # sends DELETE /events/2
       #
       #   Event.create(:name => 'Free Concert', :location => 'Community Center')
-      #   my_event = Event.find(:first)
-      #   # => Events (id: 7)
-      #   Event.delete(my_event.id)
-      #   # => DELETE /events/7
+      #   my_event = Event.find(:first) # let's assume this is event with ID 7
+      #   Event.delete(my_event.id) # sends DELETE /events/7
       #
       #   # Let's assume a request to events/5/cancel.xml
-      #   Event.delete(params[:id])
-      #   # => DELETE /events/5
-      #
+      #   Event.delete(params[:id]) # sends DELETE /events/5
       def delete(id, options = {})
         connection.delete(element_path(id, options))
       end
@@ -430,13 +530,17 @@ module ActiveResource
       #
       # ==== Examples
       #   Note.create(:title => 'Hello, world.', :body => 'Nothing more for now...')
-      #   Note.exists?(1)
-      #   # => true
+      #   Note.exists?(1) # => true
       #
-      #   Note.exists(1349)
-      #   # => false
+      #   Note.exists(1349) # => false
       def exists?(id, options = {})
-        id && !find_single(id, options).nil?
+        if id
+          prefix_options, query_options = split_options(options[:params])
+          path = element_path(id, prefix_options, query_options)
+          response = connection.head(path, headers)
+          response.code == 200
+        end
+        # id && !find_single(id, options).nil?
       rescue ActiveResource::ResourceNotFound
         false
       end
@@ -518,7 +622,7 @@ module ActiveResource
     attr_accessor :attributes #:nodoc:
     attr_accessor :prefix_options #:nodoc:
 
-    # Constructor method for new resources; the optional +attributes+ parameter takes a +Hash+
+    # Constructor method for new resources; the optional +attributes+ parameter takes a hash
     # of attributes for the new resource.
     #
     # ==== Examples
@@ -535,20 +639,53 @@ module ActiveResource
       load(attributes)
     end
 
+    # Returns a clone of the resource that hasn't been assigned an +id+ yet and
+    # is treated as a new resource.
+    #
+    #   ryan = Person.find(1)
+    #   not_ryan = ryan.clone
+    #   not_ryan.new?  # => true
+    #
+    # Any active resource member attributes will NOT be cloned, though all other
+    # attributes are.  This is to prevent the conflict between any +prefix_options+
+    # that refer to the original parent resource and the newly cloned parent
+    # resource that does not exist.
+    #
+    #   ryan = Person.find(1)
+    #   ryan.address = StreetAddress.find(1, :person_id => ryan.id)
+    #   ryan.hash = {:not => "an ARes instance"}
+    #   
+    #   not_ryan = ryan.clone
+    #   not_ryan.new?            # => true
+    #   not_ryan.address         # => NoMethodError
+    #   not_ryan.hash            # => {:not => "an ARes instance"}
+    def clone
+      # Clone all attributes except the pk and any nested ARes
+      cloned = attributes.reject {|k,v| k == self.class.primary_key || v.is_a?(ActiveResource::Base)}.inject({}) do |attrs, (k, v)|
+        attrs[k] = v.clone
+        attrs
+      end
+      # Form the new resource - bypass initialize of resource with 'new' as that will call 'load' which
+      # attempts to convert hashes into member objects and arrays into collections of objects.  We want
+      # the raw objects to be cloned so we bypass load by directly setting the attributes hash.
+      resource = self.class.new({})
+      resource.prefix_options = self.prefix_options
+      resource.send :instance_variable_set, '@attributes', cloned
+      resource
+    end
+
+
     # A method to determine if the resource a new object (i.e., it has not been POSTed to the remote service yet).
     #
     # ==== Examples
     #   not_new = Computer.create(:brand => 'Apple', :make => 'MacBook', :vendor => 'MacMall')
-    #   not_new.new?
-    #   # => false
+    #   not_new.new? # => false
     #
     #   is_new = Computer.new(:brand => 'IBM', :make => 'Thinkpad', :vendor => 'IBM')
-    #   is_new.new?
-    #   # => true
+    #   is_new.new? # => true
     #
     #   is_new.save
-    #   is_new.new?
-    #   # => false
+    #   is_new.new? # => false
     #
     def new?
       id.nil?
@@ -564,13 +701,13 @@ module ActiveResource
       attributes[self.class.primary_key] = id
     end
 
-    # Allows ActiveResource objects to be used as parameters in ActionPack URL generation.
+    # Allows Active Resource objects to be used as parameters in Action Pack URL generation.
     def to_param
       id && id.to_s
     end
 
     # Test for equality.  Resource are equal if and only if +other+ is the same object or 
-    # is an instance of the same class, is not +new?+, and has the same +id+.
+    # is an instance of the same class, is not <tt>new?</tt>, and has the same +id+.
     #
     # ==== Examples
     #   ryan = Person.create(:name => 'Ryan')
@@ -611,17 +748,13 @@ module ActiveResource
     # ==== Examples
     #   my_invoice = Invoice.create(:customer => 'That Company')
     #   next_invoice = my_invoice.dup
-    #   next_invoice.new?
-    #   # => true
+    #   next_invoice.new? # => true
     #
     #   next_invoice.save
-    #   next_invoice == my_invoice
-    #   # => false (different id attributes)
+    #   next_invoice == my_invoice # => false (different id attributes)
     #
-    #   my_invoice.customer
-    #   # => That Company
-    #   next_invoice.customer
-    #   # => That Company
+    #   my_invoice.customer   # => That Company
+    #   next_invoice.customer # => That Company
     def dup
       returning self.class.new do |resource|
         resource.attributes     = @attributes
@@ -636,16 +769,12 @@ module ActiveResource
     #
     # ==== Examples
     #   my_company = Company.new(:name => 'RoleModel Software', :owner => 'Ken Auer', :size => 2)
-    #   my_company.new?
-    #   # => true
-    #   my_company.save
-    #   # => POST /companies/ (create)
+    #   my_company.new? # => true
+    #   my_company.save # sends POST /companies/ (create)
     #
-    #   my_company.new?
-    #   # => false
+    #   my_company.new? # => false
     #   my_company.size = 10
-    #   my_company.save
-    #   # => PUT /companies/1 (update)
+    #   my_company.save # sends PUT /companies/1 (update)
     def save
       new? ? create : update
     end
@@ -656,20 +785,17 @@ module ActiveResource
     #   my_id = 3
     #   my_person = Person.find(my_id)
     #   my_person.destroy
-    #   Person.find(my_id)
-    #   # => 404 (Resource Not Found)
+    #   Person.find(my_id) # 404 (Resource Not Found)
     #   
     #   new_person = Person.create(:name => 'James')
-    #   new_id = new_person.id 
-    #   # => 7
+    #   new_id = new_person.id # => 7
     #   new_person.destroy
-    #   Person.find(new_id)
-    #   # => 404 (Resource Not Found)
+    #   Person.find(new_id) # 404 (Resource Not Found)
     def destroy
       connection.delete(element_path, self.class.headers)
     end
 
-    # Evaluates to <tt>true</tt> if this resource is not +new?+ and is
+    # Evaluates to <tt>true</tt> if this resource is not <tt>new?</tt> and is
     # found on the remote service.  Using this method, you can check for
     # resources that may have been deleted between the object's instantiation
     # and actions on it.
@@ -677,19 +803,16 @@ module ActiveResource
     # ==== Examples
     #   Person.create(:name => 'Theodore Roosevelt')
     #   that_guy = Person.find(:first)
-    #   that_guy.exists?
-    #   # => true
+    #   that_guy.exists? # => true
     #
     #   that_lady = Person.new(:name => 'Paul Bean')
-    #   that_lady.exists?
-    #   # => false
+    #   that_lady.exists? # => false
     #
     #   guys_id = that_guy.id
     #   Person.delete(guys_id)
-    #   that_guy.exists?
-    #   # => false
+    #   that_guy.exists? # => false
     def exists?
-      !new? && self.class.exists?(id, :params => prefix_options)
+      !new? && self.class.exists?(to_param, :params => prefix_options)      
     end
 
     # A method to convert the the resource to an XML string.
@@ -697,13 +820,13 @@ module ActiveResource
     # ==== Options
     # The +options+ parameter is handed off to the +to_xml+ method on each
     # attribute, so it has the same options as the +to_xml+ methods in
-    # ActiveSupport.
+    # Active Support.
     #
-    # indent:: Set the indent level for the XML output (default is +2+).
-    # dasherize:: Boolean option to determine whether or not element names should
-    #             replace underscores with dashes (default is <tt>false</tt>).
-    # skip_instruct::  Toggle skipping the +instruct!+ call on the XML builder 
-    #                  that generates the XML declaration (default is <tt>false</tt>).
+    # * <tt>:indent</tt> - Set the indent level for the XML output (default is +2+).
+    # * <tt>:dasherize</tt> - Boolean option to determine whether or not element names should
+    #   replace underscores with dashes (default is <tt>false</tt>).
+    # * <tt>:skip_instruct</tt> - Toggle skipping the +instruct!+ call on the XML builder 
+    #   that generates the XML declaration (default is <tt>false</tt>).
     #
     # ==== Examples
     #   my_group = SubsidiaryGroup.find(:first)
@@ -725,30 +848,26 @@ module ActiveResource
     #
     # ==== Examples
     #   my_branch = Branch.find(:first)
-    #   my_branch.name
-    #   # => Wislon Raod
+    #   my_branch.name # => "Wislon Raod"
     #   
     #   # Another client fixes the typo...
     #
-    #   my_branch.name
-    #   # => Wislon Raod
+    #   my_branch.name # => "Wislon Raod"
     #   my_branch.reload
-    #   my_branch.name
-    #   # => Wilson Road
+    #   my_branch.name # => "Wilson Road"
     def reload
-      self.load(self.class.find(id, :params => @prefix_options).attributes)
+      self.load(self.class.find(to_param, :params => @prefix_options).attributes)
     end
 
     # A method to manually load attributes from a hash. Recursively loads collections of
-    # resources.  This method is called in initialize and create when a +Hash+ of attributes
+    # resources.  This method is called in +initialize+ and +create+ when a hash of attributes
     # is provided.
     #
     # ==== Examples
     #   my_attrs = {:name => 'J&J Textiles', :industry => 'Cloth and textiles'}
     #
     #   the_supplier = Supplier.find(:first)
-    #   the_supplier.name
-    #   # => 'J&M Textiles'
+    #   the_supplier.name # => 'J&M Textiles'
     #   the_supplier.load(my_attrs)
     #   the_supplier.name('J&J Textiles')
     #
@@ -779,10 +898,10 @@ module ActiveResource
       self
     end
     
-    # For checking respond_to? without searching the attributes (which is faster).
+    # For checking <tt>respond_to?</tt> without searching the attributes (which is faster).
     alias_method :respond_to_without_attributes?, :respond_to?
 
-    # A method to determine if an object responds to a message (e.g., a method call). In Active Resource, a +Person+ object with a
+    # A method to determine if an object responds to a message (e.g., a method call). In Active Resource, a Person object with a
     # +name+ attribute can answer <tt>true</tt> to <tt>my_person.respond_to?("name")</tt>, <tt>my_person.respond_to?("name=")</tt>, and
     # <tt>my_person.respond_to?("name?")</tt>.
     def respond_to?(method, include_priv = false)
@@ -832,7 +951,7 @@ module ActiveResource
       end
 
       def element_path(options = nil)
-        self.class.element_path(id, options || prefix_options)
+        self.class.element_path(to_param, options || prefix_options)
       end
 
       def collection_path(options = nil)