An ActiveRecord plugin for managing ordered lists of items with scoped positioning and reordering methods.
Acts As List is a Ruby on Rails plugin that adds list-ordering functionality to ActiveRecord models. It solves the problem of managing ordered collections in databases by providing methods to reorder items, maintain scoped positions, and handle position-based queries. It integrates seamlessly with Rails applications to simplify list management.
Ruby on Rails developers building applications that require ordered lists, such as task managers, content ordering systems, or any UI where drag-and-drop or manual sorting is needed.
Developers choose Acts As List for its simplicity, tight integration with ActiveRecord, and robust handling of scoped lists. It reduces boilerplate code for position management and offers fine-grained control over reordering logic.
An ActiveRecord plugin for managing lists.
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Provides straightforward methods like move_higher, move_to_bottom, and insert_at for manipulating list positions, reducing boilerplate code for common sorting operations as shown in the todo list example.
Supports maintaining separate position sequences for items grouped under parent associations (e.g., per todo list), essential for nested data structures without manual query handling.
Works seamlessly with unique and not-null constraints on the position column, and offers sequential_updates for performance, encouraging robust data integrity as emphasized in the README.
Includes acts_as_list_no_update blocks to bypass callbacks during bulk operations like imports, allowing developers to manage positions manually without triggering reordering.
In high-concurrency environments, developers must implement additional logic such as transaction retries or parent record locking to prevent deadlocks, as admitted in the troubleshooting section, adding complexity.
Adding Acts As List to an existing model requires writing custom migration scripts to set initial positions, which can be error-prone and time-consuming, especially with scoped lists.
Lacks built-in support for multiple independent lists per table or relative positioning compared to alternatives like the 'Positioning' gem, which the maintainer created to address these gaps.
Upgrading past version 0.8.0 introduces behavior changes, such as respecting explicit positions on create, which may require code adjustments and careful testing for existing applications.