Ruby: Struct vs Initialize

Question

What are the advantages and disadvantages of using Struct versus defining an initialize method ?

I can already see that it involves less code and not raising when missing an argument:

Using struct:

class Fruit < Struct.new(:name)
end

> Fruit.new.name
 => nil
> Fruit.new('apple').name
 => "apple"

Using initialize:

class Fruit
  attr_accessor :name

  def initialize(name)
    @name = name
  end
end

> Fruit.new.name
ArgumentError: wrong number of arguments (0 for 1)
> Fruit.new('apple').name
 => "apple"

What are your thoughts ? Are you using Struct frequently in your projects ?

Answer 1

The class (non-struct) has a simpler ancestry tree:

>> Fruit.ancestors
=> [Fruit, Object, Kernel, BasicObject]

As compared to the struct version:

>> Fruit.ancestors
=> [Fruit, #<Class:0x1101c9038>, Struct, Enumerable, Object, Kernel, BasicObject]

So, the Struct class could be mistaken for an array (rare, but absolutely could happen)

fruit = Fruit.new("yo")
# .. later
fruit.each do |k|
  puts k
end
# outputs: yo

So... I use Structs as throw-away data objects. I use "real" classes in my domain and application.