Split string with regex group

Question

I get the following output when I use split with regex on a string.

string = "12345678"

string.split(/(..)/)

=> ["", "12", "", "34", "", "56", "", "78"]

Why am I getting empty strings from the split method? I realize that using the scan method would give me pairs without the empty strings, but I want to know why split is giving me empty strings.

@WiktorStribiżew - The linked question solves how to get the result I wanted. I wanted to know why it was giving me empty strings. — NateW
– NateW, Commented Feb 16, 2016 at 18:02
Ok, I see it is difficult to find another original question. Let's keep this one. — Wiktor Stribiżew
– Wiktor Stribiżew, Commented Feb 16, 2016 at 18:08
So, now it is OK to ask two questions: "how can I solve it" and "why does my code fail"? It just feels illogical, I would "merge" both into one. If you know any meta post that discusses it, please share. — Wiktor Stribiżew
– Wiktor Stribiżew, Commented Feb 16, 2016 at 18:43
@WiktorStribiżew - I see what you mean. I will edit my question to be more focused. — NateW
– NateW, Commented Feb 16, 2016 at 18:55

sawa · Accepted Answer · 2016-02-16 18:03:04Z

4

As for the initial empty string, it is because the original purpose of split is to delimit a string into fields with a delimiter. It always assumes that there is a field before a delimiter, even if it is empty. As for the other empty strings, it is because the delimiters are adjacent.

edited Feb 16, 2016 at 18:03

answered Feb 16, 2016 at 17:57

sawa

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