Declaring an instance variable outside of `initialize` method

I have been taught to declare my instance variables with def initialize. I have been under the impression that I could declare instance variables only within my initialize methods.

Nevertheless, I declared an instance variable @foo outside my initialize method, and made it work as I intended:

class FooBar
    def initialize(bar)
        @bar = bar
    end

    def foo_as_instance_var
        @foo = @bar.split(' ')
        @foo
    end
end

x = "something wicked this way comes"
y = FooBar.new(x)
puts y.foo_as_instance_var

Why am I able to declare an instance variable outside of initialize method? Since I can declare instance variables in any method, is there a best practices rule I should follow, regarding where to declare instance variables (i.e., declare them within initialize) or does it not matter?

Solution

I have been taught to declare my instance variables with def initialize

Since initialize is the first instance method call in an object's life cycle, you typically declare your instance variables right there in order to ensure properly initialized variables. It's also the first place I'd expect instance variables to be defined when reading code.

I have been under the impression that I could declare instance variables only within my initialize methods.

There's no such restriction. You can declare instance variable anywhere within your instance.

A common use is memoization:

class FooBar
  def foo
    @foo ||= expensive_operation
  end
end

On the first call, this would evaluate expensive_operation and assign the result to @foo. On subsequent calls, @foo is returned.

Another popular example is Rails which uses instance variables to pass data from the controller to its view:

class FooController < ApplicationController
  def index
    @foos = Foo.all
  end
end

is there a best practices rule I should follow, regarding where to declare instance variables

It depends on their purpose (see above examples). As a general rule, declare them in a way that avoids undefined variables (nil errors) and structure your code so it is easy to read / follow.