Instance Variable loop inside the controller - ruby-on-rails

Question

I have some repeated code inside one of my controllers that I would like to consolidate into a loop, but I can't find any clear instruction on how to do so since this seems to be a unique use case for gmaps4rails. I tried creating an array of instance variables but it didn't seem to work! The code I'd like to consolidate:
stores_controller.rb -->
class StoresController < ApplicationController
def map
#rep1 = Store.where(:user_id => "1")
#rep2 = Store.where(:user_id => "10")
#rep3 = Store.where(:user_id => "11")
#rep4 = Store.where(:user_id => "12")
#rep5 = Store.where(:user_id => "13")
#rep6 = Store.where(:user_id => "14")
#rep7 = Store.where(:user_id => "15")
#rep8 = Store.where(:user_id => "16")
#rep9 = Store.where(:user_id => "17")
#repA = Store.where(:user_id => "18")
#hash1 = Gmaps4rails.build_markers(#rep1) do |store, marker|
marker.lat store.lat
marker.lng store.long
marker.title store.name
marker.infowindow "#{store.store_infowindow}"
marker.picture({
:url => "//chart.apis.google.com/chart?chst=d_map_pin_letter&chld=TP|81DF08|000000",
:width => 52,
:height => 32
})
end
#hash2 = Gmaps4rails.build_markers(#rep2) do |store, marker|
marker.lat store.lat
marker.lng store.long
marker.title store.name
marker.infowindow "#{store.store_infowindow}"
marker.picture({
:url => "//chart.apis.google.com/chart?chst=d_map_pin_letter&chld=BS|267AD2|D9E1FF",
:width => 52,
:height => 32
})
end
#hash3 = etc, etc, etc...
I'll also include the marker loader from my map JS in the view file for good measure,
map.html.erb -->
markers = handler.addMarkers(<%=raw #hash1.to_json %>), handler.addMarkers(<%=raw #hash2.to_json %>),
handler.addMarkers(<%=raw #hash3.to_json %>), handler.addMarkers(<%=raw #hash3.to_json %>),
handler.addMarkers(<%=raw #hash4.to_json %>), handler.addMarkers(<%=raw #hash5.to_json %>),
handler.addMarkers(<%=raw #hash6.to_json %>), handler.addMarkers(<%=raw #hash7.to_json %>),
handler.addMarkers(<%=raw #hash8.to_json %>), handler.addMarkers(<%=raw #hash9.to_json %>),
handler.addMarkers(<%=raw #hashA.to_json %>);
The gmaps4rails marker building #hash variables continue their individual loops through all 10 reps beyond these first two indicated here. The only two variables within these hashes are the 'build_markers(#rep#)' call and the 'chld=TP|81DF08|000000' call which indicates the initials and color of the marker for each user. I'm a beginner, so for all I know I could be doing this completely wrong from the start! Any advice is appreciated. Thanks!
EDIT -->
My consolidated code, which ended up being as simple as adding a "Marker" column to my user table since that was the only hard-coded variable that needed changing, in the form of '#{store.user.marker}' within the map marker URL:
stores_controller.rb -->
def map
#stores = Store.all
#hash = Gmaps4rails.build_markers(#stores) do |store, marker|
marker.lat store.lat
marker.lng store.long
marker.title store.name
marker.infowindow "#{store.store_infowindow}"
marker.picture({
:url => "//chart.apis.google.com/chart?chst=d_map_pin_letter&chld=#{store.user.marker}",
:width => 52, :height => 32
})
end
respond_to do |format|
format.html
format.json { render json: #hash }
end
end

Answer 1

A better way to do this is to simply fetch the records from the db and store the whole collection in one instance variable.
#stores = Store.where(user_id: [1, 2, 3])
#markers = Gmaps4rails.build_markers(#stores) do |store, marker|
marker.lat store.lat
marker.lng store.long
marker.title store.name
marker.infowindow "#{store.store_infowindow}"
# if they need different pictures handle it in the model
marker.picture({
:url => "//chart.apis.google.com/chart?chst=d_map_pin_letter&chld=TP|81DF08|000000",
:width => 52,
:height => 32
})
end
Doing this:
#rep1 = Store.where(:user_id => "1")
#rep2 = Store.where(:user_id => "10")
#rep3 = Store.where(:user_id => "11")
#rep4 = Store.where(:user_id => "12")
#rep5 = Store.where(:user_id => "13")
#rep6 = Store.where(:user_id => "14")
#rep7 = Store.where(:user_id => "15")
Is horrible for performance since each line will create a separate database query. If you are new at ruby I would suggest doing something like http://tryruby.org and learning how to manipulate arrays and hashes and the basics before trying to solve more complex problems.