Rails - Aug 2006 - params object NULL/nil in controller - is this a bug?

Hi All

I am trying to implement a functionality where a user clicks on "Back to 
Search Results" link he is taken to the back to search result screen. 
For this I am storing his search criteria (params object) in session. 
Below is my code, for the first time when the user performs a search, 
there is no result data in session so the execution enters first 
if...... see below

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________

def search

logger.debug("params.nil?=#{params.nil?}") # this prints 
''params.nil?=false '' <=== params is NOT nil at this point

if session[:incidentSearch].nil? or session[:incidentSearch].empty?

    params.each{|k,v| logger.debug("key: #{k}, value: #{v}")} #this 
prints the key value pairs perfectly

    logger.debug("params=#{params.to_s}") # this prints 
''params.nil?=false'' <=== params is NOT nil at this point

    # s=params.dup

    # params=s

    # logger.debug("params=#{s.to_s}")

    if params[:routeNum].nil? or params[:routeNum].empty? <=== params is 
NOT nil at this point

        flash[:warning] = "Don''t try stupid things....Enter some
search
criteria."

        redirect_to :back and return

    elsif !params[:routeNum ].empty? and one more condition

        flash[:warning] = "Specify only one search criteria Reference# 
or Route or Date (Start and End both)"

        redirect_to :back and return

    end

    params.
    each{|k,v| logger.debug("key: #{k}, value: #{v}")}

elsif !session[:incidentSearch].nil? and 
!session[:incidentSearch].empty? # control never reaches here for the 
first time the search is done

    logger.debug("======> Somebody was here.......") # <==
control never
reaches here for the first time the search is done

    params = session[:incidentSearch] # <== control never reaches here, 
if I comment it every thing works fine i.e. params is never nil

    puts "***^*&^&^*(^%%^%&^$%$%$&%$&$&^$&^
Somebody was here......." #
<== control never reaches here and nothing is printed

end
logger.debug(
"params.nil?=#{params.nil?}") # this prints ''params.nil?=true
'' <===
params is NIL at this point.

#proceed with search........
______________________________________________________________________________________________________________

This is a single user development environment. So only one request comes 
in for a search..... and the params is nil before I can even proceed 
with search.


Can somebody please help me understand where and why is params being set 
to nil???

Oh and if I do the following in my first if

s=params.dup
params=s

everything works fine

-daya

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