Class-based object-oriented features in class-less script language
View Patent ↗Dynamic dispatch for classes and interfaces is encapsulated in a class-less scripting language. A plurality of mechanisms is employed to facilitate dynamic polymorphism. One or more target-language constructs, such as dictionary objects, prototype objects and/or derived types, are utilized to capture class and interface-method implementations. These constructs are subsequently referenced at runtime to invoke appropriate code.
1. A program transformation system, comprising:
a processor coupled to a memory, the processor configured to execute the following computer-executable components stored in the memory:
a code generation component that generates semantically equivalent code in a class-less scripting language from an object-oriented programming language representation of a hierarchy of one or more classes or interfaces and
a virtual constructor component that produces a dispatch construct that captures class and/or interface method implementation to facilitate dynamic dispatch.
2. The system of claim 1 , the dispatch construct is a dictionary object.
3. The system of claim 1 , a dictionary object maps method names to one or more method implementations.
4. The system of claim 1 , the dispatch construct is a linked list.
5. The system of claim 1 , the dispatch construct is a prototype object.
6. The system of claim 1 , comprising an object creation component that generates a new object with a reference to an associated dispatch construct.
7. The system of claim 1 , comprising a call component that translates a virtual method call to a call to a function that identifies a method invocation from the dispatch construct for an object and returns results of execution thereof.
8. The system of claim 1 , comprising an optimization component that eliminates dynamic dispatch when a static type is equivalent to a dynamic type of an object and/or lookup can be performed statically.
9. The system of claim 1 , the representation is intermediate language code.
10. A method of dynamic dispatch, comprising:
employing at least one processor configured to execute computer-executable instructions stored in memory to perform the following acts:
identifying a representation of a virtual method call in a class-less scripting language; and
locating an implementation for the virtual method call at runtime in a dispatch construct that maps method names to method implementations for objects utilizing code that captures class and/or interface inheritances relationships in the language.
11. The method of claim 10 , locating the implementation in a dictionary object.
12. The method of claim 10 , locating the implementation in a linked list.
13. A program compilation system, comprising:
computer-implemented means for acquiring an inheritance hierarchy of classes represented in intermediate language code; and
computer-implemented means for implementing code semantics in a class-less scripting programming language; and
computer-implemented means for generating a dispatch construct in the class-less scripting programming language that identifies method names and related method implementations.
14. The system of claim 13 , the computer-implemented means for generating the dispatch construct generates a dictionary object.