Object (computer science): Difference between revisions

Revision as of 11:17, 31 October 2024

Revision as of 11:18, 31 October 2024

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{{Short description|Software abstraction with state, behavior, and identity}}

In [[software development]], an '''object''' is an [[entity]] that has [[State (computer science)|state]], [[behavior]], and [[Identity (object-oriented programming)|identity]].<ref name="ooa">{{cite book|title=Object-Oriented Analysis and Design with Applications |edition=3 |date=April 30, 2007 |author1=Grady Booch |author2=Robert Maksimchuk |author3=Michael Engle |author4=Bobbi Young |author5=Jim Conallen |author6=Kelli Houston |isbn=020189551X |publisher= Addison-Wesley Professional}}</ref>{{rp|78}} An object can [[model]] some part of [[reality]] or can be an [[invention]] of the [[design process]] whose collaborations with other such objects serve as the mechanisms that provide some higher-level behavior. Put another way, an object represents an individual, identifiable item, unit, or entity, either real or abstract, with a well-defined role in the problem ___domain.”<ref name="ooa"></ref>{{rp|76}}

Any [[programming language|language]] that supports a construct with [[State (computer science)|state]], behavior (modified via associated [[procedure]]s), and [[identifier (computer programming)|identity]] is classified as [[object-based language|object-based]]. [[Object-oriented programming]] (OOP) is object-based with the addition of [[polymorphism (computer science)|polymorphism]] and [[inheritance (object-oriented programming)|inheritance]]. An object-oriented system integrates code (behavior) and data (state) into objects. In a [[class-based programming|class-based]] language, an object is an [[Instance (computer science)|instance]] of a [[class (computer science)|class]].