Content deleted Content added
Line 147:
OK, "totally wrong" as I said in the edit change log is too strong. However, it's common to use "polymorphism" to refer to what's called [[function overloading]] here in Wikipedia, i.e. the ability to have different versions of the same-named function that take different numbers and/or types of arguments. The article here specifically claims that polymorphism is ''not'' function overloading, which is simply wrong. Take a look at many sources, e.g. www.programmersheaven.com/2/FAQ-JAVA-What-Is-Polymorphism (which I can't directly insert a link to) and [http://home.cogeco.ca/~ve3ll/jatutor5.htm], which refer to function overloading as one type of polymorphism. The second refers to the sort of polymorphism as discussed in this article as "dynamic binding polymorphism". See also this classic paper which describes the theoretical background of polymorphism: [http://lucacardelli.name/Papers/OnUnderstanding.A4.pdf]. This paper uses the term "parametric polymorphism" to refer to polymorphism of the function-overloading type. [[User:Benwing|Benwing]] ([[User talk:Benwing|talk]]) 23:55, 12 October 2010 (UTC)
Remember that this is an article specifically about Subtype Polymorphism, and it's true to say that Subtype Polymorphism is not the same as function overloading/overriding on their own (i.e. there needs to be derivation, or an interface). That said, I do feel this article is badly structured and misleading. The references you have provided explain the topic much more clearly.
| |||