Cloning (programming): Difference between revisions

Revision as of 19:10, 14 December 2011

Revision as of 11:12, 15 May 2012

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In [[computer science]], '''cloning''' refers to the making of an exact copy of an [[object (programming)|object]], frequently under the [[programming paradigm|paradigm]] of [[instance-based programming]], or [[object-oriented programming]] (OOP).

==Shallow copies==

In most programming languages (exceptions include: [[Ruby (programming language)|Ruby]]), [[Primitiveprimitive type|primitive types]]s such as int<code>double</code>, <code>float</code>, double<code>int</code>, <code>long</code>, etc. simply store their values somewhere in the computer's memory (often the [[call stack]]). By using simple assignment, you can copy the contents of the variable to another one:

Copying primitive types in Java:

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Many OOP programming languages (including Java, [[C Sharp (programming language)|C#]], [[D (programming language)|D]], [[ECMAScript]], [[Java (programming language)|Java]]) make use of object references. Object references, which are similar to pointers in other languages, allow for objects to be passed around by [[Pointer (computer programming)|address]] so that the whole object need not be copied.

A Java example, when "copying" an object using simple assignment:

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Object copy = null;

copy = original; // does not copy object, onlybut copiesonly its reference

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The object is not duplicated, the variables 'original' and 'copy' are actually referring to the same object.

==Cloning==

The process of actually making another exact replica of the object, instead of just its reference, is called cloning. In most languages, the language or libraries can facilitate some sort of cloning. In Java, the <code>Object</code> class contains the [[Clone (Java method)|<code>clone()</code> method]], which copies the object and returns a reference to that copied object. Since it is in the <code>Object</code> class, all classes defined in Java will have a clone method available to the programmer (although to function correctly it needs to be overridden at each level it is used).

Cloning an object in Java:

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C++ objects in general behave like primitive types, so to copy a C++ object one could use the '<code>=</code>' (assignment) operator. There is a default assignment operator provided for all classes, but its effect may be altered through the use of [[operator overloading]]. There are dangers when using this technique (see [[Object slicing|Slicingslicing]]). A method of avoiding slicing can be implementing a similar solution to the Java <code>clone()</code> method for yourthe classes, and using pointers. (Note that there is no built -in <code>clone()</code> method)

A C++ example of object cloning:

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A C++ example of object cloning using pointers (avoids slicing):<ref>See Q&A at [http://en.allexperts.com/q/C-1040/constructor-virtual.htm en.allexperts.com]</ref>:

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Object * original = new Object;

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{{reflist}}

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[[Category:Object-oriented programming]]

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