Abstract |
Double dispatch is the ability of selecting dynamically a method not only according to the run-time type of the receiver (single dispatch), but also to the run-time type of the argument. This mechanism unleashes the power of dynamic binding in object-oriented languages, so enhancing re-usability and separation of responsibilities. However, many mainstream languages, such as, e.g., C++ and Java, do not provide it, resorting to only single dispatch. In this paper we propose an extension of C++ (applicable also to other OO languages) that enables double dispatch as a language feature. This yields dynamic overloading and covariant specialization of methods. We define a translation from the new constructs to standard C++ and we present the preprocessor implementing this translation, called doublecpp. The translated code enjoys static type safety and implements the semantics of double dispatch by using only standard mechanisms of static overloading and dynamic binding, with minimal impact on the performance of the program. |
@article{BCV06,
number = {6},
volume = {36},
author = {Bettini, Lorenzo and Capecchi, Sara and Venneri, Betti},
url = {http://rap.dsi.unifi.it/~bettini/bibliography/files/spelxb.ps.gz},
title = {{Double Dispatch in C++}},
abstract = {Double dispatch is the ability of selecting dynamically a method
not only according to the run-time type of the receiver (single
dispatch), but also to the run-time type of the argument. This
mechanism unleashes the power of dynamic binding in
object-oriented languages, so enhancing re-usability and
separation of responsibilities. However, many mainstream
languages, such as, e.g., C++ and Java, do not provide it,
resorting to only single dispatch. In this paper we propose an
extension of C++ (applicable also to other OO languages) that
enables double dispatch as a language feature. This yields dynamic
overloading and covariant specialization of methods. We define a
translation from the new constructs to standard C++ and we present
the preprocessor implementing this translation, called doublecpp.
The translated code enjoys static type safety and implements the
semantics of double dispatch by using only standard mechanisms of
static overloading and dynamic binding, with minimal impact on the
performance of the program.},
pages = {581 - 613},
year = {2006},
journal = {Software - Practice and Experience},
}
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