Paper Info
Title
Featherweight Java with dynamic and static overloading
Abstract
We propose FMJ (Featherweight Multi Java), an extension of Featherweight Java with encapsulated multi-methods thus providing dynamic overloading. Multi-methods (collections of overloaded methods associated to the same message, whose selection takes place dynamically instead of statically as in standard overloading) are a useful and flexible mechanism which enhances re-usability and separation of responsibilities. However, many mainstream languages, such as, e.g., Java, do not provide it, resorting to only static overloading. The proposed extension is conservative and type safe: both ''message-not-understood'' and ''message-ambiguous'' are statically ruled out. Possible ambiguities are checked during type checking only on method invocation expressions, without requiring to inspect all the classes of a program. A static annotation with type information guarantees that in a well-typed program no ambiguity can arise at run-time. This annotation mechanism also permits modeling static overloading in a smooth way. Our core language can be used as the formal basis for an actual implementation of dynamic (and static) overloading in Java-like languages.
Year
DOI
Venue
2009
10.1016/j.scico.2009.01.007
Sci. Comput. Program.
Keywords
Field
DocType
type system,static overloading,multi-methods,type safe,standard overloading,featherweight java,dynamic overloading,type checking,static annotation,annotation mechanism,type information guarantee,featherweight multi java,object-oriented languages,multi methods,object oriented languages,object oriented language
Annotation,Programming language,Type checking,Object-oriented programming,Expression (mathematics),Invocation,Computer science,Core language,Ambiguity,Java
Journal
Volume
Issue
ISSN
74
5-6
Science of Computer Programming
Citations 
PageRank 
References 
8
0.82
27
Authors
3
Name
Order
Citations
PageRank
Lorenzo Bettini187151.50
Sara Capecchi214412.52
Betti Venneri320616.45