NAME

Class::Dot - Simple and fast properties for Perl 5.

VERSION

This document describes Class::Dot version v2.0.0 (beta 4).

SYNOPSIS

     package MyClass;
     # load standard types (:std) and install default constructor (-new).
 
     use Class::Dot qw(-new :std); # Automatically turns on strict and
                                   # warnings.
 
     # This class inherits from BaseClass.
     extends 'BaseClass';
 
     # This class has-a AnotherClass.
     composite another_class => 'AnotherClass'
 
     # Property without type.
     property 'attribute';
 
     # List of property types, doesn't need a default value.
     property string     => isa_String('default value');
 
     property integer    => isa_Int(256);
 
     property object     => isa_Object('MyApp::Controller');
 
     property hashref    => isa_Hash(foo => 1, bar => 2);
 
     property arrayref   => isa_Array(qw(the quick brown fox ...));
 
     property filehandle => isa_File()
 
     property code       => isa_Code { return 42 };
 
     property any_data   => isa_Data;
 
     # Object type that automatically creates new instance if it doesn't exist.
     property model      => isa_Object('MyApp::Model', auto => 1);
 
     # Initialize something at object construction.
     sub BUILD {
         my ($self, $options_ref) = @_;
 
         warn 'Creating a new object of type ', ref $self;
 
         return;
     }
 
     # Do something at object destruction.
     sub DEMOLISH {
         my ($self) = @_;
 
         warn 'Instance of class', ref $self, ' is going out of scope.';
 
         return;
     }
 
     # Re-bless instance at instance construction time. (option -rebuild)
     use Carp;
     use Class::Dot qw(-new -rebuild :std);
     use Class::Plugin::Util qw(require_class); # For dynamic loading of classes.
 
     sub BUILD {
         my ($self, $options_ref) = @_;
 
         if (exists $options_ref->{delegate_to}) {
             my $new_class    = $options_ref->{delegate_to};
             if (require_class($new_class)) {
                 my $new_instance = $new_class->new();
                 return $new_instance;
             }
             else {
                 croak "Could not load class: $new_class"
             }
         }
 
         return;
     }

DESCRIPTION

Simple and fast properties for Perl 5.

Properties are fully overrideable (Even when set using new({})).

Lets you define types for your properties, like Hash, String, Int, File, Code, Array and so on.

Supports type constraints.

Is not here to replace Moose, but can be used as a drop-in replacement for Moose to get

   better runtime performance. (does only support a small subset of Moose!)

All the types are populated with sane defaults, so you no longer have to write code like this:

    sub make_healthy {
       my ($self) = @_;
       my $state  = $self->state;
       my $fur    = $self->fur;
 
       $state ||= { }; # <-- you don't have to do this with class dot.
           $fur   ||= [ ]; # <-- same with this.
    }

Class::Dot can also create a default constructor for you if you pass it the -new option on the use line:

     use Class::Dot qw(-new :std);

If you pass a hashref to the constructor, it will use them as values for the properties:

    my $cat = Animal::Mammal::Carnivorous::Cat->new({
         gender => 'male',
         fur    => ['black', 'white', 'short'],
    }

If you want to intialize something at object construction time you can! Just define a method named BUILD. Class::Dot will pass on the instance and all the arguments that was sent to new.

     sub BUILD {
         my ($self, $options_ref) = @_;
 
         warn 'Someone created a ', ref $self;
 
         return;
     }

The return value of the BUILD method doesn't mean anything, that is unleass you have to -rebuild option on. When the -rebuild option is on, Class::Dot uses the return value of BUILD as the new object, so you can create a abstract factory or similar:

     use Class::Dot qw(-new -rebuild :std);
 
     sub BUILD {
         my ($self, $option_ref) = @_;
 
         if (exists $options_ref->{delegate_to}) {
             my $new_class = $options_ref->{delegate_to};
             my $new_instasnce = $new_class->new($options_ref);
 
             return $new_instance;
         }
 
         return;
     }

A big value of using properties is that you can override them at a later point to make them support additional functionality, like setting a hardware flag, logging, etc. In Class::Dot you override a property simply by defining their accessors:

    property name => isa_String();
 
    sub name {   # <-- overrides the get accessor
        my ($self) = @_;
 
        warn 'Acessing the name property';
 
        return $self->__getattr__('name');
    }
 
 
     sub set_name { # <-- overrides the set accessor
         my ($self, $new_name) = @_;
 
         warn $self->__getattr__('name'), " changed name to $new_name!";
 
         $self->__setattr__('name', $new_name);
 
         return;
     }

There is one exception where this won't work, though. That is if you define a property in a BEGIN block. If you do that you have to use the after_property_get() and after_property_set() functions:

     BEGIN {
         use Class::Dot qw(-new :std);
         property name => isa_String();
     }
 
     after_property_get name => sub {
         my ($self) = @_;
 
         warn 'Acessing the name property';
 
         return $self->__getattr__('name');
     }; # <-- the semicolon is required here!
 
     after_property_set name => sub {
         my ($self, $new_name) = @_;
 
         warn $self->__getattr__('name'), " changed name to $new_name!";
 
         $self->__setattr__('name', $new_name);
 
         return;
     }; # <-- the semicolon is required here!

You can read more about Class::Dot in the Class::Dot::Manual::Cookbook and Class::Dot::Manual::FAQ. (Not yet written for the 2.0 beta release).

Have a good time working with Class::Dot, and please report any bug you might find, or send feature requests. (although Class::Dot is not meant to be Moose, it's meant to be simple and fast).

SUBROUTINES/METHODS

CLASS METHODS

`property($property_name, %options)`

Example:

     property foo => isa_String('hello world');
 
     property bar => isa_Int(303);

will create the methods:

     foo( )
     set_foo($value)
 
     bar( )
     set_bar($value)

with default return values -hello world- and -303-.

`has($property_name, %options)`

Alias to property.

`define_property($property_name, $default_value, $in_class, $options)`

Same as property() except you define which class to install the property in.

`extends(@superclasses)`

Set superclasses for the current class. Same as use base @superclasses.

Example:

     package MyClass::Child;
     use Class::Dot qw(-new :std);
     extends 'MyClass';

`superclasses_for($class, @superclasses)`

Set the superclasses for another class.

Example:

     Class::Dot::superclasses_for('ThatClass' => qw(ThatClass::Base));

`composites($attribute_name, $composite_class)`

Denotes that the current class has a has-a relationship to another class. The $composite_class will be loaded and a property with the name $property_name will be created. The class will be automatically created if there is no instance constructed at object construction time.

     composites another_class => 'Another::Class'

is the same as:

     property another_class => isa_Object('Another::Class', auto => 1);

You can then override this property at another time if you like.

Example defining the instance at build time:

     class MyClass;
 
     composite another_class => 'Another::Class';
 
     sub BUILD {
         my ($self, $options_ref) = @_;
 
         my $another_class = Another::Class->new();
         $self->set_another_class( $another_class );
 
         return;
     }
 
 
     sub hello_from_another_class {
         my ($self) = @_;
         my $another_class = $self->another_class;
 
         return $another_class->hello();
     }

`composite($attribute_name, $composite_class)`

Alias to composites().

`composites_for($class, $property_name, $composite_class)`

Composite the class $class with $composite_class as a property with the name $property_name.

`finalize_class($opt_class)`

This will finalize the class $opt_class. If $opt_class is not given, the current class is used.

You can't add any new properties to the class after finalization. So, why would you want to do this? Because it's an optimization. All inheritance lookups are cached at the moment of finalization and ISA will no longer be traversed at property lookups.

`after_property_get($attr_name, \&code)`

Override the get accessor method for a property.

Example:

    property name => isa_String;
 
    after_property_get name => sub {
       my ($self) = @_;
 
       warn 'Accessing the name property of ' . ref $self;
 
       return $self->__getattr__('name');
    }; # <- needs the semi-colon at the end!

`after_property_set($attr_name, \&code)`

Override the set accessor method for a property.

Example:

    property name => isa_String;
 
    after_property_set name => sub {
       my ($self, $new_name) = @_;
 
       warn $self->__getattr__('name') . " is canging name to $new_name";
 
       $self->__setattr__('name', $new_name);
 
       return;
    }; # <- needs the semi-colon at the end!

`isa_String($default_value)`

The property is a string.

`isa_Int($default_value)`

The property is a number.

`isa_Array(@default_values)`

The property is an array.

`isa_Hash(%default_values)`

The property is an hash.

`isa_Object($kind)`

The property is a object. (Does not really set a default value.).

`isa_Data()`

The property is of a not yet defined data type.

`isa_Code()`

The property is a subroutine reference.

`isa_File()`

INSTANCE METHODS

`->properties_for_class($class)`

Return the list of properties for a class/object that uses the powers.

PRIVATE CLASS METHODS

`_create_get_accessor($property, $default_value)`

Create the set accessor for a property. Returns a code reference to the new setter method. It has to be installed into the callers package afterwards.

`_create_set_accessor($property)`

Create the get accessor for a property. Returns a code reference to the new getter method. It has to be installed into the callers package afterwards.

DIAGNOSTICS

* You tried to set a value with `foo()`. Did you mean `set_foo()`

Self-explained?

CONFIGURATION AND ENVIRONMENT

This module requires no configuration file or environment variables.

DEPENDENCIES

version

INCOMPATIBILITIES

None known.

BUGS AND LIMITATIONS

No bugs have been reported.

Please report any bugs or feature requests to bug-class-dot@rt.cpan.org, or through the web interface at CPAN Bug tracker.

BENCHMARK

This is a benchmark to show an example of how Class::Dot performs over other similar implementations. The source code for the benchmark can be found in the Class::Dot distributions devel/dotbench.pl file.

                           Rate   moose class::dot class::dot-finalized pureperl-OO
     moose                 1186/s      --       -96%                 -96% -97%
     class::dot           27624/s   2229%         --                 -12% -28%
     class::dot-finalized 31546/s   2560%        14%                   -- -18%
     pureperl-OO          38610/s   3156%        40%                  22%

These are pretty simple programs that just creates an instance and sets+gets some properties. Products may perform differently is other scenarios, after all it's just a benchmark.

class::dot-finalized is the same program but where the class is finalized. Finalizing the class is a simple operation, but after the class has been finalized you can not add any new properties or base classes.

This is how you do it:

     __PACAKGE__->__finalize__();

Not that this should be done 'after' you have called the Class::Dot functions you need.

CODE COVERAGE

     ---------------------------- ------ ------ ------ ------ ------ ------ ------
     File                           stmt   bran   cond    sub    pod   time  total
     ---------------------------- ------ ------ ------ ------ ------ ------ ------
     lib/Class/Dot.pm               99.0   98.8   64.3  100.0  100.0   79.0   98.2
     lib/Class/Dot/Types.pm         97.0   97.2  100.0  100.0  100.0   21.0   97.8
     Total                          98.4   98.4   70.6  100.0  100.0  100.0   98.1
     ---------------------------- ------ ------ ------ ------ ------ ------ ------

AUTHOR

Ask Solem, ask@0x61736b.net.

LICENSE AND COPYRIGHT

Class::Dot is distributed under the Modified BSD License.

Redistribution and use in source and binary forms, with or without modification, are permitted provided that the following conditions are met:

1. Redistributions of source code must retain the above copyright notice, this list of conditions and the following disclaimer.

2. Redistributions in binary form must reproduce the above copyright notice, this list of conditions and the following disclaimer in the documentation and/or other materials provided with the distribution.

3. The name of the author may not be used to endorse or promote products derived from this software without specific prior written permission.

THIS SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED BY THE AUTHOR ``AS IS'' AND ANY EXPRESS OR IMPLIED WARRANTIES, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE ARE DISCLAIMED. IN NO EVENT SHALL THE AUTHOR BE LIABLE FOR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, EXEMPLARY, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES (INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, PROCUREMENT OF SUBSTITUTE GOODS OR SERVICES; LOSS OF USE, DATA, OR PROFITS; OR BUSINESS INTERRUPTION) HOWEVER CAUSED AND ON ANY THEORY OF LIABILITY, WHETHER IN CONTRACT, STRICT LIABILITY, OR TORT (INCLUDING NEGLIGENCE OR OTHERWISE) ARISING IN ANY WAY OUT OF THE USE OF THIS SOFTWARE, EVEN IF ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGE.

DISCLAIMER OF WARRANTY

BECAUSE THIS SOFTWARE IS LICENSED FREE OF CHARGE, THERE IS NO WARRANTY FOR THE SOFTWARE, TO THE EXTENT PERMITTED BY APPLICABLE LAW. EXCEPT WHEN OTHERWISE STATED IN WRITING THE COPYRIGHT HOLDERS AND/OR OTHER PARTIES PROVIDE THE SOFTWARE "AS IS" WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EITHER EXPRESSED OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. THE ENTIRE RISK AS TO THE QUALITY AND PERFORMANCE OF THE SOFTWARE IS WITH YOU. SHOULD THE SOFTWARE PROVE DEFECTIVE, YOU ASSUME THE COST OF ALL NECESSARY SERVICING, REPAIR, OR CORRECTION.

IN NO EVENT UNLESS REQUIRED BY APPLICABLE LAW OR AGREED TO IN WRITING WILL ANY COPYRIGHT HOLDER, OR ANY OTHER PARTY WHO MAY MODIFY AND/OR REDISTRIBUTE THE SOFTWARE AS PERMITTED BY THE ABOVE LICENSE, BE LIABLE TO YOU FOR DAMAGES, INCLUDING ANY GENERAL, SPECIAL, INCIDENTAL, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES ARISING OUT OF THE USE OR INABILITY TO USE THE SOFTWARE (INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO LOSS OF DATA OR DATA BEING RENDERED INACCURATE OR LOSSES SUSTAINED BY YOU OR THIRD PARTIES OR A FAILURE OF THE SOFTWARE TO OPERATE WITH ANY OTHER SOFTWARE), EVEN IF SUCH HOLDER OR OTHER PARTY HAS BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES.

# Local Variables: # mode: cperl # cperl-indent-level: 4 # fill-column: 78 # End: # vim: expandtab tabstop=4 shiftwidth=4 shiftround

To install Class::Dot, copy and paste the appropriate command in to your terminal.

cpanm

cpanm Class::Dot

CPAN shell

perl -MCPAN -e shell
install Class::Dot

For more information on module installation, please visit the detailed CPAN module installation guide.

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	GitHub
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NAME

VERSION

SYNOPSIS

DESCRIPTION

SUBROUTINES/METHODS

CLASS METHODS

property($property_name, %options)

has($property_name, %options)

define_property($property_name, $default_value, $in_class, $options)

extends(@superclasses)

superclasses_for($class, @superclasses)

composites($attribute_name, $composite_class)

composite($attribute_name, $composite_class)

composites_for($class, $property_name, $composite_class)

finalize_class($opt_class)

after_property_get($attr_name, \&code)

after_property_set($attr_name, \&code)

isa_String($default_value)

isa_Int($default_value)

isa_Array(@default_values)

isa_Hash(%default_values)

isa_Object($kind)

isa_Data()

isa_Code()

isa_File()

INSTANCE METHODS

->properties_for_class($class)

PRIVATE CLASS METHODS

_create_get_accessor($property, $default_value)

_create_set_accessor($property)

DIAGNOSTICS

* You tried to set a value with foo(). Did you mean set_foo()

CONFIGURATION AND ENVIRONMENT

DEPENDENCIES

INCOMPATIBILITIES

BUGS AND LIMITATIONS

BENCHMARK

SEE ALSO

Moose

Class::Accessor

Class::Accessor::Fast

Class::InsideOut

CODE COVERAGE

AUTHOR

LICENSE AND COPYRIGHT

DISCLAIMER OF WARRANTY

Module Install Instructions

`property($property_name, %options)`

`has($property_name, %options)`

`define_property($property_name, $default_value, $in_class, $options)`

`extends(@superclasses)`

`superclasses_for($class, @superclasses)`

`composites($attribute_name, $composite_class)`

`composite($attribute_name, $composite_class)`

`composites_for($class, $property_name, $composite_class)`

`finalize_class($opt_class)`

`after_property_get($attr_name, \&code)`

`after_property_set($attr_name, \&code)`

`isa_String($default_value)`

`isa_Int($default_value)`

`isa_Array(@default_values)`

`isa_Hash(%default_values)`

`isa_Object($kind)`

`isa_Data()`

`isa_Code()`

`isa_File()`

`->properties_for_class($class)`

`_create_get_accessor($property, $default_value)`

`_create_set_accessor($property)`

* You tried to set a value with `foo()`. Did you mean `set_foo()`