CodeGuru Home VC++ / MFC / C++ .NET / C# Visual Basic VB Forums Developer.com
Results 1 to 8 of 8
  1. #1
    Join Date
    Jul 2014
    Posts
    12

    An Issue with Inheritance

    I am doing some testing with inheritance, and I ran across this little bit of what I consider weirdness. Here is my class layout:

    Code:
        class animal
        {
    
        }
    
        class dog : animal
        {
            public dog()
            {
                Console.WriteLine("woof!");
                this.bark();
                Console.ReadLine();
            }
    
            public void bark()
            {
                Console.WriteLine("woof! woof!");
            }
        }
    I instantiate it like so:

    Code:
    animal dog = new dog();
    Ok, so I noticed something a while back when instantiating an object with the type of the base class and making it a new instance of a derived class: the derived class's overrides and unique methods are not available to the new object. However, in this case, I am seeing that they are available through the derived class constructor. If I do this afterward:

    Code:
    dog.bark();
    It doesn't work.

    - Why is this?
    - Is it useful in a way that I'm not seeing?
    - Is there a way to access those methods again using that new object?

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Apr 2014
    Location
    in northeast ohio
    Posts
    94

    Re: An Issue with Inheritance

    i didn't double check this code so just consider it pesudo code
    im sick atm but since no one replied ill just toss out a basic answer

    you haven't actually defined those methods in the animal class
    so you cant call something you haven't defined inheritance works of the parent
    to say animal is the predacessor or parent of dogs cats cows ect.

    you would do it like so

    class Animal
    {
    public string Noise{get;set;}
    public virtual void Speak()
    {
    Console.WriteLine(Noise);
    }
    }

    class Dog : Animal
    {
    public Dog()
    {
    base.Noise = "woof !"
    }
    public override void Speak()
    {
    base.Speak();
    }
    }

    so the idea is if you have a cat class when you call Speak it will instead meow
    if you have a dog class it will bark when you call speak but now you just call Speak for either
    if you urself or another programer uses your class's and sees that there is a dog cat or animal class
    in use and they all inheirit from animal he knows
    all these class's should have at least those public methods available to him or
    overriden safe versions particular to the class
    in other words he or you can just call mycat.Speak() or mydog.Speak()

    also if you want to make a array or list of animals and add to that list cats or dogs ect
    they may be in reality defined by different types
    e.g.
    public List<Animal> animals = new List<Animal>();
    animals.Add(new Cat());
    animals.Add(new Dog());
    animals[0].Speak(); // meow
    animals[1].Speak(); // woof

    cool right
    now interfaces are c# answer to multiple inheritance
    maybe little better a idea of it then older languages takes on it
    Last edited by willmotil; August 5th, 2014 at 02:39 PM.

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Jul 2014
    Posts
    12

    Re: An Issue with Inheritance

    I hope you feel better.

    This makes sense - essentially in the case that I want to use the animal class, the others cannot have any unique methods(that I can expect to use after casting), but their properties can differ, causing the base methods to behave differently.

    My questions then are these: why do you call the base version of the speak method/assign to the base property? If the dog and cat classes are inheriting versions of these properties, can't the method/property from the derived class be used? Is there a specific benefit to doing it that way?

    I have actually seen this selectively through code examples here and there, specifically when a derived class will call the base constructor. In this case, however, you are overriding the Speak method and the override simply calls the base version. Acknowledging that I am new to this and really don't know all the 'why's, this doesn't make sense to me. What am I missing?
    Last edited by decimer; August 5th, 2014 at 08:02 AM.

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Apr 2014
    Location
    in northeast ohio
    Posts
    94

    Re: An Issue with Inheritance

    I hope you feel better.
    thank's i hope i feel better too. arrggg

    My questions then are these:
    why do you call the base version of the speak method/assign to the base property?
    to show that you can if you desire simply use the original implementation that you defined for animal
    you might make a weird class and not yet wish to specify the noise it makes
    or do that at a later time. say you want the basic structure in place in the class though
    to make a silly analogy ....
    if animals noise is "grrr" a cat or dog may have evolved a new sound woof or meow
    and maybe certain dogs can make weirder sounds like "wooooooooooooooooooof"
    but a MissingLinkDog may look like a dog but still make a "grrr" noise.
    so in that manner you have flexibility to tackle any problem were, this sort of solution is needed

    If the dog and cat classes are inheriting versions of these properties, can't the method/property from the derived class be used?
    yep it can
    you can implement a completely new dog Speak method by specifying the override command on your own Dog Speak
    put in the console writeline directly there with its noise string output msg and never call base.
    or you can
    Not define one at all and implement Bark() which is very specific to the dog class
    and have both its inhearited Speak method and its individual Bark method
    later down the line if some class may randomly call speak on anything that "Has A" animal base
    its never going to fail with some weird error you know that all animals or children of animals can speak
    or if you like that all things derived from a animal ie based on animal can speak

    Is there a specific benefit to doing it that way?
    i will answer this within the last question
    which is better asked as in "what situation might i need or want to do it that way".

    I have actually seen this selectively through code examples here and there, specifically when a derived class will call the base constructor
    because the base constructor may do basic initialization or accept parameters that are meant to be overriden
    its just a tool you can have functionallity in the base that you can call in thru any derived class you make
    easilly and in a standardized manner.

    In this case, however, you are overriding the Speak method and the override simply calls the base version. Acknowledging that I am new to this and really don't know all the 'why's, this doesn't make sense to me
    the answer here is that im showing a ideological way to programatically answer
    a set of both simple yet together complex inheritance relationship questions.


    here is a good time to get super philosophical with some,,, er
    dumb evolutionary questions that we might think at first are simple.
    but in actuality require a change of thought to tackle.

    lets ask darwin then,, just run right past him going down our programming road.

    "can a dog bark" - yes
    "can a cat bark" - no
    "can a animal bark"- * well * ,,,, <<< now heres the real question ?
    not all animals so No But,,,
    a dog is a animal and it can bark so Yes,,, hummm (???)
    lets ask a different question.
    "can all animals make a noise" well ,,,
    they all should be able to try to make a noise
    if we say they can all Speak and some just put out silence then,,,
    all animals cant bark but all animals can Speak and some "wooof"

    so that way we exemplify
    how you might use inheritance in the above manner or,,,
    to show basically the power inheritance gives you as a tool
    maybe not just for programing but also for the way you ask questions and think about solutions

    more specifically
    i showed it that way, as it is then dependent on how You want to use it
    to show in a more complex case the ability to pass backwards functionality or
    how to pass in a reverse direction what was functionally inherited
    from the parent to the child then back to the parent

    in context of the example
    in the List of animals that was to follow that overriden constructor changes the property of the animal
    the list of animals can then directly call its base Speak method
    though they animals cannot directly call a Bark() method because it doesn't exist in the animal class

    if we use a List array dictionary ect to store the functionally
    we can access it from the more primitive animal class in the same way as our idea described above
    in order to tackle the problem, were our question revealed the true answer
    to say
    we see that Speaking the "woof" is the exact same thing as Barking it
    so a Animal that will make a Dog one day might be able to "woof" when it Speaks
    but that same Animal cant Bark cause animals don't Bark

    so here is also a real philosophy just not yet implemented in modern science
    however it is or can be implemented in real programing.
    one day you might need to do it or something similar "encapsulate duality to eliminate it"
    Last edited by willmotil; August 5th, 2014 at 11:03 AM.

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Jul 2014
    Posts
    12

    Re: An Issue with Inheritance

    I understand. Awesome answer - thanks!

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Apr 2014
    Location
    in northeast ohio
    Posts
    94

    Re: An Issue with Inheritance

    cool i mention interfaces cause after you fully understand inheritance is the best time to learn about them

    because it is a continuation of the philosophical questions that come after them
    it is the solution to question of such things as

    "What then is a Animal ?"
    when we say that ,,,
    a Animal cant Bark but,,, we know a dog is a Animal and,,, it can Bark
    so how can a Animal Bark but not be able to Bark ?
    what kind of thing is a animal really here ?

    we come to the conclusion that only the Dog or the Cat is real (or has unique data)
    Cats Meow
    Dogs Bark
    Animals Never do Either instead they make sounds a basic shared action
    or Speak ect but that's just a generalization of a actions
    so like what animals do they themself's are in reality a Abstract idea "not real or concrete"
    however the action itself is more functional reusable ideologically in the base interface or Abstract sense

    to say we are just generalizing things or grouping them
    i can ask my Dog to Speak it might "woof" back at me
    i can ask my Cat to Speak it might "meow" back
    but if i ask my Dog to "meow"
    its gonna be like dude, ? , i may be a animal but im no cat buddy

    so when we go back and say what is a animal,
    what we are saying its a really a design blueprint of the shared attributes of actions among different things
    given a generic or general name to allow communication
    so that's our idea for a interface to turn that philosophy into a programing keyword
    the keyword must be understood to be used and in turn we teach each other this philosophy

    we say these things ,,, actions can apply to a lot of Different real things
    but when we want to talk about these actions
    they in themself's are really just abstract idea's or generilized ways to interface
    with the basic shared action all of them should be able to perform named in the most base , basic way

    so animal here is really a candidate for a interface
    or a abstract class , and maybe should be instead a interface
    once you start thinking about Speak vs Bark and Meow
    then you see that Speak is a way to define a word that acts as a interface
    to any real class object of Dog Cat ect... which has stated that it uses that idea set

    so programers like to generalize even there idea's
    so we just call them idea's but in reality if scientists or philosophers got there hands on them
    they would be called theorys so...
    humans "talk", Dogs "bark", Cats "meow"
    but we know none of them truly do at all,
    when you cut it down to the most basic idea they are just making sounds.
    our Interface might describe this as a call ... Speak() to generalize it.
    from something complicated into something so simple its almost dumb. but serves a brilliant purpose
    to say it like this
    animal Interfaces implement (has a) Speak Method so anything that uses a (is a) Animal interface
    can Speak
    our Interface Keyword is the description of both our design and communication interface usage ideology
    Last edited by willmotil; August 5th, 2014 at 04:57 PM.

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Jul 2014
    Posts
    12

    Re: An Issue with Inheritance

    So then what you are talking about is like a more general sort of method, in which I can give a command to an object, and no matter what that command means to them, I get something back. It will be their version, but it will be something. As far as I can tell, though, the only real benefit to interfaces is a sort of QC of your classes and the ability to inherit more than one.

  8. #8
    Join Date
    Apr 2014
    Location
    in northeast ohio
    Posts
    94

    Re: An Issue with Inheritance

    well these ideas are pretty powerful and highly used
    were these examples are simplifications of the basic ideas
    but you are in fact using interfaces in your basic programing
    cause c# uses its own idea to full effect

    for example

    foreach(var obj in animals)
    {
    obj.Speak();
    }

    so above each animal will Speak

    you can do this because List implements the IEnumerable interface
    which lets you use foreach on the list of animals you made from cats and dogs
    http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/libr...vs.110%29.aspx
    many c# class's implement there own interfaces,
    in other words they are using over and over the stuff they wrote

    so you are already using interfaces
    you just haven't yet learned how or really needed to write your own

    now this is bit off track
    ignore it if you like but when you say why really in programing your more often going to ask
    "how do i do this" then find the "why cant i" and "why did they make so and so"....
    when you need it or when your stuck.
    its really good to learn these keywords as a reference for those times

    there are a lot of words used in programing
    you wont really find tossed around else-were as if they were no big deal
    (that's cause they are exactly defined there is no "depending on who you ask")
    they imply simple idea's to handle problems with complex philosophy's behind them that have been well defined
    http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/libr...vs.110%29.aspx
    the reason is because like our dog cat example questions to darwin
    the question's are stupidly simple but unanswerable if not asked in the proper context
    we were originally asking a Covariance and Contravariance question but darwin didn't get it.
    that form of question was Invariant

    so these words that are tossed around identify problems and solutions of a specific type
    you might run into when programing your cool new idea
    but you cant figure out how to make it work in code

    to say if you can identify what a problem is
    then you can identify the solution or a pattern to make it work
    Last edited by willmotil; August 5th, 2014 at 05:04 PM.

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •  





Click Here to Expand Forum to Full Width

Featured