Object-Oriented Programming (OOP) Explained
1. Encapsulation
Encapsulation is a fundamental concept in OOP that involves bundling the data (attributes) and methods (functions) that operate on the data into a single unit called a class. It also includes restricting direct access to some of the object's components, which is known as data hiding.
Example: In a network management system, a "Device" class can encapsulate properties like IP address and status, and methods like "reboot" and "update_config". By making these properties private, you ensure that they can only be accessed or modified through specific methods, maintaining data integrity.
2. Inheritance
Inheritance is a mechanism that allows a class to inherit properties and methods from another class. The class that inherits is called the subclass or derived class, and the class from which it inherits is called the superclass or base class. Inheritance promotes code reuse and the creation of hierarchical relationships.
Example: Consider a "Router" class and a "Switch" class. Both can inherit from a base class called "NetworkDevice". The "NetworkDevice" class can have common attributes like "ip_address" and methods like "connect". The "Router" and "Switch" classes can then add their specific attributes and methods, such as "routing_protocol" for the "Router" class and "vlan_config" for the "Switch" class.
3. Polymorphism
Polymorphism allows objects of different classes to be treated as objects of a common superclass. It enables methods to be written that can work with objects of multiple types, as long as they support a common interface. Polymorphism can be achieved through method overriding and method overloading.
Example: In a network management application, you might have a method called "configure" that can be used to configure different types of network devices. By defining a common interface in the "NetworkDevice" class, you can call the "configure" method on objects of both "Router" and "Switch" classes, even though the implementation of "configure" might differ for each class.