I am using groovy 2.3.8
I am trying to figure out how method calls work in groovy. Specifically if we have a Java class hierarchy each having a metaClass like below
class A {
}
A.metaClass.hello = {
"hello superclass"
}
class B extends A {
}
B.metaClass.hello = {
"hello subclass"
}
If I use new B().hello() I get hello subclass. If I remove meta class of B then I get hello superclass.
Based on changing the above example I think groovy goes in the below sequence to find which method to call
method-in-subclass's-metaclass ?: subclass-metho ?: method-in-superclass's metaclass ?: method-in-superclass
So how does groovy lookup which method to call?
Well, the hierarchy is the expected object oriented programming method overloading, which is what you witnessed. What differs is the dispatching. Instead of starting with a method lookup in instance's class, it begins with the MOP (meta object protocol).
In layman's terms, because the MOP is programmable, so is the way methods are invoked :)
How it works
The following diagram from Groovy's documentation shows how methods are looked up.
What's not clear in the diagram is that there's an instance metaclass as well, and it comes before the class's metaclass.
Something that may help is looking at an object's or class's .metaClass.methods Methods added through inheritance, traits, metaclass, etc are listed in a flat list. The inheritance hierarchy is flattened. .metaClass.metaMethods on the other hand seems to contain methods added via the GDK. From the list I could not tell method precedence :(
Based on observation, the rule seems to be this: the last MetaClass standing wins.
class A { }
class B extends A { }
A.metaClass.hello = {
"hello superclass"
}
B.metaClass.hello = {
"hello subclass"
}
def b = new B()
assert b.hello() == "hello subclass"
b.metaClass = A.metaClass
assert b.hello() == "hello superclass"
Related
Actually I'm experimenting writing a DSL with groovy. So far ...
There are some things unclear to be regarding delegation and intercepting unwanted (Closure) structures:
first of all: How can I throw a (type of?) Exception to point to the correct line of code in the DSL that fails?
assuming
abstract MyScript extends Script {
def type(#DelegateTo(MyType) Closure cl) {
cl.delegate = new MyType()
cl()
this
}
}
under
new GroovyShell(this.class.classLoader, new CompilerConfiguration(scriptBaseClass: MyScript.name)).evaluate(…)
the passed DSL / closure
type {
foo: "bar"
}
passes silently.
I'm aware of, that foo: is just a POJ label but I'm not that sure what that defined Closure is interpreted as?
Neither did I found anything regarding the AST metaprogramming to get in touch of any defined labels to use them?
giving in
type {
foo = "bar"
}
it's clear that he will try to set the property foo, but do I really have to intercept unwanted fields/props by
class MyType {
def propertyMissing(String name) {
… // where I'm unable to println name since this leads to field access 'name' ...
}
}
while user is still allowed to pass
type {
foo "bar"
}
which leads to method not defined .. so I have to write additionally some metaClass.methodMissing or metaClass.invokeMethod stuff ..
meanwhile I tend to dismiss any closures in my dsl only working with simple
def type(Map vars) {
store << new MyType(vars)
// where in the constructor I was forced to write metaClass stuff to validate that only fields are given in the map that are defined in the class
}
that works, but both drafts are not what I expected to do when reading "groovy is so great for making DSLs" ...
I would experiment with the different options and then settle for one.
To guide your users you should give feedback similar to that of the regular compiler (i.e. line-number and column, maybe the expression).
Enforcing the correctness of the input can be non-trivial -- depending on your DSL.
For example:
type {
foo: "bar"
}
Is just a closure that returns the String bar. Is that something your user is supposed to do? The label will be part of the AST, AFAIK in org.codehaus.groovy.ast.stmt.Statement.statementLabels. If you want this syntax to assign something to foo then you'll need to rewrite the AST. The Expression could become a Declaration for the local Variable foo or could become an assignment for the Field foo. That's really up to you, however, Groovy gives you some capabilities that make creating a DSL easier:
You already used #DelegateTo(MyType) so you could just add a Field foo to MyType:
class MyType {
String foo
}
And then either use #CompileStatic or #TypeChecked to verify your script. Note that #CompileStatic will deactivate Run-time Metaprogramming (i.e. propertyMissing etc. won't be called anymore.) while #TypeChecked does not. This, however, will only verify Type-Correctness. That is: assigning to anything but a declared Field will fail and assigning an incompatible Type will fail. It does not verify that something has been assigned to foo at all. If this is required you can verify the contents of the delegate after calling the Closure.
in class standard class Dialog exist an Object declare (in classDeclaration)
Object caller;
In this class I'm able to get the caller class name. For example:
if (caller.name() == classStr(MyCallerClass) )
{
// manage-pass variable in caller class
}
If I catch in the IF, I want to pass a parameter in parm method in to MyCallerClass.
How I can pass a simple parameter? For example:
if (caller.name() == classStr(MyCallerClass) )
{
// MyCallerClass.myParmMethod(parameter);
}
Thanks.
Just call the method:
if (caller.name() == classStr(MyCallerClass))
caller.myParmMethod('abc');
As caller is of type Object the compiler accepts any method name, it uses duck typing.
A run time error happens if caller does not have the method.
That said, you should not change the standard Dialog class.
You might extend the class, though this is unlikely to be the right thing.
What you should do depends on information you do not give.
The correct & safe way is:
MyCallerClass myCalss;
if (caller && classidget(caller) == classnum(MyCallerClass))
{
myClass = caller;
myClass.myParmMethod('abc');
}
See examples in form.init methods.
UPDATE
I have to apologize for confusing the readers. After I got totally lost in the code, I reverted all my changes from Mercurial repo, carefully applied the same logic as before -- and it worked. The answers below helped me understand the (new to me) concept better, and for that I gave them upvotes.
Bottom line: if a call to a missing method happens within a closure, and resolution set to DELEGATE_FIRST, methodMissing() will be called on the delegate. If it doesn't -- check you own code, there is a typo somewhere.
Thanks a lot!
Edit:
OK, now that you've clarified what your are doing (somewhat ;--))
Another approach (one that I use for DSLs) is to parse your closure group to map via a ClosureToMap utility like this:
// converts given closure to map method => value pairs (1-d, if you need nested, ask)
class ClosureToMap {
Map map = [:]
ClosureToMap(Closure c) {
c.delegate = this
c.resolveStrategy = Closure.DELEGATE_FIRST
c.each{"$it"()}
}
def methodMissing(String name, args) {
if(!args.size()) return
map[name] = args[0]
}
def propertyMissing(String name) { name }
}
// Pass your closure to the utility and access the generated map
Map map = new ClosureToMap(your-closure-here)?.map
Now you can iterate through the map, perhaps adding methods to applicable MCL instance. For example, some of my domains have dynamic finders like:
def finders = {
userStatusPaid = { Boolean active = true->
eq {
active "$active"
paid true
}
}
}
I create a map using the ClosureToMap utility, and then iterate through, adding map keys (methods, like "userStatus") and values (in this case, closure "eq") to domain instance MCL, delegating the closure to our ORM, like so:
def injectFinders(Object instance) {
if(instance.hasProperty('finders')) {
Map m = ClosureToMap.new(instance.finders).map
m?.each{ String method, Closure cl->
cl.delegate = instance.orm
cl.resolveStrategy = Closure.DELEGATE_FIRST
instance.orm.metaClass."$method" = cl
}
}
}
In this way in controller scope I can do, say:
def actives = Orders.userStatusPaid()
and "eq" closure will delegate to the ORM and not domain Orders where an MME would occur.
Play around with it, hopefully I've given you some ideas for how to solve the problem. In Groovy, if you can't do it one way, try another ;--)
Good luck!
Original:
Your missingMethod is defined on string metaclass; in order for it to be invoked, you need "someString".foo()
If you simply call foo() by itself within your closure it will fail, regardless of delegation strategy used; i.e. if you don't use the (String) delegate, good luck. Case in point, do "".foo() and it works.
I don't fully understand the issue either, why will you not have access to the closure's delegate? You are setting the closure's delegate and will invoke the closure, which means you will have access to the delegate within the closure itself (and can just delegate.foo())
nope, you will not catch a missing method and redirect it to the delegate with metaclass magic.
the closure delegate is the chance to capture those calls and adapt them to the backing domain.
that means...
you should create your own delegate with the methods required by the dsl.
do not try to force a class to do delegate work if it's not designed for the task, or the code will get really messy in not time.
keep everything dsl related in a set of specially designed delegate classes and everything will suddenly become ridiculously simple and clear.
As new to groovy...
I'm trying to replace the java idiom for event listeners, filters, etc.
My working code in groovy is the following:
def find() {
ODB odb = ODBFactory.open(files.nodupes); // data nucleus object database
Objects<Prospect> src = odb.getObjects(new QProspect());
src.each { println it };
odb.close();
}
class QProspect extends SimpleNativeQuery {
public boolean match(Prospect p) {
if (p.url) {
return p.url.endsWith(".biz");
}
return false;
}
}
Now, this is far from what I'm used to in java, where the implementation of the Query interface is done right inside the odb.getObjects() method. If I where to code "java" I'd probably do something like the following, yet it's not working:
Objects<Prospect> src = odb.getObjects( {
boolean match(p) {
if (p.url) {
return p.url.endsWith(".biz");
}
return false;
}
} as SimpleNativeQuery);
Or better, I'd like it to be like this:
Objects<Prospect> src = odb.getObjects(
{ it.url.endsWith(".biz") } as SimpleNativeQuery
);
However, what groovy does it to associate the "match" method with the outer script context and fail me.
I find groovy... groovy anyways so I'll stick to learning more about it. Thanks.
What I should've asked was how do we do the "anonymous" class in groovy. Here's the java idiom:
void defReadAFile() {
File[] files = new File(".").listFiles(new FileFilter() {
public boolean accept(File file) {
return file.getPath().endsWith(".biz");
}
});
}
Can groovy be as concise with no additional class declaration?
I think it would have helped you to get answers if you'd abstracted the problem so that it didn't rely on the Neodatis DB interface -- that threw me for a loop, as I've never used it. What I've written below about it is based on a very cursory analysis.
For that matter, I've never used Groovy either, though I like what I've seen of it. But seeing as no one else has answered yet, you're stuck with me :-)
I think the problem (or at least part of it) may be that you're expecting too much of the SimpleNativeQuery class from Neodatis. It doesn't look like it even tries to filter the objects before it adds them to the returned collection. I think instead you want to use org.neodatis.odb.impl.core.query.criteria.CriteriaQuery. (Note the "impl" in the package path. This has me a bit nervous, as I don't know for sure if this class is meant to be used by callers. But I don't see any other classes in Neodatis that allow for query criteria to be specified.)
But instead of using CriteriaQuery directly, I think you'd rather wrap it inside of a Groovy class so that you can use it with closures. So, I think a Groovy version of your code with closures might look something like this:
// Create a class that wraps CriteriaQuery and allows you
// to pass closures. This is wordy too, but at least it's
// reusable.
import org.neodatis.odb.impl.core.query.criteria;
class GroovyCriteriaQuery extends CriteriaQuery {
private final c;
QProspect(theClosure) {
// I prefer to check for null here, instead of in match()
if (theClosure == null) {
throw new InvalidArgumentException("theClosure can't be null!");
}
c = theClosure;
}
public boolean match(AbstractObjectInfo aoi){
//!! I'm assuming here that 'aoi' can be used as the actual
//!! object instance (or at least as proxy for it.)
//!! (You may have to extract the actual object from aoi before calling c.)
return c(aoi);
}
}
// Now use the query class in some random code.
Objects<Prospect> src = odb.getObjects(
new GroovyCriteriaQuery(
{ it.url.endsWith(".biz") }
)
)
I hope this helps!
I believe your real question is "Can I use closures instead of anonymous classes when calling Java APIs that do not use closures". And the answer is a definite "yes". This:
Objects<Prospect> src = odb.getObjects(
{ it.url.endsWith(".biz") } as SimpleNativeQuery
);
should work. You write "However, what groovy does it to associate the "match" method with the outer script context and fail me". How exactly does it fail? It seems to me like you're having a simple technical problem to get the solution that is both "the groovy way" and exactly what you desire to work.
Yep, thanks y'all, it works.
I also found out why SimpleNativeQuery does not work (per Dan Breslau).
I tried the following and it worked wonderfully. So the idiom does work as expected.
new File("c:\\temp").listFiles({ it.path.endsWith(".html") } as FileFilter);
This next one does not work because of the neodatis interface. The interface does not enforce a match() method! It only mentions it in the documentation yet it's not present in the class file:
public class SimpleNativeQuery extends AbstactQuery{
}
Objects<Prospect> src = odb.getObjects(
{ it.url.endsWith(".biz") } as SimpleNativeQuery
);
In the above, as the SimpleNativeQuery does not have a match() method, it makes it impossible for the groovy compiler to identify which method in the SimpleNativeQuery should the closure be attached to; it then defaults to the outer groovy script.
It's my third day with groovy and I'm loving it.
Both books are great:
- Groovy Recipes (Scott Davis)
- Programming Groovy (Venkat Subramaniam)
Is it possible to intercept all the methods called in a application? I'd like to do something with them, and then let them execute. I tried to override this behaviour in Object.metaClass.invokeMethod, but it doesn't seem to work.
Is this doable?
Have you looked at Groovy AOP? There's very little documentation, but it allows you to define pointcuts and advice in a conceptually similar way as for AspectJ. Have a look at the unit tests for some more examples
The example below will match all calls to all woven types and apply the advice before proceeding:
// aspect MyAspect
class MyAspect {
static aspect = {
//match all calls to all calls to all types in all packages
def pc = pcall("*.*.*")
//apply around advice to the matched calls
around(pc) { ctx ->
println ctx.args[0]
println ctx.args.length
return proceed(ctx.args)
}
}
}
// class T
class T {
def test() {
println "hello"
}
}
// Script starts here
weave MyAspect.class
new T().test()
unweave MyAspect.class
First of all, overriding Object.metaClass.invokeMethod doesn't work because when Groovy tries to resolve a method call for a type X, it checks the metaClass of X, but not the metaClass of its parent class(es). For example, the following code will print "method intValue intercepted"
Integer.metaClass.invokeMethod = {def name, def args ->
System.out.println("method $name intercepted")
}
6.intValue()
// Reset the metaClass
Integer.metaClass = null
But this code will not:
Object.metaClass.invokeMethod = {def name, def args ->
System.out.println("method $name intercepted")
}
6.intValue()
// Reset the metaClass
Object.metaClass = null
Your question was "Is it possible to intercept all the methods called in a application?", but could you be a bit more precise about whether you want to:
Intercept calls to Groovy methods, Java methods, or both
Intercept calls to only your Groovy/Java methods or also intercept calls to Groovy/Java library classes
For example, if you only want to intercept calls to your Groovy classes, you could change your classes to implement GroovyInterceptable. This ensures that invokeMethod() is invoked for every method called on those classes. If the nature of the interception (i.e. the stuff you want to do before/after invoking the called method) is the same for all classes, you could define invokeMethod() in a separate class and use #Mixin to apply it to all your classes.
Alternatively, if you also want to intercept calls to Java classes, you should check out the DelegatingMetaClass.