This text presents an approach for improving the standard object-oriented programming model. The proposal is aimed at supporting a larger range of incremental behavior variations and thus could be more effective in mastering the complexity of today's software. The material presented in this book should interest both beginners and students or professionals with an advanced knowledge of object-oriented programming. The first part of the book can be used as supplementary material for students and professionals being introduced to object-oriented programming. It provides them with a description of the main concepts of object-oriented programming, which are presented from a conceptual point of view rather than related to the features of a particular object-oriented programming language. The description of the main concepts is a synthesis of considerations from several leading works in data abstraction and object-oriented technology. Parts of the book are currently used as supplementary material for teaching a graduate course on object-oriented design.
The book provides experienced programmers with a conceptual view of the relationship between object-oriented programming, data abstraction, and previous programming models that promotes an understanding of the essence of object-oriented programming. The book presents a synthesis of both the main achievements and the main shortcomings of object-oriented programming with respect to supporting incremental programming and promoting software reuse. It illustrates the behavior variations that can be performed incrementally and those that are not supported properly; the workarounds currently used for dealing with the latter case are described. Recent developments from ongoing research in object-oriented programming are presented, showing that the problems they deal with can actually be traced to some form of context-dependent behavior. The developments considered include design patterns, subject-oriented programming, adaptive programming, reflection, open implementations, and aspect-oriented programming.
Advanced students interested in language design are not only provided with an informal description of the new model, but also with a formal model and the description of a prototype implementation of RONDO embedded into the Smalltalk-80 environment. This can serve as a basis for experimenting with new concepts or with modifications of the proposed model. The last chapter of the book could be beneficial to the practitioners of object technology, since it deals with issues in maintaining reusable object-oriented systems.