Appendix A -- What is Object Oriented?
My (Simple-Minded) Definition of Object Oriented ...
An object oriented program is one where the work is accomplished by
sending message between (more or less) independent, colaborating
objects.
- Note: Ok, I used the word "object" in the definition. Although not quite circular, it does beg the question of what an object is. That's OK, we will cheerfully ignore this problem for the moment.
There are two important points about this definition ...
- The objects collaborate by sending messages to each other.
- They don't say: "Execute this code identified by this name"
- Instead, they say: "Perform this job
- The difference is subtle, but important.
- The objects are independent.
- Objects have minimal knowledge about each other.
I think an example is in order now.