My question is more of a design issue than anything else. I'm currently developing a classic Server-Client chat program in Java. Everything is fine until I get to the commands. I thought it would be convenient for users to send commands that would then be treated by the server for changing their nickname for example. The thing is I want to make flexible code and above all, object-oriented code. To avoid endless if/else if statements to know what command was typed I believe it would be better to create a class for each command which inherit from a superclass Command. Then I could return the specific command through a getCommand() function overriden in all subclasses. But it does not solve my problem at all. The server still needs to test with instanceof what command has been returned. One way to do it dynamically would be to sort of auto downcasting it from the superclass Command and then call the appropriate function in the server class. For example:
public void processCommand(CommandNick c) {}
public void processCommand(CommandKick c) {}
But I haven't found any proper way of doing that and even if I did, I feel like there's still a design issue here. And I am convinced there is a nice and flexible way to do it but days weren't enough for me to figure it out. Any ideas? Thanks in advance! :)
I assume your server receives the message as an Object with a Sender and a String. Create your Command classes, and in the server init code, make a HashMap<String, AbstractCommand> with a String as key and your AbstractCommand class as value. Your commands should extend this class. Register all your commands, like so:
commandRegistry.put("help", new HelpCommandHandler());
I assume a command is a message with a ! before it. So when you receive a message, check if it is a command:
Message message = (Your Message)
String messageBody = message.getBody();
Sender messageSender = message.getSender();
if(messageBody.startsWith("!")) {
// Split the message after every space
String[] commandParts = messageBody.split(" ");
// The first element is the command base, like: !help
String baseCommand = commandParts[0];
// Remove the first character from the base, turns !help into help
baseCommand = baseCommand.substring(1, baseCommand.length());
// Creates a new array for the arguments. The length is smaller, because we won't copy the command base
String[] args = new String[commandParts.length - 1];
// Copy the elements of the commandParts array from index 1 into args from index 0
if(args.length > 0) {
System.arraycopy(commandParts, 1, args, 0, commandParts.length - 1);
}
// Your parse method
processCommand(sender, baseCommand, args);
}
public void processCommand(Sender sender, String base, String[] args) {
if(commandRegistry.containsKey(base)) {
commandRegistry.get(base).execute(sender, args);
} else {
// Handle unknown command
}
}
public abstract class AbstractCommand {
public abstract void execute(Sender sender, String[] args);
}
Sample implementation. I assume your server is a Singleton, and you can get on Object of it with Server.get() or any similar method.
public class HelpCommandHandler extends AbstractCommand { /* !help */
#Override
public void execute(Sender sender, String[] args) {
sender.sendMessage("You asked for help."); // Your code might not work like this.
}
}
public class ChangeNickCommandHandler extends AbstractCommand { /* !changenick newNick */
#Override
public void execute(Sender sender, String[] args) {
// I assume you have a List with connected players in your Server class
String username = sender.getUsername(); // Your code might not work like this
Server server = Server.get(); // Get Server instance
server.getUsers().get(username).setNickname(args[0]); // Argument 0. Check if it even exists.
}
}
// Server class. If it isn't singleton, you can make it one like this:
public class Server {
private static Server self;
public static Server init(/* Your args you'd use in a constructor */) { self = new Server(); return get(); }
public static Server get() { return self; }
private List<User> users = new List<User>();
private HashMap<String, AbstractCommand> commandRegitry = new HashMap<>();
// Make construcor private, use init() instead.
private Server() {
commandRegistry.put("help", new HelpCommandHandler());
commandRegistry.put("changenick", new ChangeNickCommandHandler());
}
// Getters
public List<User> getUsers() {
return users;
}
public HashMap<String, AbstractCommand> getRegistry() {
return commandRegistry;
}
}
This is a bit of pseudo code to illustrate that your controller doesn't need to know about the command processors (no need for instanceof).
abstract class CommandProcessor {
/* return boolean if this Command processed the request */
public static boolean processCommand(String command, User user, Properties chatProperties, Chat chat);
}
/* Handle anything */
public class CommandRemainder extends CommandProcessor {
#Override
public static boolean processCommand(String command, User user, Properties chatProperties, Chat chat) {
chat.appendText("[" + user.getName() + "] " + command);
return true;
}
}
/* Handle color changing */
public class CommandColorizer extends CommandProcessor {
protected static List<String> ALLOWED_COLORS = new ArrayList<>(Arrays.asList("red", "blue", "green"));
#Override
public static boolean processCommand(String command, User user, Properties chatProperties, Chat chat) {
if ("fg:".equals(command.trim().substring(0,3)) {
String color = command.trim().substring(3).trim();
if (ALLOWED_COLORS.contains(color)) {
chat.setForeground(color);
}
return true;
}
return false;
}
}
public class ChatController {
protected Chat chat = new Chat();
protected User user = getUser();
protected Properties chatProperties = getChatProperties();
protected List<CommandProcessor> commandProcessors = getCommandProcessors();
{
chat.addChatListener(new ChatListener(){
#Override
public void userChatted(String userChatString) {
for (CommandProcessor processor : commandProcessors) {
if (processor.processCommand(userChatString, user, chatProperties, chat)) {
break;
}
}
}
});
}
List<CommandProcessor> getCommandProcessors() {
List<CommandProcessor> commandProcessors = new ArrayList<>();
commandProcessors.add(new CommandColorizer());
commandProcessors.add(new CommandRemainder()); // needs to be last
return commandProcessors;
}
}
Related
I'm writing a messaging system to queue actions for my program to execute. I need to be able to pass various objects by the messages. I currently have a Msg object that accepts (Action enum, Data<?>...object). The Data object is intended to be a wrapper for any object I might pass.
Currently the Data object uses this code, with generics:
public class Data<T> {
private T data;
public Data(T data){
this.data = data;
}
public T getData(){
return data;
}
}
The Msg object takes Data<?>... type, so Msg has a Data<?>[] field.
If getData() is called on a Data<?> object, it returns the Object type. Obviously not ideal.
I need to be able to pass, say, Image objects as well as String objects. I'm certain there's a better way of passing arbitrary data.
The reason you're having trouble is that you're trying to get the static typing system of Java to do something that it can't. Once you convert from a Data<T> to a Data<?>, whatever T was is effectively lost. There's no clean way to get it back.
The quickest way to get it to work (from what you have right now) is to start throwing casts everywhere, like this:
Data<?> d = new Data("Hello");
String contents = (String)d.getData();
This is kind of a terrible idea, so let's go back to the drawing board.
If (ideally), you have all of the types you could ever need ahead of time (i.e. every Data is either a String or an Image or an Integer), then you can pretty easily (though it's a bit tedious) define a Sum type (aka a union if you're coming from C) of the different types of data you'll have to handle. As a class invariant, we assume that exactly one of the fields is non-null, and the rest are null. For this example I'll assume it can be either a String, an Image, or an Integer, but it's fairly simple to add or remove types from Data as necessary.
public class Data {
private Image imgData;
private String stringData;
private Integer intData;
public Data(Image img) {
this.imgData = img;
}
public Data(String stringData) {
this.stringData = stringData;
}
public Data(Integer intData) {
this.intData = intData;
}
public boolean isImage() {
return imageData != null;
}
public boolean isInteger() {
return intData != null;
}
public boolean isString() {
return stringData != null;
}
public Image asImage() {
if(! isImage()) throw new RuntimeException();
return imgData;
}
public Image asString() {
if(! isString()) throw new RuntimeException();
return stringData;
}
public Image asInt() {
if(! isInt()) throw new RuntimeException();
return intData;
}
}
One necessary side effect is that we cannot wrap null without causing exceptional behavior. Is this is desired, it isn't too difficult to modify the class to allow for it.
With this Data class, it's pretty easy to do if-else logic to parse it.
Data d = ....... //Get a data from somewhere
if(d.isImage()) {
Image img = d.asImage();
//...
} else if (d.isString()) {
String string = d.asString();
//...
} else if (d.isInteger()) {
Integer i = d.asInt();
//...
} else {
throw new RuntimeException("Illegal data " + d + " received");
}
If you call getData().getClass() you will get the class or type that was passed, which doesn't seem to me to be the same as an Object. You might not know what you are getting, but you can either find out or define a common interface for everything you might pass. You could for example, call toString() or getClass() on anything passed. Your question is that you are passing any conceivable object, so my question is what are you going to do with it? If you are going to serialize it into a database you don't need know anything about what type it is, otherwise you can test it or call a common interface.
public class PlayData {
class Msg {
private List<Data<?>> message = new ArrayList<Data<?>>();
public void addData(Data<?> datum) { message.add(datum); }
public void printTypes() { for ( Data<?> datum: message ) { System.out.println(datum.getData().getClass()); } }
}
class Data<T> {
private T value;
public Data(T value) { this.value = value; }
public T getData() { return value; }
}
class Listener {
public void receive(Msg msg) { msg.printTypes(); }
}
class Sender {
private Listener listener;
public Sender(Listener listener) { this.listener = listener; }
public void send(Msg msg) { listener.receive(msg); }
}
class MyPacket {
int i;
public MyPacket(int i) { this.i = i; }
}
public static void main(String[] args) throws Exception { new PlayData().run(); }
public void run() throws Exception {
Sender sender = new Sender(new Listener());
Msg msg = new Msg();
msg.addData(new Data<String>("testing") );
msg.addData(new Data<MyPacket>(new MyPacket(42)) );
sender.send(msg);
}
}
In my program, the user needs to input what type of players the game will have. The players are "human", "good" (for a good AI), "bad" (for a bad AI) and "random" (for a random AI). Each of these players have their own class that extend one abstract class called PlayerType.
My struggle is mapping a String to the object so I can A) create a new object using the String as sort of a key and B) get the related String from an object of its subclass
Ultimately, I just want the implicit String to only appear once in the code so I can change it later if needed without refactoring.
I've tried using just a plain HashMap, but that seems clunky with searching the keys via the values. Also, I'm guessing that I'll have to use the getInstance() method of Class, which is a little less clunky, which is okay if it's the only way.
What I would do is create an enum which essentially functions as a factory for the given type.
public enum PlayerTypes {
GOOD {
#Override
protected PlayerType newPlayer() {
return new GoodPlayer();
}
},
BAD {
#Override
protected PlayerType newPlayer() {
return new BadPlayer();
}
},
RANDOM {
#Override
protected PlayerType newPlayer() {
return new RandomPlayer();
}
};
protected abstract PlayerType newPlayer();
public static PlayerType create(String input) {
for(PlayerTypes player : PlayerTypes.values()) {
if(player.name().equalsIgnoreCase(input)) {
return player.newPlayer();
}
}
throw new IllegalArgumentException("Invalid player type [" + input + "]");
}
)
Because then you can just call it like so:
String input = getInput();
PlayerTypes.create(input);
Of course, you'll get an IllegalArgumentException which you should probably handle by trying to get the input again.
EDIT: Apparently in this particular case, you can replace that loop with just merely
return PlayerTypes.valueOf(input).newPlayer();
And it'll do the same thing. I tend to match for additional constructor parameters in the enum, so I didn't think of using valueOf(), but it's definitely cleaner.
EDIT2: Only way to get that information back is to define an abstract method in your PlayerType class that returns the PlayerTypes enum for that given type.
public class PlayerType {
public abstract PlayerTypes getType();
}
public class GoodPlayer extends PlayerType {
#Override
public PlayerTypes getType() {
return PlayerTypes.GOOD;
}
}
I like the answer provided by Epic but I don't find maps to be clunky. So it's possible to keep a map and get the constructor call directly.
Map<String, Supplier<PlayerType> map = new HashMap<>();
map.put("human", Human::new);
Human h = map.get("human").get();
The two main options I can think of:
Using Class.newInstance(), as you mentioned (not sure if you had this exact way in mind):
// Set up your map
Map<String, Class> classes = new HashMap<String, Class>();
classes.put("int", Integer.class);
classes.put("string", String.class);
// Get your data
Object s = classes.get("string").newInstance();
You could use Class.getDeclaredConstructor.newInstance if you want to use a constructor with arguments (example).
Another option is using switch:
Object getObject(String identifier) {
switch (identifier) {
case "string": return new String();
case "int": return new Integer(4);
}
return null; // or throw an exception or return a default object
}
One potential solution:
public class ForFunFactory {
private ForFunFactory() {
}
public static AThing getTheAppropriateThing(final String thingIdentifier) {
switch (thingIdentifier) {
case ThingImplApple.id:
return new ThingImplApple();
case ThingImplBanana.id:
return new ThingImplBanana();
default:
throw new RuntimeException("AThing with identifier "
+ thingIdentifier + " not found.");
}
}
}
public interface AThing {
void doStuff();
}
class ThingImplApple implements AThing {
static final String id = "Apple";
#Override
public void doStuff() {
System.out.println("I'm an Apple.");
}
}
class ThingImplBanana implements AThing {
static final String id = "Banana";
#Override
public void doStuff() {
System.out.println("I'm a Banana.");
}
}
MailBox Class
public class MailBox {
ArrayList<TwootMessage> messages = new ArrayList<TwootMessage>();
public void addMessage(TwootMessage message){
if(messages.size() < 100){
messages.add(message);
Collections.sort(messages);
}
else{
System.out.println("The Mailbox is full, cant add more messages, sorry!");
}
}
public void deleteMessage(int messageIndex){
messages.remove(messageIndex);
}
public TwootMessage getFirstMessage(){
return messages.get(0);
}
}
This is my code. I am trying to be able to create two types of mailbox from this class one that only accept TextTwoot and one that accept everything. TwoootMessage is the superclass for textTwoot and some other type of twoots.
Can anyone please offer some help?
Thank you
Make the class generic:
public class MailBox<T> {
List<T> messages = new ArrayList<T>();
public void addMesssage(T message) {
//implementation goes here.
}
public T getFirstMessage() {
return messages.get(0);
}
}
This will let you create objects like:
MailBox<TwoootMessage> twootMessageMailbox = new MailBox<TwoootMessage>();
MailBox<Object> mailBoxForEverything = new MailBox<Object>();
I have the following db table:
id method_id
1 1
1 2
1 3
and 2 classes:
EmailController and Smscontroller
in my code, I need to iterate over the table and according to the method_id (1 or 2) to invoke the send method of either EmailController or Smscontroller.
What is the recommended design pattern for it?
EDITED
There could be 100 methods! I put only 3. This is why I do not prefer the if else.
As well, the object that I send to EmailController send method is different than the one that I send to SmsController send method.
In EmailController I need to send User object.
In SmsController I need to send Manager object
I can't think of a design pattern. But for ultimate flexibility you can have a design similar to this:
public interface Sendable /* or Sender, SendingManager, etc. */ {
public int getId();
public void send();
}
public class EmailController implements Sendable {
}
public class SmsController implements Sendable {
}
public class Sendables {
private Map<Integer, Sendable> sendables = new HashMap<Integer, Sendable>();
public void addSendable(Sendable s) {
this.sendables.put(s.getId(), s);
}
public void sendById(Integer id) {
this.sendables.get(id).send();
}
}
Then you can use it like this:
Sendables sendables = new Sendables();
sendables.add(new EmailController());
sendables.add(new SmsController());
sendables.add(new ChatController());
// etc.
Row row = table.getRow(...); // let's assume this gets a row from your table
sendables.send(row.getId());
Another solution could be to have an extra table like this:
TABLE: CLASS_NAMES
method_id class_name
1 "com.foo.SmsController"
2 "com.foo.EmailController"
And then pass class_name to Class.forName and let it instantiate the appropriate controller for you to use.
EDIT: A reflection-based version of the code as suggested by Luis. Note that for production use you should ensure that the passed parameters are valid (not null, etc.) and also handle exceptions with rigor.
TABLE: CLASS_NAMES
method_id class_name param_class_name
1 "com.foo.SmsController" "com.foo.Manager"
2 "com.foo.EmailController" "com.foo.User"
SendManager
public class SendManager {
private static final String SEND_METHOD_NAME = "send";
/* DAO for the CLASS_NAMES tables */
private ClassNameDAO classNameDao;
/**
* Gets the row corresponding to methodId, for example
* (1, "com.foo.SmsController", "com.foo.Manager") then using reflection
* instantiates an instance of SmsController and invokes its send method
* with <code>param</code> passed to it.
*/
public void send(int methodId, Object param) throws Exception {
ClassNameRow classNameRow = classNameDao.findByMethodId(methodId);
String senderParameterClassName = className.senderParameterClassName();
Class paramClass = Class.forName(senderParameterClassName);
if (!paramClass.isInstance(param)) {
throw new IllegalArgumentException("methodId and param are not compatible");
}
String senderClassName = classNameRow.getSenderClassName();
Class senderClass = Class.forName(senderClassName);
/* Your sender classes must be JavaBeans and have no-arg constructors */
Object sender = senderClass.newInstance();
Class paramClass = Class.forName(senderParameterClassName);
Method send = senderClass.getMethod(SEND_METHOD_NAME, paramClass);
send.invoke(sender, param);
}
}
Sample Usage
SendManager sendManager = new SendManager();
Manager m = ...;
sendManager.send(1, m);
User u = ...;
sendManager.send(2, u);
How about this:
abstract class Controller {
public static Controller getInstance(int methodId) {
switch (methodId) {
case 1:
return new EmailController();
case 2:
return new SmsController();
default:
return null;
}
}
public abstract void send();
}
class EmailController extends Controller {
#Override
public void send() {
System.out.println("sending email");
}
}
class SmsController extends Controller {
#Override
public void send() {
System.out.println("sending sms");
}
}
And use it like this:
Controller.getInstance(methodId).send();
I'm using the Strategy pattern and the Factory Method pattern in my solution.
Strategy Pattern
http://johnlindquist.com/2010/08/25/patterncraft-strategy-pattern/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strategy_pattern
I have made a multiple entry-point project, where App2 is set to autorun and App1 runs on user request.
I am trying to invoke a global event from App1, received by App2.
public class App2 implements GlobalEventListener {
static public int counter = 0;
public static final long countId = 0x1251402f595f81a5L;
public static final long eventId = 0xba4b84944bb7429eL;
private App2() {
Application.getApplication().addGlobalEventListener(this);
}
public static App2 waitForSingleton() {
counter = 2; // Added the counter in Runtime store in a similar way as
// added in eventOccured method
// Deleted some unuseful code
}
public void eventOccurred(long guid, int data0, int data1, Object object0,
Object object1) {
if (guid == eventId) {
callMethodOnOccuranceOfEvent();
}
}
public void callMethodOnOccuranceOfEvent() {
counter++;
RuntimeStore store = RuntimeStore.getRuntimeStore();
Object obj = store.get(countId);
if (obj == null) {
store.put(countId, new Integer(counter));
} else {
store.put(countId, new Integer(counter));
}
}
}
Then in other class I tried like
public class App1 extends MainScreen {
public App1() {
}
protected void makeMenu(Menu menu, int instance) {
super.makeMenu(menu, instance);
menu.add(new MenuItem("Call", 20, 10) {
public void run() {
callMethodonclick();
}
});
}
public void callMethodonclick() {
ApplicationManager.getApplicationManager().postGlobalEvent(App2.eventId);
RuntimeStore store = RuntimeStore.getRuntimeStore();
Integer c = (Integer) store.get(App2.countId);
add(new RichTextField("Event Recived#counter#" + c));
}
}
If I invoke the event for three times
Event Recived#counter#2
Event Recived#counter#2
Event Recived#counter#2
while the Expected result is
Event Recived#counter#3
Event Recived#counter#4
Event Recived#counter#5
which I guess suggests that object for App2 in not null but eventOccurred never invoked.
the output clearly suggests that callMethodonclick is not able to post Global event,even though globalEventListener was added in constructor.
Must be like this.
if (obj == null) {
store.put(countId, new Integer(counter));
} else {
store.replace(countId, new Integer(counter));
}
store.put() throw an IllegalArgumentException, because there is something in a store(see API Reference), but this Exception is handled by some system thread, that invokes eventOccured() method and show nothing about this Exception. It is one of the various Blackberry bug.
You are not updating the text in the RichTextField. It only gets added to the screen when there is no runtimestorage object associated with App2.RTSID_MY_APP.
Your code needs to keep a handle on the RichTextField by putting it into a field of the App1 object. Then update the text in the run() method.
I edited your code, adding braces to the if statement, which makes this more clear.