#769 – Pattern – Call a Base Class Method When You Override It

January 30, 2013 2 Comments

You can call a method in a class’ base class using the base keyword. You can do this from anywhere within the child class, but  it’s a common pattern to call the base class method when you override it.  This allows you to extend the behavior of that method.

Here’s an example.

    public class Dog
    {
        public string Name { get; set; }
        public int Age { get; set; }

        public Dog(string name, int age)
        {
            Name = name;
            Age = age;
        }

        public virtual void DumpInfo()
        {
            Console.WriteLine(string.Format("Dog {0} is {1} years old", Name, Age));
        }
    }

    public class Terrier : Dog
    {
        public double GrowlFactor { get; set; }

        public Terrier(string name, int age, double growlFactor)
            : base(name, age)
        {
            GrowlFactor = growlFactor;
        }

        public override void DumpInfo()
        {
            base.DumpInfo();

            Console.WriteLine(string.Format("  GrowlFactor is {0}", GrowlFactor));
        }
    }

 

            Terrier t = new Terrier("Jack", 17, 9.9);
            t.DumpInfo();

769-001

Advertisement

Filed under Classes Tagged with , , , , ,

#768 – When to Call the Constructor of a Base Class

January 29, 2013 2 Comments

You can use the base keyword in a constructor, to call the constructor of a class’ base class.  You’d most typically do this to allow the constructor in the base class to initialize the data members that are defined in the base class.  Then the constructor of the derived class can initialize its own data members.

In the example below, the Terrier constructor uses the base keyword to invoke the Dog constructor.  Note that the Dog constructor will be executed first.

    public class Dog
    {
        public string Name { get; set; }
        public int Age { get; set; }

        public Dog(string name, int age)
        {
            Console.WriteLine("Dog constructor");
            Name = name;
            Age = age;
        }
    }

    public class Terrier : Dog
    {
        public double GrowlFactor { get; set; }

        public Terrier(string name, int age, double growlFactor)
            : base(name, age)
        {
            Console.WriteLine("Terrier constructor");
            GrowlFactor = growlFactor;
        }
    }

768-001

Filed under Classes Tagged with , , ,

#619 – Calling the Constructor in a Base Class

July 4, 2012 2 Comments

Because a derived class does not inherit any of the constructors of the base class, it must do all of the initialization that the base class normally does.  It normally does this by using the base keyword to call the constructor of the base class.

    public class Dog
    {
        public string Name { get; set; }

        public Dog(string name)
        {
            Console.WriteLine("In Dog constructor");
            Name = name;
        }
    }

    public class Terrier : Dog
    {
        public string Temperament { get; set; }

        public Terrier(string name, string temperament) : base(name)
        {
            Console.WriteLine("In Terrier constructor");
            Temperament = temperament;
        }
    }

In the example above, the sequence when creating a Terrier object is:

  • Client code passes in name and temperament
  • Terrier constructor invokes the Dog constructor using the base keyword and passing the name parameter
  • Dog constructor does its initialization
  • Terrier constructor does its initialization

 

Filed under Classes Tagged with , , ,

#618 – Use the base Keyword to Call A Method in the Base Class

July 3, 2012 1 Comment

If a derived class does not provide its own version of a method that it inherits from the base class, it can call the method in the base class directly, by name.

However, if the derived class replaces (using the new keyword) or overrides the base class method, it can still call the version of the method that exists in the base class, using the base keyword.

    public class Dog
    {
        public virtual void Bark()
        {
            Console.WriteLine("Dog barking: Woof");
        }
    }

    public class Terrier : Dog
    {
        public override void Bark()
        {
            Console.WriteLine("Terrier barking: Growf");
            base.Bark();   // Call Dog.Bark
        }
    }

Now when we call Bark on an instance of a Terrier, its version of Bark will call the version defined in Dog.

        static void Main()
        {
            Terrier jack = new Terrier();
            jack.Bark();
        }

Filed under Classes Tagged with , ,

#331 – Calling a Base Class Constructor Implicitly vs. Explicitly

May 24, 2011 Leave a comment

In a derived class, you can call a constructor in the base class explicitly using the base keyword.

    public class Terrier : Dog
    {
        public string Attitude { get; set; }

        public Terrier(string name, int age, string attitude)
            : base(name, age)
        {
            Attitude = attitude;
        }

If you don’t explicitly call a base class constructor, the default (parameterless) constructor is called implicitly.

        public Terrier(string name, int age, string attitude)
        {
            // Default Dog constructor has already been called
            //   at this point.
            Name = name;
            Age = age;
            Attitude = attitude;
        }

If you do omit the base keyword, the base class must define a default (parameterless) constructor.  If it doesn’t, the compiler will complain that the base class doesn’t have a constructor that takes 0 arguments.

Filed under Classes Tagged with , , , ,