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Class::MOP::Class(3pm)User Contributed Perl DocumentatioClass::MOP::Class(3pm)

NAME
       Class::MOP::Class - Class Meta Object

VERSION
       version 2.2200

SYNOPSIS
         # assuming that class Foo
         # has been defined, you can

         # use this for introspection ...

         # add a method to Foo ...
         Foo->meta->add_method( 'bar' => sub {...} )

         # get a list of all the classes searched
         # the method dispatcher in the correct order
         Foo->meta->class_precedence_list()

         # remove a method from Foo
         Foo->meta->remove_method('bar');

         # or use this to actually create classes ...

         Class::MOP::Class->create(
             'Bar' => (
                 version      => '0.01',
                 superclasses => ['Foo'],
                 attributes   => [
                     Class::MOP::Attribute->new('$bar'),
                     Class::MOP::Attribute->new('$baz'),
                 ],
                 methods => {
                     calculate_bar => sub {...},
                     construct_baz => sub {...}
                 }
             )
         );

DESCRIPTION
       The Class Protocol is the largest and most complex part of the
       Class::MOP meta-object protocol. It controls the introspection and
       manipulation of Perl 5 classes, and it can create them as well. The
       best way to understand what this module can do is to read the
       documentation for each of its methods.

INHERITANCE
       "Class::MOP::Class" is a subclass of Class::MOP::Module.

METHODS
   Class construction
       These methods all create new "Class::MOP::Class" objects. These objects
       can represent existing classes or they can be used to create new
       classes from scratch.

       The metaclass object for a given class is a singleton. If you attempt
       to create a metaclass for the same class twice, you will just get the
       existing object.

       Class::MOP::Class->create($package_name, %options)
           This method creates a new "Class::MOP::Class" object with the given
           package name. It accepts a number of options:

           o       version

                   An optional version number for the newly created package.

           o       authority

                   An optional authority for the newly created package.  See
                   "authority" in Class::MOP::Module for more details.

           o       superclasses

                   An optional array reference of superclass names.

           o       methods

                   An optional hash reference of methods for the class. The
                   keys of the hash reference are method names and values are
                   subroutine references.

           o       attributes

                   An optional array reference of Class::MOP::Attribute
                   objects.

           o       meta_name

                   Specifies the name to install the "meta" method for this
                   class under.  If it is not passed, "meta" is assumed, and
                   if "undef" is explicitly given, no meta method will be
                   installed.

           o       weaken

                   If true, the metaclass that is stored in the global cache
                   will be a weak reference.

                   Classes created in this way are destroyed once the
                   metaclass they are attached to goes out of scope, and will
                   be removed from Perl's internal symbol table.

                   All instances of a class with a weakened metaclass keep a
                   special reference to the metaclass object, which prevents
                   the metaclass from going out of scope while any instances
                   exist.

                   This only works if the instance is based on a hash
                   reference, however.

       Class::MOP::Class->create_anon_class(%options)
           This method works just like "Class::MOP::Class->create" but it
           creates an "anonymous" class. In fact, the class does have a name,
           but that name is a unique name generated internally by this module.

           It accepts the same "superclasses", "methods", and "attributes"
           parameters that "create" accepts.

           It also accepts a "cache" option. If this is "true", then the
           anonymous class will be cached based on its superclasses and roles.
           If an existing anonymous class in the cache has the same
           superclasses and roles, it will be reused.

           Anonymous classes default to "weaken => 1" if cache is "false",
           although this can be overridden.

       Class::MOP::Class->initialize($package_name, %options)
           This method will initialize a "Class::MOP::Class" object for the
           named package. Unlike "create", this method will not create a new
           class.

           The purpose of this method is to retrieve a "Class::MOP::Class"
           object for introspecting an existing class.

           If an existing "Class::MOP::Class" object exists for the named
           package, it will be returned, and any options provided will be
           ignored!

           If the object does not yet exist, it will be created.

           The valid options that can be passed to this method are
           "attribute_metaclass", "method_metaclass",
           "wrapped_method_metaclass", and "instance_metaclass". These are all
           optional, and default to the appropriate class in the "Class::MOP"
           distribution.

   Object instance construction and cloning
       These methods are all related to creating and/or cloning object
       instances.

       $metaclass->clone_object($instance, %params)
           This method clones an existing object instance. Any parameters you
           provide are will override existing attribute values in the object.

           This is a convenience method for cloning an object instance, then
           blessing it into the appropriate package.

           You could implement a clone method in your class, using this
           method:

             sub clone {
                 my ($self, %params) = @_;
                 $self->meta->clone_object($self, %params);
             }

       $metaclass->rebless_instance($instance, %params)
           This method changes the class of $instance to the metaclass's
           class.

           You can only rebless an instance into a subclass of its current
           class. If you pass any additional parameters, these will be treated
           like constructor parameters and used to initialize the object's
           attributes. Any existing attributes that are already set will be
           overwritten.

           Before reblessing the instance, this method will call
           "rebless_instance_away" on the instance's current metaclass. This
           method will be passed the instance, the new metaclass, and any
           parameters specified to "rebless_instance". By default,
           "rebless_instance_away" does nothing; it is merely a hook.

       $metaclass->rebless_instance_back($instance)
           Does the same thing as "rebless_instance", except that you can only
           rebless an instance into one of its superclasses. Any attributes
           that do not exist in the superclass will be deinitialized.

           This is a much more dangerous operation than "rebless_instance",
           especially when multiple inheritance is involved, so use this
           carefully!

       $metaclass->new_object(%params)
           This method is used to create a new object of the metaclass's
           class. Any parameters you provide are used to initialize the
           instance's attributes. A special "__INSTANCE__" key can be passed
           to provide an already generated instance, rather than having
           Class::MOP generate it for you. This is mostly useful for using
           Class::MOP with foreign classes which generate instances using
           their own constructors.

       $metaclass->instance_metaclass
           Returns the class name of the instance metaclass. See
           Class::MOP::Instance for more information on the instance
           metaclass.

       $metaclass->get_meta_instance
           Returns an instance of the "instance_metaclass" to be used in the
           construction of a new instance of the class.

   Informational predicates
       These are a few predicate methods for asking information about the
       class itself.

       $metaclass->is_anon_class
           This returns true if the class was created by calling
           "Class::MOP::Class->create_anon_class".

       $metaclass->is_mutable
           This returns true if the class is still mutable.

       $metaclass->is_immutable
           This returns true if the class has been made immutable.

       $metaclass->is_pristine
           A class is not pristine if it has non-inherited attributes or if it
           has any generated methods.

   Inheritance Relationships
       $metaclass->superclasses(@superclasses)
           This is a read-write accessor which represents the superclass
           relationships of the metaclass's class.

           This is basically sugar around getting and setting @ISA.

       $metaclass->class_precedence_list
           This returns a list of all of the class's ancestor classes. The
           classes are returned in method dispatch order.

       $metaclass->linearized_isa
           This returns a list based on "class_precedence_list" but with all
           duplicates removed.

       $metaclass->subclasses
           This returns a list of all subclasses for this class, even indirect
           subclasses.

       $metaclass->direct_subclasses
           This returns a list of immediate subclasses for this class, which
           does not include indirect subclasses.

   Method introspection and creation
       These methods allow you to introspect a class's methods, as well as
       add, remove, or change methods.

       Determining what is truly a method in a Perl 5 class requires some
       heuristics (aka guessing).

       Methods defined outside the package with a fully qualified name ("sub
       Package::name { ... }") will be included. Similarly, methods named with
       a fully qualified name using Sub::Name or Sub::Util are also included.

       However, we attempt to ignore imported functions.

       Ultimately, we are using heuristics to determine what truly is a method
       in a class, and these heuristics may get the wrong answer in some edge
       cases. However, for most "normal" cases the heuristics work correctly.

       $metaclass->get_method($method_name)
           This will return a Class::MOP::Method for the specified
           $method_name. If the class does not have the specified method, it
           returns "undef"

       $metaclass->has_method($method_name)
           Returns a boolean indicating whether or not the class defines the
           named method. It does not include methods inherited from parent
           classes.

       $metaclass->get_method_list
           This will return a list of method names for all methods defined in
           this class.

       $metaclass->add_method($method_name, $method)
           This method takes a method name and a subroutine reference, and
           adds the method to the class.

           The subroutine reference can be a Class::MOP::Method, and you are
           strongly encouraged to pass a meta method object instead of a code
           reference. If you do so, that object gets stored as part of the
           class's method map directly. If not, the meta information will have
           to be recreated later, and may be incorrect.

           If you provide a method object, this method will clone that object
           if the object's package name does not match the class name. This
           lets us track the original source of any methods added from other
           classes (notably Moose roles).

       $metaclass->remove_method($method_name)
           Remove the named method from the class. This method returns the
           Class::MOP::Method object for the method.

       $metaclass->method_metaclass
           Returns the class name of the method metaclass, see
           Class::MOP::Method for more information on the method metaclass.

       $metaclass->wrapped_method_metaclass
           Returns the class name of the wrapped method metaclass, see
           Class::MOP::Method::Wrapped for more information on the wrapped
           method metaclass.

       $metaclass->get_all_methods
           This will traverse the inheritance hierarchy and return a list of
           all the Class::MOP::Method objects for this class and its parents.

       $metaclass->find_method_by_name($method_name)
           This will return a Class::MOP::Method for the specified
           $method_name. If the class does not have the specified method, it
           returns "undef"

           Unlike "get_method", this method will look for the named method in
           superclasses.

       $metaclass->get_all_method_names
           This will return a list of method names for all of this class's
           methods, including inherited methods.

       $metaclass->find_all_methods_by_name($method_name)
           This method looks for the named method in the class and all of its
           parents. It returns every matching method it finds in the
           inheritance tree, so it returns a list of methods.

           Each method is returned as a hash reference with three keys. The
           keys are "name", "class", and "code". The "code" key has a
           Class::MOP::Method object as its value.

           The list of methods is distinct.

       $metaclass->find_next_method_by_name($method_name)
           This method returns the first method in any superclass matching the
           given name. It is effectively the method that "SUPER::$method_name"
           would dispatch to.

   Attribute introspection and creation
       Because Perl 5 does not have a core concept of attributes in classes,
       we can only return information about attributes which have been added
       via this class's methods. We cannot discover information about
       attributes which are defined in terms of "regular" Perl 5 methods.

       $metaclass->get_attribute($attribute_name)
           This will return a Class::MOP::Attribute for the specified
           $attribute_name. If the class does not have the specified
           attribute, it returns "undef".

           NOTE that get_attribute does not search superclasses, for that you
           need to use "find_attribute_by_name".

       $metaclass->has_attribute($attribute_name)
           Returns a boolean indicating whether or not the class defines the
           named attribute. It does not include attributes inherited from
           parent classes.

       $metaclass->get_attribute_list
           This will return a list of attributes names for all attributes
           defined in this class.  Note that this operates on the current
           class only, it does not traverse the inheritance hierarchy.

       $metaclass->get_all_attributes
           This will traverse the inheritance hierarchy and return a list of
           all the Class::MOP::Attribute objects for this class and its
           parents.

       $metaclass->find_attribute_by_name($attribute_name)
           This will return a Class::MOP::Attribute for the specified
           $attribute_name. If the class does not have the specified
           attribute, it returns "undef".

           Unlike "get_attribute", this attribute will look for the named
           attribute in superclasses.

       $metaclass->add_attribute(...)
           This method accepts either an existing Class::MOP::Attribute object
           or parameters suitable for passing to that class's "new" method.

           The attribute provided will be added to the class.

           Any accessor methods defined by the attribute will be added to the
           class when the attribute is added.

           If an attribute of the same name already exists, the old attribute
           will be removed first.

       $metaclass->remove_attribute($attribute_name)
           This will remove the named attribute from the class, and
           Class::MOP::Attribute object.

           Removing an attribute also removes any accessor methods defined by
           the attribute.

           However, note that removing an attribute will only affect future
           object instances created for this class, not existing instances.

       $metaclass->attribute_metaclass
           Returns the class name of the attribute metaclass for this class.
           By default, this is Class::MOP::Attribute.

   Overload introspection and creation
       These methods provide an API to the core overload functionality.

       $metaclass->is_overloaded
           Returns true if overloading is enabled for this class. Corresponds
           to "is_overloaded" in Devel::OverloadInfo.

       $metaclass->get_overloaded_operator($op)
           Returns the Class::MOP::Overload object corresponding to the
           operator named $op, if one exists for this class.

       $metaclass->has_overloaded_operator($op)
           Returns whether or not the operator $op is overloaded for this
           class.

       $metaclass->get_overload_list
           Returns a list of operator names which have been overloaded (see
           "Overloadable Operations" in overload for the list of valid
           operator names).

       $metaclass->get_all_overloaded_operators
           Returns a list of Class::MOP::Overload objects corresponding to the
           operators that have been overloaded.

       $metaclass->add_overloaded_operator($op, $impl)
           Overloads the operator $op for this class. The $impl can be a
           coderef, a method name, or a Class::MOP::Overload object.
           Corresponds to "use overload $op => $impl;"

       $metaclass->remove_overloaded_operator($op)
           Remove overloading for operator $op. Corresponds to "no overload
           $op;"

       $metaclass->get_overload_fallback_value
           Returns the overload "fallback" setting for the package.

       $metaclass->set_overload_fallback_value($fallback)
           Sets the overload "fallback" setting for the package.

   Class Immutability
       Making a class immutable "freezes" the class definition. You can no
       longer call methods which alter the class, such as adding or removing
       methods or attributes.

       Making a class immutable lets us optimize the class by inlining some
       methods, and also allows us to optimize some methods on the metaclass
       object itself.

       After immutabilization, the metaclass object will cache most
       informational methods that returns information about methods or
       attributes. Methods which would alter the class, such as
       "add_attribute" and "add_method", will throw an error on an immutable
       metaclass object.

       The immutabilization system in Moose takes much greater advantage of
       the inlining features than Class::MOP itself does.

       $metaclass->make_immutable(%options)
           This method will create an immutable transformer and use it to make
           the class and its metaclass object immutable, and returns true (you
           should not rely on the details of this value apart from its truth).

           This method accepts the following options:

           o       inline_accessors

           o       inline_constructor

           o       inline_destructor

                   These are all booleans indicating whether the specified
                   method(s) should be inlined.

                   By default, accessors and the constructor are inlined, but
                   not the destructor.

           o       immutable_trait

                   The name of a class which will be used as a parent class
                   for the metaclass object being made immutable. This "trait"
                   implements the post-immutability functionality of the
                   metaclass (but not the transformation itself).

                   This defaults to Class::MOP::Class::Immutable::Trait.

           o       constructor_name

                   This is the constructor method name. This defaults to
                   "new".

           o       constructor_class

                   The name of the method metaclass for constructors. It will
                   be used to generate the inlined constructor. This defaults
                   to "Class::MOP::Method::Constructor".

           o       replace_constructor

                   This is a boolean indicating whether an existing
                   constructor should be replaced when inlining a constructor.
                   This defaults to false.

           o       destructor_class

                   The name of the method metaclass for destructors. It will
                   be used to generate the inlined destructor. This defaults
                   to "Class::MOP::Method::Denstructor".

           o       replace_destructor

                   This is a boolean indicating whether an existing destructor
                   should be replaced when inlining a destructor. This
                   defaults to false.

       $metaclass->immutable_options
           Returns a hash of the options used when making the class immutable,
           including both defaults and anything supplied by the user in the
           call to "$metaclass->make_immutable". This is useful if you need to
           temporarily make a class mutable and then restore immutability as
           it was before.

       $metaclass->make_mutable
           Calling this method reverse the immutabilization transformation.

   Method Modifiers
       Method modifiers are hooks which allow a method to be wrapped with
       before, after and around method modifiers. Every time a method is
       called, its modifiers are also called.

       A class can modify its own methods, as well as methods defined in
       parent classes.

       How method modifiers work?

       Method modifiers work by wrapping the original method and then
       replacing it in the class's symbol table. The wrappers will handle
       calling all the modifiers in the appropriate order and preserving the
       calling context for the original method.

       The return values of "before" and "after" modifiers are ignored. This
       is because their purpose is not to filter the input and output of the
       primary method (this is done with an around modifier).

       This may seem like an odd restriction to some, but doing this allows
       for simple code to be added at the beginning or end of a method call
       without altering the function of the wrapped method or placing any
       extra responsibility on the code of the modifier.

       Of course if you have more complex needs, you can use the "around"
       modifier which allows you to change both the parameters passed to the
       wrapped method, as well as its return value.

       Before and around modifiers are called in last-defined-first-called
       order, while after modifiers are called in first-defined-first-called
       order. So the call tree might looks something like this:

         before 2
          before 1
           around 2
            around 1
             primary
            around 1
           around 2
          after 1
         after 2

       What is the performance impact?

       Of course there is a performance cost associated with method modifiers,
       but we have made every effort to make that cost directly proportional
       to the number of modifier features you use.

       The wrapping method does its best to only do as much work as it
       absolutely needs to. In order to do this we have moved some of the
       performance costs to set-up time, where they are easier to amortize.

       All this said, our benchmarks have indicated the following:

         simple wrapper with no modifiers             100% slower
         simple wrapper with simple before modifier   400% slower
         simple wrapper with simple after modifier    450% slower
         simple wrapper with simple around modifier   500-550% slower
         simple wrapper with all 3 modifiers          1100% slower

       These numbers may seem daunting, but you must remember, every feature
       comes with some cost. To put things in perspective, just doing a simple
       "AUTOLOAD" which does nothing but extract the name of the method called
       and return it costs about 400% over a normal method call.

       $metaclass->add_before_method_modifier($method_name, $code)
           This wraps the specified method with the supplied subroutine
           reference. The modifier will be called as a method itself, and will
           receive the same arguments as are passed to the method.

           When the modifier exits, the wrapped method will be called.

           The return value of the modifier will be ignored.

       $metaclass->add_after_method_modifier($method_name, $code)
           This wraps the specified method with the supplied subroutine
           reference. The modifier will be called as a method itself, and will
           receive the same arguments as are passed to the method.

           When the wrapped methods exits, the modifier will be called.

           The return value of the modifier will be ignored.

       $metaclass->add_around_method_modifier($method_name, $code)
           This wraps the specified method with the supplied subroutine
           reference.

           The first argument passed to the modifier will be a subroutine
           reference to the wrapped method. The second argument is the object,
           and after that come any arguments passed when the method is called.

           The around modifier can choose to call the original method, as well
           as what arguments to pass if it does so.

           The return value of the modifier is what will be seen by the
           caller.

   Introspection
       Class::MOP::Class->meta
           This will return a Class::MOP::Class instance for this class.

           It should also be noted that Class::MOP will actually bootstrap
           this module by installing a number of attribute meta-objects into
           its metaclass.

AUTHORS
       o   Stevan Little <stevan AT cpan.org>

       o   Dave Rolsky <autarch AT urth.org>

       o   Jesse Luehrs <doy AT cpan.org>

       o   Shawn M Moore <sartak AT cpan.org>

       o    ' (Yuval Kogman) <nothingmuch AT woobling.org>

       o   Karen Etheridge <ether AT cpan.org>

       o   Florian Ragwitz <rafl AT debian.org>

       o   Hans Dieter Pearcey <hdp AT cpan.org>

       o   Chris Prather <chris AT prather.org>

       o   Matt S Trout <mstrout AT cpan.org>

COPYRIGHT AND LICENSE
       This software is copyright (c) 2006 by Infinity Interactive, Inc.

       This is free software; you can redistribute it and/or modify it under
       the same terms as the Perl 5 programming language system itself.

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