extend ex01.1 hint

[rust-101.git] / src / part02.rs

diff --git a/src/part02.rs b/src/part02.rs
index dc885c06315bdeb412fe877bf719a5675ce3f9a8..12faed83fb7c297a3f9033c6fa038fd2d82f9bfd 100644 (file)
--- a/src/part02.rs
+++ b/src/part02.rs
@@ -8,6 +8,8 @@ use std;
 // we want a `CharOrNothing`, and later a `FloatOrNothing`? Certainly we don't
 // want to re-write the type and all its inherent methods.
 
 // we want a `CharOrNothing`, and later a `FloatOrNothing`? Certainly we don't
 // want to re-write the type and all its inherent methods.
 

+// ## Generic datatypes
+

 // The solution to this is called *generics* or *polymorphism* (the latter is Greek,
 // meaning "many shapes"). You may know something similar from C++ (where it's called
 // *templates*) or Java, or one of the many functional languages. So here, we define
 // The solution to this is called *generics* or *polymorphism* (the latter is Greek,
 // meaning "many shapes"). You may know something similar from C++ (where it's called
 // *templates*) or Java, or one of the many functional languages. So here, we define


@@ -19,44 +21,47 @@ pub enum SomethingOrNothing<T>  {
 // Instead of writing out all the variants, we can also just import them all at once.
 pub use self::SomethingOrNothing::*;
 // What this does is to define an entire family of types: We can now write
 // Instead of writing out all the variants, we can also just import them all at once.
 pub use self::SomethingOrNothing::*;
 // What this does is to define an entire family of types: We can now write

-// `SomethingOrNothing<i32>` to get back our `NumberOrNothing`, but we
-// can also write `SomethingOrNothing<bool>` or even `SomethingOrNothing<SomethingOrNothing<i32>>`.
+// `SomethingOrNothing<i32>` to get back our `NumberOrNothing`.
+type NumberOrNothing = SomethingOrNothing<i32>;
+// However, we can also write `SomethingOrNothing<bool>` or even `SomethingOrNothing<SomethingOrNothing<i32>>`.

 // In fact, such a type is so useful that it is already present in the standard
 // library: It's called an *option type*, written `Option<T>`.
 // Go check out its [documentation](http://doc.rust-lang.org/stable/std/option/index.html)!
 // (And don't worry, there's indeed lots of material mentioned there that we did not cover yet.)
 
 // In fact, such a type is so useful that it is already present in the standard
 // library: It's called an *option type*, written `Option<T>`.
 // Go check out its [documentation](http://doc.rust-lang.org/stable/std/option/index.html)!
 // (And don't worry, there's indeed lots of material mentioned there that we did not cover yet.)
 

-// **Exercise**: Write functions converting between `SomethingOrNothing<T>` and `Option<T>`. You will have to use
-// the names of the constructor of `Option`, which you can find in the documentation I linked above.
-// 
-// Here's a skeleton for your solution, you only have to fill in the function bodies.
-// (`panic!` is, again, a macro - this one terminates execution when it is reached).
+// ## Generic `impl`, Static functions
+// The types are so similar, that we can provide a generic function to construct a `SomethingOrNothing<T>`
+// from an `Option<T>`, and vice versa.
+// **Exercise 02.1**: Implement such functions! I provided a skeleton of the solution. Here,
+// `unimplemented!` is another macro. This one terminates execution saying that something has not yet
+// been implemented.

 // 
 // Notice the syntax for giving generic implementations to generic types: Think of the first `<T>` 
 // as *declaring* a type variable ("I am doing something for all types `T`"), and the second `<T>` as
 // *using* that variable ("The thing I do, is implement `SomethingOrNothing<T>`").
 // 
 // Notice the syntax for giving generic implementations to generic types: Think of the first `<T>` 
 // as *declaring* a type variable ("I am doing something for all types `T`"), and the second `<T>` as
 // *using* that variable ("The thing I do, is implement `SomethingOrNothing<T>`").

+//
+// Inside an `impl`, `Self` refers to the type we are implementing things for. Here, it is
+// an alias for `SomethingOrNothing<T>`.
+// Remember that `self` is the `this` of Rust, and implicitly has type `Self`.

 impl<T> SomethingOrNothing<T> {
     fn new(o: Option<T>) -> Self {
 impl<T> SomethingOrNothing<T> {
     fn new(o: Option<T>) -> Self {

-        panic!("Not yet implemented.")
+        unimplemented!()

     }
 
     fn to_option(self) -> Option<T> {
     }
 
     fn to_option(self) -> Option<T> {

-        panic!("Not yet implemented.")
+        unimplemented!()

     }
 }
     }
 }

-// Inside an `impl`, `Self` refers to the type we are implementing things for. Here, it is
-// an alias for `SomethingOrNothing<T>`.
-// Remember that `self` is the `this` of Rust, and implicitly has type `Self`.
-// 

 // Observe how `new` does *not* have a `self` parameter. This corresponds to a `static` method
 // in Java or C++. In fact, `new` is the Rust convention for defining constructors: They are
 // nothing special, just static functions returning `Self`.
 // Observe how `new` does *not* have a `self` parameter. This corresponds to a `static` method
 // in Java or C++. In fact, `new` is the Rust convention for defining constructors: They are
 // nothing special, just static functions returning `Self`.

-
-// You can call static functions, and in particular constructors, as follows:
+// 
+// You can call static functions, and in particular constructors, as demonstrated in `call_constructor`.

 fn call_constructor(x: i32) -> SomethingOrNothing<i32> {
     SomethingOrNothing::new(Some(x))
 }
 
 fn call_constructor(x: i32) -> SomethingOrNothing<i32> {
     SomethingOrNothing::new(Some(x))
 }
 

+// ## Traits

 // Now that we have a generic `SomethingOrNothing`, wouldn't it be nice to also gave a generic
 // `vec_min`? Of course, we can't take the minimum of a vector of *any* type. It has to be a type
 // supporting a `min` operation. Rust calls such properties that we may demand of types *traits*.
 // Now that we have a generic `SomethingOrNothing`, wouldn't it be nice to also gave a generic
 // `vec_min`? Of course, we can't take the minimum of a vector of *any* type. It has to be a type
 // supporting a `min` operation. Rust calls such properties that we may demand of types *traits*.


@@ -64,19 +69,24 @@ fn call_constructor(x: i32) -> SomethingOrNothing<i32> {
 // So, as a first step towards a generic `vec_min`, we define a `Minimum` trait.
 // For now, just ignore the `Copy`, we will come back to this point later.
 // A `trait` is a lot like interfaces in Java: You define a bunch of functions
 // So, as a first step towards a generic `vec_min`, we define a `Minimum` trait.
 // For now, just ignore the `Copy`, we will come back to this point later.
 // A `trait` is a lot like interfaces in Java: You define a bunch of functions

-// you want to have implemented, and their argument and return types.
+// you want to have implemented, and their argument and return types.<br/>
+// The function `min` takes to arguments of the same type, but I made the
+// first argument the special `self` argument. I could, alternatively, have
+// made `min` a static function as follows: `fn min(a: Self, b: Self) -> Self`.
+// However, in Rust one typically prefers methods over static function wherever possible.

 pub trait Minimum : Copy {
 pub trait Minimum : Copy {

-    fn min(a: Self, b: Self) -> Self;
+    fn min(self, b: Self) -> Self;

 }
 
 }
 

-// Now we can write `vec_min`, generic over a type `T` that we demand to satisfy the `Minimum` trait.
-// This is called a *trait bound*.
-// The only difference to the version from the previous part is that we call `T::min` (the `min`
-// function provided for type `T`) instead of `std::cmp::min`.
+// Next, we write `vec_min` as a generic function over a type `T` that we demand to satisfy the `Minimum` trait.
+// This requirement is called a *trait bound*.
+// The only difference to the version from the previous part is that we call `e.min(n)` instead
+// of `std::cmp::min(n, e)`. Rust automatically figures out that `n` is of type `T`, which implements
+// the `Minimum` trait, and hence we can call that function.

 // 
 // 

-// Notice a crucial difference to templates in C++: We actually have to declare which traits
+// There is a crucial difference to templates in C++: We actually have to declare which traits

 // we want the type to satisfy. If we left away the `Minimum`, Rust would have complained that
 // we want the type to satisfy. If we left away the `Minimum`, Rust would have complained that

-// we cannot call `min`. Just try it! There is no reason to believe that `T` provides such an operation.
+// we cannot call `min`. Just try it!<br/>

 // This is in strong contrast to C++, where the compiler only checks such details when the
 // function is actually used.
 pub fn vec_min<T: Minimum>(v: Vec<T>) -> SomethingOrNothing<T> {
 // This is in strong contrast to C++, where the compiler only checks such details when the
 // function is actually used.
 pub fn vec_min<T: Minimum>(v: Vec<T>) -> SomethingOrNothing<T> {


@@ -84,23 +94,36 @@ pub fn vec_min<T: Minimum>(v: Vec<T>) -> SomethingOrNothing<T> {
     for e in v {
         min = Something(match min {
             Nothing => e,
     for e in v {
         min = Something(match min {
             Nothing => e,

-            Something(n) => T::min(n, e)
+            Something(n) => e.min(n)

         });
     }
     min
 }
         });
     }
     min
 }

+// Before going on, take a moment to ponder the flexibility of Rust's take on abstraction:
+// We just defined our own, custom trait (interface), and then implemented that trait
+// *for an existing type*. With the hierarchical approach of, e.g., C++ or Java,
+// that's not possible: We cannot make an existing type suddenly also inherit from our abstract base class.
+// 
+// In case you are worried about performance, note that Rust performs *monomorphisation*
+// of generic functions: When you call `vec_min` with `T` being `i32`, Rust essentially goes
+// ahead and creates a copy of the function for this particular type, filling in all the blanks.
+// In this case, the call to `T::min` will become a call to our implementation *statically*. There is
+// no dynamic dispatch, like there would be for Java interface methods or C++ `virtual` methods.
+// This behavior is similar to C++ templates. The optimizer (Rust is using LLVM) then has all the
+// information it could want to, e.g., inline function calls.

 
 

+// ## Trait implementations

 // To make the function usable with a `Vec<i32>`, we implement the `Minimum` trait for `i32`.
 impl Minimum for i32 {
 // To make the function usable with a `Vec<i32>`, we implement the `Minimum` trait for `i32`.
 impl Minimum for i32 {

-    fn min(a: Self, b: Self) -> Self {
-        std::cmp::min(a, b)
+    fn min(self, b: Self) -> Self {
+        std::cmp::min(self, b)

     }
 }
 
     }
 }
 

-// In order to run our code and see the result, we again provide a `print` function.
-// This also shows that we can have multiple `impl` blocks for the same type, and we
-// can provide some methods only for certain instances of a generic type.
-impl SomethingOrNothing<i32> {
+// We again provide a `print` function. This also shows that we can have multiple `impl` blocks
+// for the same type (remember that `NumberOrNothing` is just a type alias for `SomethingOrNothing<i32>`),
+// and we can provide some methods only for certain instances of a generic type.
+impl NumberOrNothing {

     pub fn print(self) {
         match self {
             Nothing => println!("The number is: <nothing>"),
     pub fn print(self) {
         match self {
             Nothing => println!("The number is: <nothing>"),


@@ -112,14 +135,6 @@ impl SomethingOrNothing<i32> {
 // Now we are again ready to run our code. Remember to change `main.rs` appropriately.
 // Rust figures out automatically that we want the `T` of `vec_min` to be `i32`, and
 // that `i32` implements `Minimum` and hence all is good.
 // Now we are again ready to run our code. Remember to change `main.rs` appropriately.
 // Rust figures out automatically that we want the `T` of `vec_min` to be `i32`, and
 // that `i32` implements `Minimum` and hence all is good.

-// 
-// In case you are worried about performance, note that Rust performs *monomorphisation*
-// of generic functions: When you call `vec_min` with `T` being `i32`, Rust essentially goes
-// ahead and creates a copy of the function for this particular type, filling in all the blanks.
-// In this case, the call to `T::min` will become a call to our implementation *statically*. There is
-// no dynamic dispatch, like there would be for Java interface methods or C++ `virtual` methods.
-// This behavior is similar to C++ templates. The optimizer (Rust is using LLVM) then has all the
-// information it could want to, e.g., inline function calls.

 fn read_vec() -> Vec<i32> {
     vec![18,5,7,3,9,27]
 }
 fn read_vec() -> Vec<i32> {
     vec![18,5,7,3,9,27]
 }


@@ -129,30 +144,6 @@ pub fn main() {
     min.print();
 }
 
     min.print();
 }
 

-// If this printed `3`, then you generic `vec_min` is working!
-// 
-// Before going on, take a moment to ponder the flexibility of Rust's take on abstraction:
-// We just defined our own, custom trait (interface), and then implemented that trait
-// *for an existing type*. With the hierarchical approach of, e.g., C++ or Java,
-// that's not possible: We cannot make an existing type suddenly also inherit from our abstract base class.
-
-// **Exercise**: Define a trait `Print` to write a generic version of `SomethingOrNothing::print`.
-// Implement that trait for `i32`, and change the code above to use it.
-// I will again provide a skeleton for this solution. It also shows how to attach bounds to generic
-// implementations (just compare it to the `impl` block from the previous exercise).
-// You can read this as "For all types `T` satisfying the `Print` trait, I provide an implementation
-// for `SomethingOrNothing<T>`".
-// 
-// Notice that I called the function on `SomethingOrNothing` `print2` to disambiguate from the `print` defined above.
-// 
-// *Hint*: There is a macro `print!` for printing without appending a newline.
-trait Print {
-    /* Add things here */
-}
-impl<T: Print> SomethingOrNothing<T> {
-    fn print2(self) {
-        panic!("Not yet implemented.")
-    }
-}
+// If this printed `3`, then you generic `vec_min` is working! So get ready for the next part.

 
 // [index](main.html) | [previous](part01.html) | [next](part03.html)
 
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