Type inference and type-directed late binding

• US 8,732,732 B2
• Filed: 06/25/2013
• Issued: 05/20/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 09/06/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Meijer, Henricus Johannes Maria, Beckman, Brian C., Schach, David N., Silver, Amanda, Vick, Paul A., Drayton, Peter F., Aharoni, Avner Y., Lammel, Ralf
• Primary Examiner(s): Sough, H S
• Assistant Examiner(s): HOANG, PHUONG N
• Application Number:
  US13/926,074
• Publication Number:
  US 20130290987A1
• Time in Patent Office: 329 Days
• US Class Current: 719/331
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/31 Programming languages or programming paradigms
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/449 Object-oriented method invocation or resolution

Abstract

Systems and methods that enhance and balance a late binding and an early binding in a programming language, via supplying an option component to opt-in (or opt-out) late binding, and wherein a late binding is triggered based on a static type for the variable (e.g., object or a type/string.) Additionally, the variable is enabled to have different static types at different regions (e.g., a program fragment) of the programming language.

Claims

1. A computer program product comprising one or more computer hardware readable storage devices having encoded thereon computer executable instructions which, when executed upon one or more computer processors instantiates components comprising:

an option component that supplies an option, to a user, prior to compiling at least a portion of software code in the computing system, the software code portion including at least one variable of a changeable static type, allowing the user to determine whether to opt-in to use late binding during compilation of the software code portion, whether to opt-out of and not use the late binding during compilation of the software code portion, and determine what type of late binding to implement for the at least one variable within the software code portion, the option component associated with a programming language in which the software code portion was written, and wherein the at least one variable has one static type in one software code region and the same at least one variable has a different static type in another software code region; and

a helper that facilitates the late binding, the late binding based at least in part on a type specified or inferred for a variable of the programming language.

2. The computer program product of claim 1, the variable is compatible with a changing static type in the programming language.

3. The computer program product of claim 2, the changing static type inferred based at least in part on a use of the variable or a location of the variable in a code region of the programming language.

4. The computer program product of claim 1, wherein the late binding is type-directed late binding that late binds at least one statically known type and at least one dynamically known binding in a statement at run-time.

5. The computer program product of claim 1, the helper is an XML late bound helper for a type that represents an XML object model.

6. The computer program product of claim 1, the helper is a reflection late bound helper for objects.

7. The computer program product of claim 1, the option component comprising a refactoring mechanism to designate precise inferred type or object for the variable.

8. The computer program product of claim 7, the refactoring mechanism expands a declaration to indicate a type explicitly.

9. The computer program product of claim 7, the refactoring mechanism employs a drop down menu of available options, comprising the option, and to indicate object and type, the drop down menu drops down to open the menu in response to a hover or click associated with the refactoring mechanism.

10. The computer program product of claim 9, selection of an object indicative of opting for the late binding over the object.

11. A computer program product comprising one or more computer hardware readable storage devices having encoded thereon computer executable instructions which, when executed upon one or more computer processors performs a method comprising:

employing at least one processor executing computer executable instructions stored on a computer readable storage medium to implement the following acts;

supplying a user with an option, prior to compiling at least a portion of software code in a computing system, the software code portion including at least one variable of a changeable static type, that allows the user to determine whether to opt-in to utilize late binding during compilation of the software code portion, whether to opt-out and utilize non late binding, and determine what type of late binding to implement on the software code portion during compilation of the software code portion associated with a programming language in which the software code portion was written,

wherein the type for variables with changeable static types is inferred based on the use of the variable,

wherein the at least one variable has one static type in one software code region and the same at least one variable has a different static type in another software code region, and

wherein the option to opt-in or opt-out allows the same at least one variable name to be used with different static types in a plurality of different software code segments of the software code portion;

determining that one of the late binding is to be utilized or the non late binding is to be utilized based at least in part on an indication regarding the option obtained from the user;

performing the one of the late binding or the non late binding based at least in part on the determination;

inferring a type of a variable; and

changing a static type of the variable as part of the programming language.

12. The computer program product of claim 11 further comprising inferring the changing static type based at least in part on usage of the variable.

13. The computer program product of claim 11 further comprising changing the static type based at least in part on location of the variable in the programming language.

14. The computer program product of claim 11 further comprising designating type of late binding for the programming language.

15. The computer program product of claim 11 further comprising supplying a feed back to the user upon changing the static type.

16. The computer program product of claim 11 further comprising tracking a variable type via a compiler.

17. The computer program product of claim 11 further comprising triggering the late binding based at least in part on selected static type.

18. The computer program product of claim 11 further comprising employing a refactoring mechanism that expands to designate a type explicitly.

19. The computer program product of claim 11 further comprising identifying regions for a code of the programming language that have a precise prescription of types.

20. A computer system comprising:

at least one processor; and

a computer readable storage medium storing computer executable instructions which, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the system to perform the method comprising;

providing an option, to a user, prior to compiling at least a portion of software code in the computing system, the software code portion including at least one variable of a changeable static type, allowing the user to both determine whether to opt in or opt out of a late binding during compilation of the software code portion for a programming language in which the software code portion was written and determine what type of late binding to implement on the software code portion, wherein the type for variables with changeable static types is inferred based on the use of the variable, and wherein the at least one variable has one static type in one software code region and the same at least one variable has a different static type in another software code region; and

performing the late binding when the an indication relating to the option is obtained and indicates to opt in to the late binding.