Creating reference objects

• US 20060095467A1
• Filed: 10/29/2004
• Published: 05/04/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 10/29/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Schnier, Randall Richard, Krueger, James C.
• Granted Patent: US 7,480,678 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/4488 Object-oriented
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/449 Object-oriented method invocation or resolution
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99944 Object-oriented database structure

Abstract

A method, apparatus, system, and signal-bearing medium that, in an embodiment, in response to a request to create a target object, create a reference object for the target object and bind the reference object to a name space without the target object being instantiated. In response to an invocation of a method on the reference object, a determination is made whether a target object associated with the reference object exists. If the target object does not already exist, the target object is instantiated. If the target object does already exist, the target object is returned. In this way, target objects are not instantiated until a method on the reference object is invoked, which in an embodiment increases the performance of the invoking application.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

creating a reference object in response to a request to create a target object; and

binding the reference object to a name space while the target object associated with the reference object is not instantiated.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

in response to an invocation of a method on the reference object, determining whether the target object associated with the reference object exists.

3. The method of claim 2, further comprising:

if the target object does not exist, instantiating the target object.

4. The method of claim 2, further comprising:

if the target object does exist, returning the target object to an object request broker.

5. An apparatus comprising:

means for creating a reference object in response to a request to create a target object;

means for binding the reference object to a name space while the target object associated with the reference object is not instantiated; and

means for determining whether the target object associated with the reference object exists in response to an invocation of a method on the reference object.

6. The apparatus of claim 5, further comprising:

means for instantiating the target object if the target object does not exist.

7. The apparatus of claim 5, further comprising:

means for returning the target object to an object request broker if the target object does exist.

8. The apparatus of claim 6, wherein the target object comprises a Home object.

9. A signal-bearing medium encoded with instructions, wherein the instructions when executed comprise:

creating a reference object in response to a request to create a target object;

binding the reference object to a name space while the target object associated with the reference object is not instantiated;

determining whether the target object associated with the reference object exists in response to an invocation of a method on the reference object; and

instantiating the target object if the target object does not exist

10. The signal-bearing medium of claim 9, further comprising:

returning the target object to an object request broker if the target object does exist.

11. The signal-bearing medium of claim 9, wherein the target object comprises a Home object.

12. The signal-bearing medium of claim 9, wherein the creating further comprises:

creating the reference object based on a name of the target object and target object information.

13. A computer system comprising:

a processor; and

a main memory encoded with instructions, wherein the instructions when executed on the processor comprise;

creating a reference object in response to a request to create a target object,

binding the reference object to a name space while the target object associated with the reference object is not instantiated,

determining whether the target object associated with the reference object exists in response to an invocation of a method on the reference object,

instantiating the target object if the target object does not exist, and

returning the target object to an object request broker if the target object does exist.

14. The computer system of claim 13, wherein the target object comprises a Home object.

15. The computer system of claim 13, wherein the creating further comprises:

creating the reference object based on a name of the target object and target object information.

16. The computer system of claim 15, wherein the binding further comprises:

saving the name of the target object and a pointer to the reference object in the name space.

17. A method for configuring a computer, comprising:

configuring the computer to create a reference object in response to a request to create a target object; and

configuring the computer to bind the reference object to a name space while the target object associated with the reference object is not instantiated.

18. The method of claim 17, further comprising:

configuring the computer to, in response to an invocation of a method on the reference object, determine whether the target object associated with the reference object exists.

19. The method of claim 18, further comprising:

configuring the computer to instantiate the target object if the target object does not exist.

20. The method of claim 18, further comprising:

configuring the computer to return the target object to an object request broker if the target object does exist.