Complete set: Intro to C - Bill Buchanan

5.3 Creating overloaded methods
We can create overloaded methods ourselves very simply. We need only repeat the
definition, but with a different parameter list.
Care should be takes with this – it is considered good practice if each overloading
performs essentially the same task. The MessageBox.Show is an excellent example
of good practice (if rather excessive in have 12 options).
• The same method can be used “quick‐and‐dirty” and “careful” users.
• Sensible default values are given when parameters are left unspecified.
During development of code we often find that we need to generalise. We start with
a simple method and find that it needs to be more complex.
The designers of MessageBox might have started with the notion of a simple alert
box that took a single string – they then found that their users required more and
more control.
Using overloading it is possible to publish a simple component then expand on it.
The advantage of this is that existing code that uses the simple interface does not
have to be re‐written when the new version of the class is released.
To avoid duplication of code we often have one “base” implementation that the others
call. The based should be the “largest” overloading – the one with the most
parameters.
5.4 Overloaded Method Example
The Country class records details of a single country – name, region, area, population
and gdp.
When the population increases (when a baby is born for example) we want to increment
the population. The method to do this is called IncPop.
duction to .NET
Intro
Examples of the definition of an overloaded method
public void IncPop(int increment)
{
this.population += increment;
}
public void IncPop()
{
IncPop(1);
}
Agilent .NET Course: Module 5, page 4