tweaking the attribute initializer stuff a little
[gitmo/Class-MOP.git] / lib / Class / MOP / Attribute.pm
CommitLineData
8b978dd5 1
2package Class::MOP::Attribute;
3
4use strict;
5use warnings;
6
ba38bf08 7use Class::MOP::Method::Accessor;
8
2eb717d5 9use Carp 'confess';
9ec169fe 10use Scalar::Util 'blessed', 'reftype', 'weaken';
2eb717d5 11
0c6f4c4a 12our $VERSION = '0.23';
f0480c45 13our $AUTHORITY = 'cpan:STEVAN';
8b978dd5 14
b1897d4d 15use base 'Class::MOP::Object';
16
1d68af04 17sub meta {
727919c5 18 require Class::MOP::Class;
aa448b16 19 Class::MOP::Class->initialize(blessed($_[0]) || $_[0]);
727919c5 20}
2eb717d5 21
727919c5 22# NOTE: (meta-circularity)
1d68af04 23# This method will be replaced in the
24# boostrap section of Class::MOP, by
25# a new version which uses the
727919c5 26# &Class::MOP::Class::construct_instance
27# method to build an attribute meta-object
28# which itself is described with attribute
1d68af04 29# meta-objects.
727919c5 30# - Ain't meta-circularity grand? :)
8b978dd5 31sub new {
32 my $class = shift;
33 my $name = shift;
1d68af04 34 my %options = @_;
35
cbd9f942 36 (defined $name && $name)
8b978dd5 37 || confess "You must provide a name for the attribute";
1d68af04 38
39 $options{init_arg} = $name
5659d76e 40 if not exists $options{init_arg};
1d68af04 41 if(exists $options{builder}){
42 confess("builder must be a defined scalar value which is a method name")
43 if ref $options{builder} || !(defined $options{builder});
44 confess("Setting both default and builder is not allowed.")
45 if exists $options{default};
8fe581e5 46 } else {
47 (is_default_a_coderef(\%options))
48 || confess("References are not allowed as default values, you must ".
49 "wrap then in a CODE reference (ex: sub { [] } and not [])")
50 if exists $options{default} && ref $options{default};
1d68af04 51 }
2e877f58 52 if( $options{required} and not( defined($options{builder}) || defined($options{init_arg}) || exists $options{default} ) ) {
53 confess("A required attribute must have either 'init_arg', 'builder', or 'default'");
54 }
8b978dd5 55 bless {
c23184fc 56 '$!name' => $name,
57 '$!accessor' => $options{accessor},
58 '$!reader' => $options{reader},
8ee74136 59 '$!writer' => $options{writer},
60 '$!predicate' => $options{predicate},
61 '$!clearer' => $options{clearer},
62 '$!builder' => $options{builder},
63 '$!init_arg' => $options{init_arg},
64 '$!default' => $options{default},
65 '$!initializer' => $options{initializer},
1d68af04 66 # keep a weakened link to the
9ec169fe 67 # class we are associated with
c23184fc 68 '$!associated_class' => undef,
1d68af04 69 # and a list of the methods
3545c727 70 # associated with this attr
c23184fc 71 '@!associated_methods' => [],
8ee74136 72 # NOTE:
73 # protect this from silliness
74 init_arg => '!............( DO NOT DO THIS )............!',
8b978dd5 75 } => $class;
76}
77
7b31baf4 78# NOTE:
1d68af04 79# this is a primative (and kludgy) clone operation
16e960bd 80# for now, it will be replaced in the Class::MOP
1d68af04 81# bootstrap with a proper one, however we know
5659d76e 82# that this one will work fine for now.
83sub clone {
84 my $self = shift;
85 my %options = @_;
86 (blessed($self))
87 || confess "Can only clone an instance";
88 return bless { %{$self}, %options } => blessed($self);
89}
90
bd4e03f9 91sub initialize_instance_slot {
f892c0f0 92 my ($self, $meta_instance, $instance, $params) = @_;
c23184fc 93 my $init_arg = $self->{'$!init_arg'};
bd4e03f9 94 # try to fetch the init arg from the %params ...
8d2d4c67 95
1d68af04 96 # if nothing was in the %params, we can use the
bd4e03f9 97 # attribute's default value (if it has one)
2e877f58 98 if(defined $init_arg and exists $params->{$init_arg}){
8ee74136 99 $self->_set_initial_slot_value(
100 $meta_instance,
0ab65f99 101 $instance,
0ab65f99 102 $params->{$init_arg},
0ab65f99 103 );
b7bdffc3 104 }
105 elsif (defined $self->{'$!default'}) {
8ee74136 106 $self->_set_initial_slot_value(
107 $meta_instance,
0ab65f99 108 $instance,
0ab65f99 109 $self->default($instance),
0ab65f99 110 );
b7bdffc3 111 }
112 elsif (defined( my $builder = $self->{'$!builder'})) {
113 if ($builder = $instance->can($builder)) {
8ee74136 114 $self->_set_initial_slot_value(
115 $meta_instance,
0ab65f99 116 $instance,
0ab65f99 117 $instance->$builder,
0ab65f99 118 );
b7bdffc3 119 }
120 else {
232c4e13 121 confess(blessed($instance)." does not support builder method '". $self->{'$!builder'} ."' for attribute '" . $self->name . "'");
8fe581e5 122 }
1d68af04 123 }
bd4e03f9 124}
125
8ee74136 126sub _set_initial_slot_value {
127 my ($self, $meta_instance, $instance, $value) = @_;
128
129 my $slot_name = $self->name;
130
131 return $meta_instance->set_slot_value($instance, $slot_name, $value)
132 unless $self->has_initializer;
133
134 my $callback = sub {
135 $meta_instance->set_slot_value($instance, $slot_name, $_[0]);
136 };
137
138 my $initializer = $self->initializer;
139
140 # most things will just want to set a value, so make it first arg
141 $instance->$initializer($value, $callback, $self);
142}
143
5659d76e 144# NOTE:
1d68af04 145# the next bunch of methods will get bootstrapped
7b31baf4 146# away in the Class::MOP bootstrapping section
147
c23184fc 148sub name { $_[0]->{'$!name'} }
c50c603e 149
c23184fc 150sub associated_class { $_[0]->{'$!associated_class'} }
151sub associated_methods { $_[0]->{'@!associated_methods'} }
7b31baf4 152
8ee74136 153sub has_accessor { defined($_[0]->{'$!accessor'}) ? 1 : 0 }
154sub has_reader { defined($_[0]->{'$!reader'}) ? 1 : 0 }
155sub has_writer { defined($_[0]->{'$!writer'}) ? 1 : 0 }
156sub has_predicate { defined($_[0]->{'$!predicate'}) ? 1 : 0 }
157sub has_clearer { defined($_[0]->{'$!clearer'}) ? 1 : 0 }
158sub has_builder { defined($_[0]->{'$!builder'}) ? 1 : 0 }
159sub has_init_arg { defined($_[0]->{'$!init_arg'}) ? 1 : 0 }
160sub has_default { defined($_[0]->{'$!default'}) ? 1 : 0 }
0ab65f99 161sub has_initializer { defined($_[0]->{'$!initializer'}) ? 1 : 0 }
c50c603e 162
8ee74136 163sub accessor { $_[0]->{'$!accessor'} }
164sub reader { $_[0]->{'$!reader'} }
165sub writer { $_[0]->{'$!writer'} }
166sub predicate { $_[0]->{'$!predicate'} }
167sub clearer { $_[0]->{'$!clearer'} }
168sub builder { $_[0]->{'$!builder'} }
169sub init_arg { $_[0]->{'$!init_arg'} }
0ab65f99 170sub initializer { $_[0]->{'$!initializer'} }
c50c603e 171
7b31baf4 172# end bootstrapped away method section.
173# (all methods below here are kept intact)
174
d14f6cbe 175sub get_read_method {
176 my $self = shift;
177 my $reader = $self->reader || $self->accessor;
178 # normal case ...
179 return $reader unless ref $reader;
180 # the HASH ref case
181 my ($name) = %$reader;
182 return $name;
183}
184
185sub get_write_method {
186 my $self = shift;
187 my $writer = $self->writer || $self->accessor;
188 # normal case ...
189 return $writer unless ref $writer;
190 # the HASH ref case
191 my ($name) = %$writer;
192 return $name;
193}
b25109b1 194
5da16d1b 195sub get_read_method_ref {
196 my $self = shift;
742fb371 197 if ((my $reader = $self->get_read_method) && $self->associated_class) {
5da16d1b 198 return $self->associated_class->get_method($reader);
199 }
200 else {
201 return sub { $self->get_value(@_) };
202 }
203}
204
205sub get_write_method_ref {
206 my $self = shift;
d14f6cbe 207 if ((my $writer = $self->get_write_method) && $self->associated_class) {
742fb371 208 return $self->associated_class->get_method($writer);
5da16d1b 209 }
210 else {
211 return sub { $self->set_value(@_) };
212 }
213}
214
1d68af04 215sub is_default_a_coderef {
216 ('CODE' eq (reftype($_[0]->{'$!default'} || $_[0]->{default}) || ''))
c0cbf4d9 217}
218
1d68af04 219sub default {
c0cbf4d9 220 my ($self, $instance) = @_;
9363ea89 221 if (defined $instance && $self->is_default_a_coderef) {
1d68af04 222 # if the default is a CODE ref, then
727919c5 223 # we pass in the instance and default
1d68af04 224 # can return a value based on that
727919c5 225 # instance. Somewhat crude, but works.
c23184fc 226 return $self->{'$!default'}->($instance);
1d68af04 227 }
c23184fc 228 $self->{'$!default'};
c50c603e 229}
8b978dd5 230
c57c8b10 231# slots
232
233sub slots { (shift)->name }
234
1d68af04 235# class association
727919c5 236
9ec169fe 237sub attach_to_class {
238 my ($self, $class) = @_;
239 (blessed($class) && $class->isa('Class::MOP::Class'))
240 || confess "You must pass a Class::MOP::Class instance (or a subclass)";
1d68af04 241 weaken($self->{'$!associated_class'} = $class);
9ec169fe 242}
243
244sub detach_from_class {
245 my $self = shift;
1d68af04 246 $self->{'$!associated_class'} = undef;
9ec169fe 247}
248
1d68af04 249# method association
3545c727 250
251sub associate_method {
252 my ($self, $method) = @_;
c23184fc 253 push @{$self->{'@!associated_methods'}} => $method;
3545c727 254}
255
16e960bd 256## Slot management
257
ef91a0e2 258sub set_initial_value {
259 my ($self, $instance, $value) = @_;
8ee74136 260 $self->set_initial_slot_value(
261 Class::MOP::Class->initialize(blessed($instance))->get_meta_instance,
262 $instance,
263 $value
264 );
ef91a0e2 265}
266
16e960bd 267sub set_value {
1396f86b 268 my ($self, $instance, $value) = @_;
16e960bd 269
3545c727 270 Class::MOP::Class->initialize(blessed($instance))
16e960bd 271 ->get_meta_instance
3545c727 272 ->set_slot_value($instance, $self->name, $value);
16e960bd 273}
274
275sub get_value {
1396f86b 276 my ($self, $instance) = @_;
16e960bd 277
3545c727 278 Class::MOP::Class->initialize(blessed($instance))
16e960bd 279 ->get_meta_instance
1396f86b 280 ->get_slot_value($instance, $self->name);
16e960bd 281}
282
3545c727 283sub has_value {
284 my ($self, $instance) = @_;
1d68af04 285
8d2d4c67 286 Class::MOP::Class->initialize(blessed($instance))
287 ->get_meta_instance
288 ->is_slot_initialized($instance, $self->name);
3545c727 289}
290
291sub clear_value {
292 my ($self, $instance) = @_;
1d68af04 293
3545c727 294 Class::MOP::Class->initialize(blessed($instance))
295 ->get_meta_instance
1d68af04 296 ->deinitialize_slot($instance, $self->name);
3545c727 297}
298
ba38bf08 299## load em up ...
c0cbf4d9 300
ba38bf08 301sub accessor_metaclass { 'Class::MOP::Method::Accessor' }
c0cbf4d9 302
9ec169fe 303sub process_accessors {
c0cbf4d9 304 my ($self, $type, $accessor, $generate_as_inline_methods) = @_;
013b1897 305 if (reftype($accessor)) {
306 (reftype($accessor) eq 'HASH')
7d28758b 307 || confess "bad accessor/reader/writer/predicate/clearer format, must be a HASH ref";
4d47b77f 308 my ($name, $method) = %{$accessor};
3545c727 309 $method = $self->accessor_metaclass->wrap($method);
310 $self->associate_method($method);
1d68af04 311 return ($name, $method);
2eb717d5 312 }
9ec169fe 313 else {
1d68af04 314 my $inline_me = ($generate_as_inline_methods && $self->associated_class->instance_metaclass->is_inlinable);
ba38bf08 315 my $method;
316 eval {
317 $method = $self->accessor_metaclass->new(
318 attribute => $self,
d90b42a6 319 is_inline => $inline_me,
ba38bf08 320 accessor_type => $type,
1d68af04 321 );
ba38bf08 322 };
1d68af04 323 confess "Could not create the '$type' method for " . $self->name . " because : $@" if $@;
3545c727 324 $self->associate_method($method);
ba38bf08 325 return ($accessor, $method);
1d68af04 326 }
9ec169fe 327}
328
329sub install_accessors {
c0cbf4d9 330 my $self = shift;
331 my $inline = shift;
332 my $class = $self->associated_class;
1d68af04 333
9ec169fe 334 $class->add_method(
c0cbf4d9 335 $self->process_accessors('accessor' => $self->accessor(), $inline)
9ec169fe 336 ) if $self->has_accessor();
337
1d68af04 338 $class->add_method(
c0cbf4d9 339 $self->process_accessors('reader' => $self->reader(), $inline)
9ec169fe 340 ) if $self->has_reader();
341
342 $class->add_method(
c0cbf4d9 343 $self->process_accessors('writer' => $self->writer(), $inline)
9ec169fe 344 ) if $self->has_writer();
345
346 $class->add_method(
c0cbf4d9 347 $self->process_accessors('predicate' => $self->predicate(), $inline)
9ec169fe 348 ) if $self->has_predicate();
1d68af04 349
7d28758b 350 $class->add_method(
351 $self->process_accessors('clearer' => $self->clearer(), $inline)
352 ) if $self->has_clearer();
1d68af04 353
9ec169fe 354 return;
2eb717d5 355}
356
b51af7f9 357{
358 my $_remove_accessor = sub {
359 my ($accessor, $class) = @_;
c50c603e 360 if (reftype($accessor) && reftype($accessor) eq 'HASH') {
361 ($accessor) = keys %{$accessor};
1d68af04 362 }
363 my $method = $class->get_method($accessor);
364 $class->remove_method($accessor)
ba38bf08 365 if (blessed($method) && $method->isa('Class::MOP::Method::Accessor'));
b51af7f9 366 };
1d68af04 367
b51af7f9 368 sub remove_accessors {
9ec169fe 369 my $self = shift;
2367814a 370 # TODO:
1d68af04 371 # we really need to make sure to remove from the
372 # associates methods here as well. But this is
373 # such a slimly used method, I am not worried
2367814a 374 # about it right now.
9ec169fe 375 $_remove_accessor->($self->accessor(), $self->associated_class()) if $self->has_accessor();
376 $_remove_accessor->($self->reader(), $self->associated_class()) if $self->has_reader();
377 $_remove_accessor->($self->writer(), $self->associated_class()) if $self->has_writer();
378 $_remove_accessor->($self->predicate(), $self->associated_class()) if $self->has_predicate();
7d28758b 379 $_remove_accessor->($self->clearer(), $self->associated_class()) if $self->has_clearer();
1d68af04 380 return;
b51af7f9 381 }
382
8b978dd5 383}
384
3851;
386
387__END__
388
389=pod
390
1d68af04 391=head1 NAME
8b978dd5 392
393Class::MOP::Attribute - Attribute Meta Object
394
395=head1 SYNOPSIS
1d68af04 396
8b978dd5 397 Class::MOP::Attribute->new('$foo' => (
fe122940 398 accessor => 'foo', # dual purpose get/set accessor
1d68af04 399 predicate => 'has_foo' # predicate check for defined-ness
fe122940 400 init_arg => '-foo', # class->new will look for a -foo key
401 default => 'BAR IS BAZ!' # if no -foo key is provided, use this
8b978dd5 402 ));
1d68af04 403
8b978dd5 404 Class::MOP::Attribute->new('$.bar' => (
fe122940 405 reader => 'bar', # getter
1d68af04 406 writer => 'set_bar', # setter
407 predicate => 'has_bar' # predicate check for defined-ness
fe122940 408 init_arg => ':bar', # class->new will look for a :bar key
8b978dd5 409 # no default value means it is undef
410 ));
411
412=head1 DESCRIPTION
413
fe122940 414The Attribute Protocol is almost entirely an invention of this module,
1d68af04 415and is completely optional to this MOP. This is because Perl 5 does not
416have consistent notion of what is an attribute of a class. There are
417so many ways in which this is done, and very few (if any) are
fe122940 418easily discoverable by this module.
552e3d24 419
1d68af04 420So, all that said, this module attempts to inject some order into this
421chaos, by introducing a consistent API which can be used to create
fe122940 422object attributes.
552e3d24 423
424=head1 METHODS
425
426=head2 Creation
427
428=over 4
429
fe122940 430=item B<new ($name, ?%options)>
431
1d68af04 432An attribute must (at the very least), have a C<$name>. All other
a2e85e6c 433C<%options> are contained added as key-value pairs. Acceptable keys
fe122940 434are as follows:
435
436=over 4
437
438=item I<init_arg>
439
1d68af04 440This should be a string value representing the expected key in
441an initialization hash. For instance, if we have an I<init_arg>
fe122940 442value of C<-foo>, then the following code will Just Work.
443
444 MyClass->meta->construct_instance(-foo => "Hello There");
445
1d68af04 446In an init_arg is not assigned, it will automatically use the
7b31baf4 447value of C<$name>.
448
1d68af04 449=item I<builder>
450
451The value of this key is the name of the method that will be
452called to obtain the value used to initialize the attribute.
453This should be a method in the class associated with the attribute,
454not a method in the attribute class itself.
fe122940 455
4c4a6c41 456=item I<default>
457
458The value of this key is the default value which
459C<Class::MOP::Class::construct_instance> will initialize the
460attribute to.
461
fe122940 462B<NOTE:>
1d68af04 463If the value is a simple scalar (string or number), then it can
464be just passed as is. However, if you wish to initialize it with
465a HASH or ARRAY ref, then you need to wrap that inside a CODE
fe122940 466reference, like so:
467
468 Class::MOP::Attribute->new('@foo' => (
469 default => sub { [] },
470 ));
1d68af04 471
472 # or ...
473
fe122940 474 Class::MOP::Attribute->new('%foo' => (
475 default => sub { {} },
1d68af04 476 ));
fe122940 477
1d68af04 478If you wish to initialize an attribute with a CODE reference
fe122940 479itself, then you need to wrap that in a subroutine as well, like
480so:
1d68af04 481
fe122940 482 Class::MOP::Attribute->new('&foo' => (
483 default => sub { sub { print "Hello World" } },
484 ));
485
1d68af04 486And lastly, if the value of your attribute is dependent upon
487some other aspect of the instance structure, then you can take
488advantage of the fact that when the I<default> value is a CODE
489reference, it is passed the raw (unblessed) instance structure
fe122940 490as it's only argument. So you can do things like this:
491
492 Class::MOP::Attribute->new('$object_identity' => (
493 default => sub { Scalar::Util::refaddr($_[0]) },
494 ));
495
1d68af04 496This last feature is fairly limited as there is no gurantee of
497the order of attribute initializations, so you cannot perform
498any kind of dependent initializations. However, if this is
499something you need, you could subclass B<Class::MOP::Class> and
500this class to acheive it. However, this is currently left as
fe122940 501an exercise to the reader :).
502
503=back
504
7d28758b 505The I<accessor>, I<reader>, I<writer>, I<predicate> and I<clearer> keys can
506contain either; the name of the method and an appropriate default one will be
507generated for you, B<or> a HASH ref containing exactly one key (which will be
508used as the name of the method) and one value, which should contain a CODE
509reference which will be installed as the method itself.
59e7697f 510
511=over 4
512
513=item I<accessor>
514
1d68af04 515The I<accessor> is a standard perl-style read/write accessor. It will
516return the value of the attribute, and if a value is passed as an argument,
fe122940 517it will assign that value to the attribute.
518
519B<NOTE:>
1d68af04 520This method will properly handle the following code, by assigning an
fe122940 521C<undef> value to the attribute.
522
523 $object->set_something(undef);
524
59e7697f 525=item I<reader>
526
1d68af04 527This is a basic read-only accessor, it will just return the value of
fe122940 528the attribute.
529
59e7697f 530=item I<writer>
531
1d68af04 532This is a basic write accessor, it accepts a single argument, and
533assigns that value to the attribute. This method does not intentially
534return a value, however perl will return the result of the last
535expression in the subroutine, which returns in this returning the
536same value that it was passed.
59e7697f 537
fe122940 538B<NOTE:>
1d68af04 539This method will properly handle the following code, by assigning an
fe122940 540C<undef> value to the attribute.
59e7697f 541
fe122940 542 $object->set_something();
543
544=item I<predicate>
545
07dca7e3 546This is a basic test to see if any value has been set for the
547attribute. It will return true (C<1>) if the attribute has been set
548to any value (even C<undef>), and false (C<0>) otherwise.
549
550B<NOTE:>
551The predicate will return true even when you set an attribute's
552value to C<undef>. This behaviour has changed as of version 0.43. In
553older versions, the predicate (erroneously) checked for attribute
554value definedness, instead of presence as it is now.
555
556If you really want to get rid of the value, you have to define and
557use a I<clearer> (see below).
558
59e7697f 559
7d28758b 560=item I<clearer>
561
562This is the a method that will uninitialize the attr, reverting lazy values
563back to their "unfulfilled" state.
564
59e7697f 565=back
552e3d24 566
bd4e03f9 567=item B<clone (%options)>
568
569=item B<initialize_instance_slot ($instance, $params)>
570
1d68af04 571=back
552e3d24 572
16e960bd 573=head2 Value management
574
1d68af04 575These methods are basically "backdoors" to the instance, which can be used
576to bypass the regular accessors, but still stay within the context of the MOP.
2367814a 577
1d68af04 578These methods are not for general use, and should only be used if you really
2367814a 579know what you are doing.
580
16e960bd 581=over 4
582
3545c727 583=item B<set_value ($instance, $value)>
16e960bd 584
585Set the value without going through the accessor. Note that this may be done to
586even attributes with just read only accessors.
587
c0921932 588=item B<set_initial_value ($instance, $value)>
589
590This method sets the value without going through the accessor -- but it is only
591called when the instance data is first initialized.
592
3545c727 593=item B<get_value ($instance)>
16e960bd 594
595Return the value without going through the accessor. Note that this may be done
596even to attributes with just write only accessors.
597
3545c727 598=item B<has_value ($instance)>
599
92d2abfa 600Return a boolean indicating if the item in the C<$instance> has a value in it.
2367814a 601This is basically what the default C<predicate> method calls.
602
3545c727 603=item B<clear_value ($instance)>
604
2367814a 605This will clear the value in the C<$instance>. This is basically what the default
1d68af04 606C<clearer> would call. Note that this may be done even if the attirbute does not
2367814a 607have any associated read, write or clear methods.
608
16e960bd 609=back
610
552e3d24 611=head2 Informational
612
1d68af04 613These are all basic read-only value accessors for the values
fe122940 614passed into C<new>. I think they are pretty much self-explanitory.
615
552e3d24 616=over 4
617
618=item B<name>
619
620=item B<accessor>
621
622=item B<reader>
623
624=item B<writer>
625
c50c603e 626=item B<predicate>
627
7d28758b 628=item B<clearer>
629
0ab65f99 630=item B<initializer>
631
552e3d24 632=item B<init_arg>
633
495af518 634=item B<is_default_a_coderef>
635
fe122940 636=item B<default (?$instance)>
637
92d2abfa 638Return the default value for the attribute.
639
640If you pass in an C<$instance> argument to this accessor and the
641I<default> is a CODE reference, then the CODE reference will be
642executed with the C<$instance> as its argument.
552e3d24 643
c57c8b10 644=item B<slots>
645
92d2abfa 646Return a list of slots required by the attribute. This is usually
c57c8b10 647just one, which is the name of the attribute.
648
b25109b1 649=item B<get_read_method>
650
651=item B<get_write_method>
652
5da16d1b 653Return the name of a method name suitable for reading / writing the value
654of the attribute in the associated class. Suitable for use whether
655C<reader> and C<writer> or C<accessor> was used.
656
657=item B<get_read_method_ref>
658
659=item B<get_write_method_ref>
660
661Return the CODE reference of a method suitable for reading / writing the
662value of the attribute in the associated class. Suitable for use whether
663C<reader> and C<writer> or C<accessor> was specified or not.
664
665NOTE: If not reader/writer/accessor was specified, this will use the
666attribute get_value/set_value methods, which can be very inefficient.
b25109b1 667
552e3d24 668=back
669
670=head2 Informational predicates
671
a2e85e6c 672These are all basic predicate methods for the values passed into C<new>.
fe122940 673
552e3d24 674=over 4
675
676=item B<has_accessor>
677
552e3d24 678=item B<has_reader>
679
552e3d24 680=item B<has_writer>
681
c50c603e 682=item B<has_predicate>
683
7d28758b 684=item B<has_clearer>
685
0ab65f99 686=item B<has_initializer>
687
552e3d24 688=item B<has_init_arg>
689
552e3d24 690=item B<has_default>
691
bf731086 692=item B<has_builder>
693
552e3d24 694=back
695
9ec169fe 696=head2 Class association
697
1d68af04 698These methods allow you to manage the attributes association with
699the class that contains it. These methods should not be used
2367814a 700lightly, nor are they very magical, they are mostly used internally
701and by metaclass instances.
702
9ec169fe 703=over 4
704
705=item B<associated_class>
706
2367814a 707This returns the metaclass this attribute is associated with.
708
9ec169fe 709=item B<attach_to_class ($class)>
710
1d68af04 711This will store a weaken reference to C<$class> internally. You should
2367814a 712note that just changing the class assocation will not remove the attribute
713from it's old class, and initialize it (and it's accessors) in the new
714C<$class>. It is up to you to do this manually.
715
9ec169fe 716=item B<detach_from_class>
717
1d68af04 718This will remove the weakened reference to the class. It does B<not>
719remove the attribute itself from the class (or remove it's accessors),
720you must do that yourself if you want too. Actually if that is what
721you want to do, you should probably be looking at
2367814a 722L<Class::MOP::Class::remove_attribute> instead.
723
9ec169fe 724=back
725
552e3d24 726=head2 Attribute Accessor generation
727
728=over 4
729
ba38bf08 730=item B<accessor_metaclass>
731
2367814a 732Accessors are generated by an accessor metaclass, which is usually
1d68af04 733a subclass of C<Class::MOP::Method::Accessor>. This method returns
2367814a 734the name of the accessor metaclass that this attribute uses.
735
736=item B<associate_method ($method)>
737
1d68af04 738This will associate a C<$method> with the given attribute which is
739used internally by the accessor generator.
3545c727 740
741=item B<associated_methods>
742
1d68af04 743This will return the list of methods which have been associated with
744the C<associate_method> methods.
2367814a 745
9ec169fe 746=item B<install_accessors>
2eb717d5 747
1d68af04 748This allows the attribute to generate and install code for it's own
749I<accessor/reader/writer/predicate> methods. This is called by
fe122940 750C<Class::MOP::Class::add_attribute>.
2eb717d5 751
1d68af04 752This method will call C<process_accessors> for each of the possible
9ec169fe 753method types (accessor, reader, writer & predicate).
754
755=item B<process_accessors ($type, $value)>
756
1d68af04 757This takes a C<$type> (accessor, reader, writer or predicate), and
9ec169fe 758a C<$value> (the value passed into the constructor for each of the
1d68af04 759different types). It will then either generate the method itself
760(using the C<generate_*_method> methods listed below) or it will
761use the custom method passed through the constructor.
9ec169fe 762
9ec169fe 763=item B<remove_accessors>
2eb717d5 764
1d68af04 765This allows the attribute to remove the method for it's own
766I<accessor/reader/writer/predicate/clearer>. This is called by
fe122940 767C<Class::MOP::Class::remove_attribute>.
2eb717d5 768
1d68af04 769NOTE: This does not currently remove methods from the list returned
2367814a 770by C<associated_methods>, that is on the TODO list.
771
2eb717d5 772=back
773
774=head2 Introspection
775
776=over 4
552e3d24 777
2eb717d5 778=item B<meta>
552e3d24 779
1d68af04 780This will return a B<Class::MOP::Class> instance which is related
fe122940 781to this class.
782
1d68af04 783It should also be noted that B<Class::MOP> will actually bootstrap
784this module by installing a number of attribute meta-objects into
785it's metaclass. This will allow this class to reap all the benifits
786of the MOP when subclassing it.
fe122940 787
552e3d24 788=back
789
1a09d9cc 790=head1 AUTHORS
8b978dd5 791
a2e85e6c 792Stevan Little E<lt>stevan@iinteractive.comE<gt>
8b978dd5 793
794=head1 COPYRIGHT AND LICENSE
795
69e3ab0a 796Copyright 2006-2008 by Infinity Interactive, Inc.
8b978dd5 797
798L<http://www.iinteractive.com>
799
800This library is free software; you can redistribute it and/or modify
1d68af04 801it under the same terms as Perl itself.
8b978dd5 802
16e960bd 803=cut
804
7d28758b 805