more docs, test fixes and prep for release

[gitmo/MooseX-Dependent.git] / lib / MooseX / Types / Parameterizable.pm

package MooseX::Types::Parameterizable;

use 5.008;

our $VERSION   = '0.02';
$VERSION = eval $VERSION;

use Moose::Util::TypeConstraints;
use MooseX::Meta::TypeConstraint::Parameterizable;
use MooseX::Types -declare => [qw(Parameterizable)];

=head1 NAME

MooseX::Types::Parameterizable - Create your own Parameterizable Types.

=head1 SYNOPSIS

The follow is example usage.

    package Test::MooseX::Types::Parameterizable::Synopsis;

    use Moose;
    use MooseX::Types::Parameterizable qw(Parameterizable);
    use MooseX::Types::Moose qw(Str Int ArrayRef);
    use MooseX::Types -declare=>[qw(Varchar)];

    ## Create a type constraint that is a string but parameterizes an integer
    ## that is used as a maximum length constraint on that string, similar to
    ## a SQL Varchar database type.

    subtype Varchar,
      as Parameterizable[Str,Int],
      where {
        my($string, $int) = @_;
        $int >= length($string) ? 1:0;
      },
      message { "'$_' is too long"  };

    coerce Varchar,
      from ArrayRef,
      via { 
        my ($arrayref, $int) = @_;
        join('', @$arrayref);
      };

    has 'varchar_five' => (isa=>Varchar[5], is=>'ro', coerce=>1);
    has 'varchar_ten' => (isa=>Varchar[10], is=>'ro');
  
    ## Object created since attributes are valid
    my $object1 = __PACKAGE__->new(
        varchar_five => '1234',
        varchar_ten => '123456789',
    );

    ## Dies with an invalid constraint for 'varchar_five'
    my $object2 = __PACKAGE__->new(
        varchar_five => '12345678',  ## too long!
        varchar_ten => '123456789',
    );

    ## varchar_five coerces as expected
    my $object3 = __PACKAGE__->new(
        varchar_five => [qw/aa bb/],  ## coerces to "aabb"
        varchar_ten => '123456789',
    );
 
See t/05-pod-examples.t for runnable versions of all POD code
         
=head1 DESCRIPTION

A L<MooseX::Types> library for creating parameterizable types.  A parameterizable
type constraint for all intents and uses is a subclass of a parent type, but 
adds additional type parameters which are available to constraint callbacks
(such as inside the 'where' clause of a type constraint definition) or in the 
coercions.

If you have L<Moose> experience, you probably are familiar with the builtin 
parameterizable type constraints 'ArrayRef' and 'HashRef'.  This type constraint
lets you generate your own versions of parameterized constraints that work
similarly.  See L<Moose::Util::TypeConstraints> for more.

Using this type constraint, you can generate new type constraints that have
additional runtime advice, such as being able to specify maximum and minimum
values for an Int (integer) type constraint:

    subtype Range,
        as Dict[max=>Int, min=>Int],
        where {
            my ($range) = @_;
            return $range->{max} > $range->{min};
        };

    subtype RangedInt,
        as Parameterizable[Int, Range],
        where {
            my ($value, $range) = @_;
            return ($value >= $range->{min} &&
             $value <= $range->{max});
        };
        
    RangedInt([{min=>10,max=>100}])->check(50); ## OK
    RangedInt([{min=>50, max=>75}])->check(99); ## Not OK, 99 exceeds max

The type parameter must be valid against the type constraint given.  If you pass
an invalid value this throws a hard Moose exception.  You'll need to capture it
in an eval or related exception catching system (see L<TryCatch> or <Try::Tiny>.)
For example the following would throw a hard error (and not just return false)

    RangedInt([{min=>99, max=>10}])->check(10); ## Not OK, not a valid Range!

If you can't accept a hard exception here, you'll need to test the constraining
values first, as in:

    my $range = {min=>99, max=>10};
    if(my $err = Range->validate($range)) {
        ## Handle #$err
    } else {
        RangedInt($range)->check(99);
    }
    
Please note that for ArrayRef or HashRef parameterizable type constraints, as in the
example above, as a convenience we automatically ref the incoming type
parameters, so that the above could also be written as:

    RangedInt([min=>10,max=>100])->check(50); ## OK
    RangedInt([min=>50, max=>75])->check(99); ## Not OK, 99 exceeds max
    RangedInt([min=>99, max=>10])->check(10); ## Exception, not a valid Range!

This is the preferred syntax, as it improve readability and adds to the
conciseness of your type constraint declarations.  An exception wil be thrown if
your type parameters don't match the required reference type.

Also not that if you 'chain' parameterization results with a method call like:

    TypeConstraint([$ob])->method;
    
You need to have the "(...)" around the ArrayRef in the Type Constraint
parameters.  This seems to have something to do with the precendent level of
"->".  Patches or thoughts welcomed.  You only need to do this in the above
case which I imagine is not a very common case.

==head2 Subtyping a Parameterizable type constraints

When subclassing a parameterizable type you must be careful to match either the
required type parameter type constraint, or if re-parameterizing, the new
type constraints are a subtype of the parent.  For example:

    subtype RangedInt,
        as Parameterizable[Int, Range],
        where {
            my ($value, $range) = @_;
            return ($value >= $range->{min} &&
             $value =< $range->{max});
        };

Example subtype with additional constraints:

    subtype PositiveRangedInt,
        as RangedInt,
        where {
            shift >= 0;              
        };
        
Or you could have done the following instead:

    ## Subtype of Int for positive numbers
    subtype PositiveInt,
        as Int,
        where {
            my ($value, $range) = @_;
            return $value >= 0;
        };

    ## subtype Range to re-parameterize Range with subtypes
    subtype PositiveRange,
        as Range[max=>PositiveInt, min=>PositiveInt];
    
    ## create subtype via reparameterizing
    subtype PositiveRangedInt,
        as RangedInt[PositiveRange];

Notice how re-parameterizing the parameterizable type 'RangedInt' works slightly
differently from re-parameterizing 'PositiveRange'  Although it initially takes
two type constraint values to declare a parameterizable type, should you wish to
later re-parameterize it, you only use a subtype of the second type parameter
(the parameterizable type constraint) since the first type constraint sets the parent
type for the parameterizable type.  In other words, given the example above, a type
constraint of 'RangedInt' would have a parent of 'Int', not 'Parameterizable' and for
all intends and uses you could stick it wherever you'd need an Int.

    subtype NameAge,
        as Tuple[Str, Int];
    
    ## re-parameterized subtypes of NameAge containing a Parameterizable Int    
    subtype NameBetween18and35Age,
        as NameAge[
            Str,
            PositiveRangedInt[min=>18,max=>35],
        ];

One caveat is that you can't stick an unparameterized parameterizable type inside a
structure, such as L<MooseX::Types::Structured> since that would require the
ability to convert a 'containing' type constraint into a parameterizable type, which
is a capacity we current don't have.
    
=head2 Coercions

Parameterizable types have some limited support for coercions.  Several things must
be kept in mind.  The first is that the coercion targets the type constraint
which is being made parameterizable, Not the parameterizable type.  So for example if you
create a Parameterizable type like:

    subtype RequiredAgeInYears,
      as Int;

    subtype PersonOverAge,
      as Parameterizable[Person, RequiredAgeInYears]
      where {
        my ($person, $required_years_old) = @_;
        return $person->years_old > $required_years_old;
      }

This would validate the following:
    
    my $person = Person->new(age=>35);
    PersonOverAge([18])->check($person);
    
You can then apply the following coercion

    coerce PersonOverAge,
      from Dict[age=>int],
      via {Person->new(%$_)},
      from Int,
      via {Person->new(age=>$_)};
      
This coercion would then apply to all the following:

    PersonOverAge([18])->check(30); ## via the Int coercion
    PersonOverAge([18])->check({age=>50}); ## via the Dict coercion

However, you are not allowed to place coercions on parameterizable types that have
had their constraining value filled, nor subtypes of such.  For example:

    coerce PersonOverAge[18],
      from DateTime,
      via {$_->years};
      
That would generate a hard exception.  This is a limitation for now until I can
devise a smarter way to cache the generated type constraints.  However, I doubt
it will be a significant limitation, since the general use case is supported.

Lastly, the constraining value is available in the coercion in much the same way
it is available to the constraint.

    ## Create a type constraint where a Person must be in the set
    subtype PersonInSet,
        as Parameterizable[Person, PersonSet],
        where {
            my ($person, $person_set) = @_;
            $person_set->find($person);
        }

    coerce PersonInSet,
        from HashRef,
        via {
            my ($hashref, $person_set) = @_;
            return $person_set->create($hash_ref);
        };

=head2 Recursion

    TBD - Need more tests.

=head1 TYPE CONSTRAINTS

This type library defines the following constraints.

=head2 Parameterizable[ParentTypeConstraint, ParameterizableValueTypeConstraint]

Create a subtype of ParentTypeConstraint with a dependency on a value that can
pass the ParameterizableValueTypeConstraint. If ParameterizableValueTypeConstraint is empty
we default to the 'Any' type constraint (see L<Moose::Util::TypeConstraints>).

This creates a type constraint which must be further parameterized at later time
before it can be used to ->check or ->validate a value.  Attempting to do so
will cause an exception.

=cut

Moose::Util::TypeConstraints::get_type_constraint_registry->add_type_constraint(
    MooseX::Meta::TypeConstraint::Parameterizable->new(
        name => 'MooseX::Types::Parameterizable::Parameterizable',
        parent => find_type_constraint('Any'),
        constraint => sub {1},
    )
);

=head1 AUTHOR

John Napiorkowski, C<< <jjnapiork@cpan.org> >>

=head1 COPYRIGHT & LICENSE

This program is free software; you can redistribute it and/or modify
it under the same terms as Perl itself.

=cut

1;