View source for Object-Oriented Programming in OS/2 2.0 Using SOM

By [[IBM]], [[Roger Sessions]] and [[Nurcan Coskun]]

{{IBM-Reprint}}


THIS ARTICLE WAS ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE PERSONAL SYSTEMS DEVELOPER WINTER 1992 AND IS COPYRIGHT BY IBM.
THIS ARTICLE MAY NOT BE REPRINTED IN WHOLE OR IN PART WITHOUT PERMISSION.

==ABSTRACT==
Object-Oriented Programming is quickly establishing itself as an important methodology in developing high quality, reusable code. In the 2.0 release of OS/2, IBM is introducing a new system for developing class libraries and Object-Oriented programs.  This system is called SOM for System Object Model.  This paper gives a general introduction to the Object-Oriented Paradigm, discusses developing Object-Oriented class libraries using SOM, and compares SOM libraries to those developed using standard Object-Oriented languages.

==INTRODUCTION TO OBJECT-ORIENTED PROGRAMMING==
The latest revolution to hit the software community is Object-
Oriented Programming.  Object-Oriented Programming Languages
(OOPL) are being used throughout the industry, Object-Oriented
Databases (OODB) are starting elicit widespread interest, and
even Object-Oriented Design and Analysis (OODA) tools are
changing the way people design and model systems.

Object-Oriented Programming is best understood in contrast to its
close cousin, Structured Programming.  Both attempt to deal with
the same basic issue, managing the complexity of ever more
complex software systems.

Structured Programming models a system as a layered set of
functional modules.  These modules are built up in a pyramid like
fashion, each layer representing a higher level view of the
system.  Structured Programming models the system's behavior, but
gives little guidance to modeling the system's information.

Object-Oriented Programming models a system as a set of
cooperating objects.  Like Structured Programming, it tries to
manage the behavioral complexity of a system.  Object-Oriented
Programming, however, goes beyond Structured Programming in also
trying to manage the informational complexity of a system.

Because Object-Oriented Programming models both the behavioral
and informational complexity of a system, the system tends to be
much better organized than if it was simply well "structured".
Because Object-Oriented systems are better organized, they are
easier to understand, debug, maintain, and evolve.  Well
organized systems also lend themselves to code reuse.

Object-Oriented Programming sees the dual issues of managing
informational and behavioral complexity as being closely related.
Its basic unit of organization is the object.  Objects have some
associated data, which we call the object's state, and a set of
behaviors, which we call the object's methods.  A class is a
general description of an object, which defines the data which
represents the object's state, and the methods the object
supports.

==OBJECT-ORIENTED PROGRAMMING IN C==
Before we examine SOM, let's consider Object-Oriented Programming
in C; this will lead us naturally into the SOM philosophy.  The
techniques in this section as well as many related advanced C
coding techniques are discussed in the book Reusable Data
Structures for C USessions, 89e.

Consider a data structure definition containing information
related to a generic stack.  We may have a series of functions
all designed to operate on our stack structure.  Given a basic
stack definition, we may have multiple instances of this
structure declared within our program.

Our generic stack definition, in C, might look like

 struct stackType {
   void *stackArrayUSTACK_SIZEe;
   int stackTop;
 };
 typedef struct stackType Stack;

We could define some generic stack functions, say
<PRE>
Stack *create();       /* malloc and initialize a new stack. */
void *pop(             /* Pop element off stack. */
  Stack *thisStack);
void push(             /* Push new element onto stack. */
  Stack *thisStack,
  void *nextElement);
<PRE>
Most C programmers can imagine how such functions would be
written.  The push() function, for example, would look like

<PRE>
void push(Stack *thisStack, void *nextElement)
{
  thisStack->stackArrayUthisStack->stackTope = nextElement;
  thisStack->stackTop++;
}
</PRE>
A client program might use this stack to, say, create a stack of
words needing interpretation:
<PRE>
main()
{
  Stack *wordStack;

  char *subject = "Emily";
  char *verb = "eats";
  char *object = "ice cream";
  char *nextWord;

  wordStack = create();
  push(wordStack, object);
  push(wordStack, verb);
  push(wordStack, subject);

  /* ... */
  while (nextWord = pop(wordStack)) {
    printf("%s\n", nextWord);
    /* ... */
  }
}</PRE>

Using this example, let's look at the language of Object-Oriented
Programming.  A class is a definition of an object.  The
definition includes the data elements of the object and the
methods it supports.  A stack is an example of a class.  We say
that a stack contains two data elements (stackArray and
stackTop), and supports three methods, create(), push(), and
pop().  A method is like a function, but is designed to operate
on an object of a particular class.  An object is a specific
instance, or instantiation, of a class.  We say wordStack is an
object of class Stack, or wordStack is an instance of a stack.

Every method needs to know the specific object on which it is to
operate.  We call this object the target object, or sometimes the
receiving object.  Notice that each method (except create())
takes as its first parameter a pointer to the target object.
This is because a program may have many objects of a given class,
and each are potential targets for the class methods.

There are three important advantages of this type of
organization.  First, we are developing some generic concepts,
which can be reused in other situations in which similar concepts
are appropriate.  Second, we are developing self-contained code,
which can be fully tested before it is folded into our program.
Third, we are developing encapsulated code, the internal details
of which are hidden and of no interest to the client.  Our client
main() program need know nothing about the Stack class other than
its name, the methods it supports,  and their interfaces.

==INTRODUCTION TO SOM==
OS/2 2.0 includes a language-neutral Object-Oriented programming
mechanism called SOM (for System Object Model).  Although it is
possible to write Object-Oriented programs in traditional
languages, such as we did with the stack example, SOM is
specifically designed to support the new paradigm and to be
usable with both procedural (or non Object-Oriented) languages
and Object-Oriented languages.

A major claim of Object-Oriented programming is code reusability.
This is most often achieved through the use of class libraries.
Today's library technology is limited in that these class
libraries are always language specific.  A C++ library cannot be
used by a Smalltalk programmer, and visa versa.  Clearly there is
a need to create a language-neutral object model, one which can
be used to create class libraries usable from any programming
language, procedural or Object-Oriented.  SOM is designed to
address this need.

SOM introduces three important features lacking in most
procedural languages.  These are encapsulation, inheritance, and
polymorphism (referred to here as "override resolution").

Encapsulation means the ability to hide implementation details
from clients.  This protects clients from changes in our
implementation, and protects our implementation from tinkering by
clients.  Our stack example was not protected.  Although clients
did not need to know the internal data structures of the stack,
we had no way to prevent clients from looking at such
implementation details.  We could discourage, but not prevent,
clients from writing code which used, and possibly corrupted,
internal stack data elements.

Inheritance, or class derivation, is a specific technique for
developing new classes from existing classes.  It allows one to
create new classes which are more specialized versions of
existing classes.  For example, we could create a
DebuggableStack, which is like a Stack class, but supports
further debugging methods, such as peek() and dump().

Inheritance also allows code consolidation.  If we have a class
defining GraduateStudent and UnderGraduateStudent, we can
consolidate common code into a third class, Student.  We then
define GraduateStudent and UnderGraduate as more specialized
classes, both derived from the common parent Student.

Inheritance introduces some additional semantics beyond those we
have already examined.  A specialized class is said to be derived
from a more generalized class.  The general class is called the
parent class, or sometimes, the base class.  The specialized
class is called the child class, or sometimes, the derived class.
A child class is said to inherit the characteristics of its
parent class, meaning that any methods defined for a parent are
automatically defined for a child.  Thus because GraduateStudent
and UnderGraduateStudent are both derived from Student, they both
automatically acquire any methods declared in their common
parent.

Override resolution means invoked methods are resolved based not
only on the name of the method, but also on a class's place
within a class hierarchy.  This allows us to redefine methods as
we derive classes.  We might define a printStudentInfo() method
for Student and then override, or redefine, the method in both
UnderGraduateStudent, and GraduateStudent.  Override resolution
means that the method is resolved based on the type of the target
object.  If the target object type is a Student, the Student
version of printStudentInfo() is invoked.  If the target object
type is a GraduateStudent, the GraduateStudent version of
printStudentInfo() is invoked.

We will now look at SOM in more detail by examining how classes
are defined in SOM, how SOM methods are written in the C
programming language, and how clients use SOM classes.  SOM will
eventually allow developers to write methods in a variety of
languages including the popular Object-Oriented programming
languages.  In OS/2 2.0, SOM support is limited to C, thus the
language used in the examples.

==DEFINING CLASSES IN SOM==
The process of creating class libraries in SOM is a three step
process.  The class designer defines the class interface,
implements the class methods, and finally loads the resulting
object code into a class library.  Clients either use these
classes directly, make modifications to suit their specific
purposes, or add entirely new classes of their own.

In SOM we define a class by creating a class definition file.  We
will give a basic example here, and defer more detailed
discussion of the many keywords and options to the SOM manuals
USOMe.

The class definition file is named with an extension of "csc".
In its most basic form, the class definition file is divided into
the following sections:

  1. Include section
     This section declares files which need to be included, much
     like the C #include directive.
  2. Class name and options
     This section defines the name of the class and declares
     various options.
  3. Parent information
     This defines the parent, or base, class for this class.  All
     classes must have a parent.  If your class is not derived
     from any of your own classes, than it's parent will be the
     SOM defined class SOMObject, the class information of which
     is in the file somobj.sc.
  4. Data Section
     This section declares any data elements contained by objects
     of this class.  By default, data can be accessed only by
     methods of the class.
  5. Methods Section
     This section declares methods to which objects of this class
     can respond.  By default, all methods declared in this
     section are available to any class client.

Comments can be used for documentation purposes, and the
following styles are all acceptable:

 /* This is a comment. */
 // This is a comment.
 -- This is a comment.

The class definition file, student.csc, describes a non-derived
Student class, and is shown in figure 1.
<PRE>
((start figure 1, caption: Class Definition File: student.csc))
include <somobj.sc>

class:
  Student;

-- "Student" class provides a base class to generate more
-- specialized students like "GraduateStudent" and
-- "UnderGraduateStudent".

parent:
  SOMObject;

data:
  char  idU16e;      /* student id */
  char  nameU32e;    /* student name */

methods:

  void  setUpStudent(char *id, char *name);
  -- sets up a new student.

  void  printStudentInfo();
  -- prints the student information.

  char  *getStudentType();
  -- returns the student type.

  char  *getStudentId();
  -- returns the student id.
((end table))
</PRE>

==WRITING METHODS==
Class methods are implemented in the class method implementation
file.  Each method defined in the method section of the class
definition file needs to be implemented.  They can be implemented
in any language that offers SOM support, which for now is only C.
The student class method implementation file, student.c, is shown
in figure 2.

<PRE>
((start figure 2, caption: Class Method Implementation File:
student.c))
#define Student_Class_Source
#include "student.ih"

static void setUpStudent(
    Student *somSelf, char *id, char *name)
{
    StudentData *somThis = StudentGetData(somSelf);
    strcpy(_id, id);
    strcpy(_name, name);
}
static void printStudentInfo(Student *somSelf)
{
    StudentData *somThis = StudentGetData(somSelf);
    printf("    Id         : %s \n", _id);
    printf("    Name       : %s \n", _name);
    printf("    Type       : %s \n", _getStudentType(somSelf));
}
static char *getStudentType(Student *somSelf)
{
    StudentData *somThis = StudentGetData(somSelf);
    static char *type = "student";
    return (type);
}
static char *getStudentId(Student *somSelf)
{
    StudentData *somThis = StudentGetData(somSelf);
    return (_id);
}
((end figure 2))
</PRE>

Notice that the method code looks much like standard C, with a
few differences.

First, each method takes, as its first parameter, a pointer
(somSelf) to the target object.  This is very similar to our C
stack implementation.  This parameter is implicit in the class
definition file, but is made explicit in the method
implementation.

Second, each method starts with a line setting an internal
variable named somThis, which is used by macros within the SOM
header file.

Third, names of data elements of the target object are preceded
by an underscore character.  The underscored name turns into a C
language macro defined in the class header file, part of the
package SOM offers to shield method developers from the details
of memory layout.

Fourth, methods are invoked using an underscored syntax.  This
underscored name turns into a macro invocation which shields
programmers from having to understand the details of method
resolution.

The first parameter of every method is always a pointer to the
target object.  This can be seen in the method printStudentInfo()
which invokes the method getStudentType() on its own target
object.

The process of creating a class method implementation file can be
greatly speeded up by the SOM compiler, which creates a valid C
method implementation file lacking only the body of the methods.
The body is then filled in by the class implementor. For the
student example, the SOM compiler would create a file similar to
the one shown in figure 3.

<PRE>
((start figure 3, caption: SOM compiler generated student.c))
#define Student_Class_Source
#include "student.ih"

static void setUpStudent(
    Student *somSelf, char *id, char *name)
{
    StudentData *somThis = StudentGetData(somSelf);
}
static void printStudentInfo(Student *somSelf)
{
    StudentData *somThis = StudentGetData(somSelf);
}
/* ...and so on for the other methods. */
((end figure 3))
</PRE>

==MECHANICS OF USING SOM==
There is a set of files involved with each class.  Here we will
look at the most important of these files and discuss their
purpose and how they are created.  They have different
extensions, but all have the same filename as the class
definition file, Student in our example.  The SOM compiler
generates files based on the value of an environment variable, as
described in the SOM users guide USOMe.  These files are
described in table 1.

<PRE>
((start table 1, caption: Student Class Files))
student.csc - This is the class definition file, as described
earlier.

student.sc - This is a subset of the class definition file.  It
includes all information from the .csc file which is public,
including comments on public elements.  For the student example,
student.sc would include everything from student.csc except the
data section.  This file is created by the SOM compiler, and
although human readable, should not be edited, as it will be
regenerated whenever changes are made to the .csc file.

student.h - This is a valid C header file which contains macros
necessary to invoke public methods and access public data
elements of the class.  This file will be included in any client
of the class.  This file is created by the SOM compiler, and is
normally only read by programmers who need to know how method
resolution is implemented.  This file should not be edited.

student.ih - Similar to student.h, but contains additional
information needed for implementing methods.  This is the
implementor's version of the .h file, and must be included in the
class methods implementation file.  This file is created by the
SOM compiler and should not be edited.

student.c - Contains the method implementations.  This is
initially created by the SOM compiler and then updated by the
class implementor.
((end table1)
</PRE>

==BUILDING SOM CLASSES FROM OTHER CLASSES==
There are two ways to use classes as building blocks for other
classes.  These are derivation (or inheritance) and construction.
Let's consider derivation first.

In this example, GraduateStudent is derived from Student, its
base, or parent class.  A derived class automatically picks up
all characteristics of the base class.  A derived class can add
new functionality through the definition and implementation of
new methods.  A derived class can also redefine methods of its
base class, a process called overriding.  GraduateStudent adds
setUpGranduateStudent() to those methods it inherits from
Student.  It overrides two other inherited methods,
printStudentInfo() and getStudentType().  It inherits without
change setUpStudent() and getStudentId() from the Student base
class.

The class definition file for GraduateStudent, graduate.csc, is
shown in figure 4.
<PRE>
((start figure 4, caption: Class Definition File: graduate.csc))

include <student.sc>

class:
  GraduateStudent;

parent:
  Student;

data:
  char  thesisU128e;    /* thesis title */
  char  degreeU16e;     /* graduate degree type */

methods:
  override  printStudentInfo;
  override  getStudentType;
  void  setUpGraduateStudent(
        char *id, char *name, char *thesis, char *degree);
((end figure 4))
</PRE>

The method implementation file, graduate.c, is shown in figure 5.

<PRE>
((start figure 5, caption: Class Method Implementation File:
graduate.c))

#define GraduateStudent_Class_Source
#include "graduate.ih"

static void printStudentInfo(GraduateStudent *somSelf)
{
    GraduateStudentData *somThis =
GraduateStudentGetData(somSelf);
    parent_printStudentInfo(somSelf);
    printf("    Thesis     : %s \n", _thesis);
    printf("    Degree     : %s \n", _degree);
}
static char *getStudentType(GraduateStudent *somSelf)
{
    static char *type = "Graduate";
    return (type);
}
static void setUpGraduateStudent(
    GraduateStudent *somSelf, char *id, char *name,
    char *thesis, char *degree)
{
    GraduateStudentData *somThis =
GraduateStudentGetData(somSelf);
    _setUpStudent(somSelf,id,name);
    strcpy(_thesis, thesis);
    strcpy(_degree, degree);
}
((end figure 5))
</PRE>

Often an overridden method will need to invoke the original
method of its parent.  For example, the printStudentInfo() for
GraduateStudent first invokes the Student version of
printStudentInfo() before printing out the GraduateStudent
specific information.  The syntax for this is
"parent_MethodName", as can be seen in the printStudentInfo()
method.

A given base class can be used for more than one derivation.  The
class, UnderGraduateStudent, is also derived from Student.  The
class definition file, undgrad.csc, is shown in figure 6.

<PRE>
((start figure 6, caption: Class Definition File: undgrad.csc))
include <student.sc>

class:
  UnderGraduateStudent;

parent:
  Student;

data:
  char  dateU16e;     /* graduation date */

methods:
  override  printStudentInfo;
  override  getStudentType;
  void  setUpUnderGraduateStudent(
        char *id, char *name, char *date);
((end figure 6))
</PRE>

The method implementation file, undgrad.c, is shown in figure 7.

<PRE>
((start figure 7, caption: Class Method Implementation File:
undgrad.c))

#define UnderGraduateStudent_Class_Source
#include "undgrad.ih"

static void printStudentInfo(
    UnderGraduateStudent *somSelf)
{
    UnderGraduateStudentData *somThis =
       UnderGraduateStudentGetData(somSelf);
    parent_printStudentInfo(somSelf);
    printf("    Grad Date  : %s \n", _date);
}
static char *getStudentType(UnderGraduateStudent *somSelf)
{
    static char *type = "UnderGraduate";
    return (type);
}
static void setUpUnderGraduateStudent(
    UnderGraduateStudent *somSelf,char *id, char *name, char
*date)
{
    UnderGraduateStudentData *somThis =
       UnderGraduateStudentGetData(somSelf);
    _setUpStudent(somSelf,id,name);
    strcpy(_date, date);
}
((end figure 7))
</PRE>

The second technique for building classes is construction.  This
means that a class uses another class, but not through
inheritance.  A good example of construction is the class Course
which includes an array of pointers to Students.  Each pointer
contains the address of a particular student taking the course.
We say that Course is constructed from Student.  The class
definition file for Course, course.csc, is shown in figure 8.

<PRE>
((start figure 8, caption: Class Definition File: course.csc))
include <somobj.sc>

class:
  Course;

-- "Course" class describes the interfaces required to setup the
-- course information. The students are "Student" class type and
-- can be added to or dropped from the courses through the
-- "addStudent" and "dropStudent" methods.

parent:
  SOMObject;

data:
  char    codeU8e;         /* course code number */
  char    titleU32e;       /* course title */
  char    instructorU32e;  /* instructor teaching */
  int     credit;            /* number of credits  */
  int     capacity;          /* maximum number of seats */
  Student *studentListU20e;/* enrolled student list */
  int     enrollment;        /* number of enrolled students */

methods:
  override  somInit;

  void  setUpCourse(char *code, char *title,
     char *instructor, int credit, int capacity);
  -- sets up a new course.

  int   addStudent(Student *student);
  -- enrolls a student to the course.

  void  dropStudent(char *studentId);
  -- drops the student from the course.

  void  printCourseInfo();
  -- prints course information.
((end figure 8))
</PRE>

Often classes will want to take special steps to initialize their
instance data.  An instance of Course must at least initialize
the enrollment data element, to ensure the array index starts in
a valid state.  The method somInit() is always called when a new
object is created.  This method is inherited from SOMObject, and
can be overridden when object initialization is desired.

This example brings up an interesting characteristic of
inheritance, the "is-a" relationship between derived and base
classes.  Any derived class can be considered as a base class.
We say that a derived class "is-a" base class. In our example,
any GraduateStudent "is-a" Student, and can be used anyplace we
are expecting a Student.  The converse is not true.  A base class
is not a derived class.  A Student can not be treated
unconditionally as a GraduateStudent.  Thus elements of the array
studentList can point to either Students, a GraduateStudents, or
a UnderGraduateStudents.

The method implementation file for Course, course.c, is shown in
figure 9.

<PRE>
((start figure 9, caption: Class Method Implementation File:
course.c))
#define Course_Class_Source
#include <student.h>
#include "course.ih"

static void somInit(Course *somSelf)
{
    CourseData *somThis = CourseGetData(somSelf);
    parent_somInit(somSelf);
    _codeU0e = _titleU0e = _instructorU0e = '\0';
    _credit = _capacity = _enrollment = 0;
}
static void setUpCourse(Course *somSelf, char *code,
    char *title, char *instructor, int credit, int capacity)
{
    CourseData *somThis = CourseGetData(somSelf);
    strcpy(_code, code);
    strcpy(_title, title);
    strcpy(_instructor, instructor);
    _credit = credit;
    _capacity = capacity;
}
static int addStudent(Course *somSelf, Student *student)
{
    CourseData *somThis = CourseGetData(somSelf);
    if(_enrollment >= _capacity)  return(-1);
    _studentListU_enrollment++e = student;
    return(0);
}
static void dropStudent(Course *somSelf, char *studentId)
{
    int i;
    CourseData *somThis = CourseGetData(somSelf);
    for(i=0; i<_enrollment; i++)
      if(!strcmp(studentId, _getStudentId(_studentListUie))) {
        _enrollment--;
        for(i; i<_enrollment; i++)
          _studentListUie = _studentListUi+1e;
        return;
      }
}
static void printCourseInfo(Course *somSelf)
{
    int i;
    CourseData *somThis = CourseGetData(somSelf);
    printf("  %s %s \n", _code, _title);
    printf("  Instructor Name : %s \n", _instructor);
    printf("  Credit = %d, Capacity = %d, Enrollment = %d \n\n",
             _credit, _capacity, _enrollment);
    printf("  STUDENT LIST: \n\n");
    for(i=0; i<_enrollment; i++) {
      _printStudentInfo(_studentListUie);
      printf("\n");
    }
}
((end figure 9))
</PRE>

Notice in particular the method printCourseInfo().  This method
goes through the array studentList invoking the method
printStudentInfo() on each student.  This method is defined for
Student, and then overridden by both GraduateStudent and
UnderGraduateStudent.  Since the array element can point to any
of these three classes, we can't tell at compile time what the
actual type of the target object is, only that the target object
is either a Student or some type derived from Student.  Since
each of these classes defines a different printStudentInfo()
method, we don't know which of these methods will be invoked with
each pass of the loop.  This is all under the control of override
resolution.

==THE SOM CLIENT==
Now let's see how a client might make use of these four classes
in a program.  As we look at the program example shown in figure
10, we can discuss how objects are instantiated, or created, in
SOM, and how methods are invoked.

<PRE>
((start figure 10, caption: SOM client code))
#include <student.h>
#include <course.h>
#include <graduate.h>
#include <undgrad.h>
main()
{
  Course *course = CourseNew();
  GraduateStudent *jane = GraduateStudentNew();
  UnderGraduateStudent *mark = UnderGraduateStudentNew();
  _setUpCourse(course, "303", "Compilers ",
     "Dr. David Johnson", 3, 15);
  _setUpGraduateStudent(jane,"423538","Jane Brown",
     "Code Optimization","Ph.D.");
  _setUpUnderGraduateStudent(mark,"399542",
     "Mark Smith", "12/17/92");
  _addStudent(course, jane);
  _addStudent(course, mark);
  _printCourseInfo(course);
}
((end figure 10))
</PRE>

A class is instantiated with the method classNameNew(), which is
automatically defined by SOM for each recognized class.  Methods
are invoked by clients just as they are inside SOM methods, and
very similarly to our earlier C examples.  The first parameter is
the target object.  The remaining parameters are whatever
information is needed by the method.  The only odd feature is the
underscore preceding the method name, which turns what looks like
a regular function call into a macro defined in the .h file.

When run, the client program gives the output shown in figure 11.

<PRE>
((start figure 11, caption: Client Program Output))

  303 Compilers
  Instructor Name : Dr. David Johnson
  Credit = 3, Capacity = 15, Enrollment = 2

  STUDENT LIST:

    Id         : 423538
    Name       : Jane Brown
    Type       : Graduate
    Thesis     : Code Optimization
    Degree     : Ph.D.

    Id         : 399542
    Name       : Mark Smith
    Type       : UnderGraduate
    Grad Date  : 12/17/92
((end figure 11))
</PRE>

In the client program output we can see the override resolution at work in the different styles of displaying UnderGraduates and GraduateStudents.  A Course thinks of itself as containing an array of Students, and knows that any Student responds to a printStudentInfo() method.  But the printStudentInfo() method that a UnderGraduate responds to is different than the printStudentInfo() method that a GraduateStudent responds to, and the two methods give different outputs.

==COMPARISON TO C++==
In this section we will compare some SOM features to those of the most widespread Object-Oriented programming language, C++, developed by Bjarne Stroustrup.  Some good introductory books about Object-Oriented programming in C++ are Class Construction in C and C++ USessions, 91e, The C++ Programming Language UStroustrupe, and C++ Primer ULippmane.

SOM has many similarities to C++.  Both support class definitions, inheritance, and overridden methods (called virtual methods in C++).  Both support the notion of encapsulation.  But whereas C++ is designed to support standalone programming efforts, SOM is primarily focused on the support of commercial quality class libraries.  Most of the differences between SOM and C++ hinge on this issue.

C++ class libraries are version dependent, while SOM class libraries are version independent.  When a new C++ class library is released, client code has to be fully recompiled, even if the changes are unrelated to public interfaces.  This problem is discussed in detail in the book Class Construction in C and C++ USessions, 91e.  SOM, unlike C++, directly supports the development of upwardly compatible class libraries.

C++ supports programming in only one language, C++.  SOM is designed to support many languages (although in this first release it supports only C).  Rather than a language, SOM is really a system for defining, manipulating, and releasing class libraries.  SOM is used to define classes and methods, but it is left up to the implementor to choose a language for implementing methods.  Most programmers will therefore be able to use SOM quickly without having to learn a new language syntax.

C++ provides minimal support for implementation hiding, or encapsulation.  C++ class definitions, which must be released to clients, typically include declarations for the private data and methods.  This information is, at best, unnecessarily detracting, and at worst, proprietary.  In SOM, the client never has to see such implementation details.  The client need see only the .sc files, which by definition contain only public information.

C++ has limited means of method resolution.  SOM offers several alternatives.  Like C++, SOM supports offset method resolution, meaning that each method is represented by a method pointer which is set once and for all at compile time.  Unlike C++, SOM also offers facilities for resolving methods at run time.  Name Lookup resolution allows a client to ask for a pointer to a method by method name.  Dispatch resolution allows a client to package parameters at run time for dispatching to a method, a technique which allows SOM to be integrated into interpreted languages, such as Smalltalk.

One other interesting difference between SOM and C++ is in their notion of class.  In C++, the class declaration is very similar to a structure declaration.  It is a compile-time package with no characteristics that have significance at runtime.  In SOM, the class of an object is an object in its own right.  This object is itself an instantiation of another class, called the metaclass. The class object supports a host of useful methods which have no direct parallels in C++, such as somGetName(), somGetParent(), and somFindMethod().

==SUMMARY==
A new Object Modeling System is introduced in OS/2 2.0. This object model is called The System Object Model, or SOM.  SOM is a dynamic object model which can provide useful class information about objects at run time. The goal of SOM is to support the development of class libraries useful by both compiled and interpreted languages.

==ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS==
SOM is the work of many people.  Mike Conner developed the initial idea and implementation, and continues to lead the overall design of SOM.  Andy Martin designed the SOM Class Interface Language, and designed and implemented the class Interface compiler.  Larry Raper implemented many features of the run time library and ported SOM to OS/2.  Larry Loucks provided close technical tracking and was instrumental in focusing the effort.  Early SOM users who contributed much to the evolution of SOM include Nurcan Coskun, Hari Madduri, Roger Sessions, and John Wang.  The project is managed by Tony Dvorak.

==BIBLIOGRAPHY==
;Lippmane:Stanley B. Lippman: C++ Primer, Second Edition. Addison-Wesley, Reading, Massachusetts, 1989.
;Sessions, 89e:Roger Sessions: Reusable Data Structures for C. Prentice-Hall, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey, 1989.
;Sessions, 91e:Roger Sessions: Class Construction in C and C++, Object-Oriented Programming Fundamentals. Prentice-Hall, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey, 1991 (in press).
;USOMe:Tentative Title: System Object Model Users Guide. IBM Publication, 1991 (in preparation).
;Stroustrupe:Bjarne Stroustrup: The C++ Programming Language, Second Edition. Addison-Wesley, Reading, Massachusetts, 1991.

==BIOGRAPHIES==
Nurcan Coskun, IBM, 11400 Burnet Road, Austin, TX 78758 Nurcan Coskun has a B.S. in Industrial Engineering from Middle East Technical University, an M.S. and a Ph.D. in Computer Science from University of Missouri-Rolla.  Her expertise is in integrated programming environments, code generators, incremental compilers, interpreters, language based editors, symbolic debuggers, application frameworks, and language design.  She is now working on Object-Oriented programming environments and previously worked on the OS/2 Database Manager.  Nurcan can be contacted at nurcan@ausvm1.iinus1.ibm.com

Roger Sessions, IBM, 11400 Burnet Road, Austin, TX 78758 Roger Sessions has a B.A. in Biology from Bard College and an M.E.S. in Database Systems from the University of Pennsylvania. He is the author of two books, Reusable Data Structures for C, and Class Construction in C and C++, and several articles.  He is working on Object-Oriented programming environments and previously worked with high performance relational databases and Object-Oriented storage systems.  Roger can be contacted at sessions@ausvm1.iinus1.ibm.com.

[[Category:SOM Articles]]