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From: kitchel@iuvax.cs.indiana.edu (Sid Kitchel)
Newsgroups: comp.object
Subject: Re: the need for classes as objects
Message-ID: <55679@iuvax.cs.indiana.edu>
Date: 29 Aug 90 15:23:28 GMT
References: <2259@esquire.UUCP>
Organization: Indiana University, Bloomington
Lines: 24

yost@esquire.UUCP (David A. Yost) writes:

| I've heard lispers and smalltalkers say that
| the ability of their languages to create
| classes at runtime is very powerful, even
| necessary, and that therefore statically-
| classed languages (shall we say) that don't
| allow this (e.g.  Eiffel, C++) are inferior.

	I'd say that runtime creation of classes is absolutely
imperative for database applications. By definition the OODBS will be
running when the end user invents new classes.
	Another angle that I thought of when I saw the title of this
posting is that it is a good idea to have a class as an object for
messaging and for meta description. An OODBS will keep data dictionary
like classes and the end user invented classes will definitely be 
objects in them. Their creation is also imperative at run-time.

							--Sid
-- 
Sid Kitchel...............WARNING: allergic to smileys and hearts....
Computer Science Dept.                         kitchel@cs.indiana.edu
Indiana University                              kitchel@iubacs.BITNET
Bloomington, Indiana  47405-4101........................(812)855-9226