Object-oriented programming using R
As you already know, R is primarily a functional language; it also supports OOP. OOP in R is an archetype wherein objects and their interactions are used to design various generic functions. It defines the process of constructing modular bits of code, which can be integrated to form a large function. Some key concepts related to OOP are as follows:
- Object: An instance of a class or an output of a function in R
- Class: Used to define type and attributes of objects in R
- Method: An implementation of a generic function for an object of a particular class
- Generic function: A generalized function which calls multiple methods without performing any computation itself
R supports three forms of OOP systems based on different objects, classes, and methods:
- S3: An informal, simple, interactive, and widely used OOP system in R. Basic packages such as base and stats are primarily built using the S3 system. The following are some generic functions built for multiple objects...
