TypeReference.java revision dda097947f05e685ec1b2054bc3de9b13686e0a1 
1/*
2 * Copyright 2012, Google Inc.
3 * All rights reserved.
4 *
5 * Redistribution and use in source and binary forms, with or without
6 * modification, are permitted provided that the following conditions are
7 * met:
8 *
9 *     * Redistributions of source code must retain the above copyright
10 * notice, this list of conditions and the following disclaimer.
11 *     * Redistributions in binary form must reproduce the above
12 * copyright notice, this list of conditions and the following disclaimer
13 * in the documentation and/or other materials provided with the
14 * distribution.
15 *     * Neither the name of Google Inc. nor the names of its
16 * contributors may be used to endorse or promote products derived from
17 * this software without specific prior written permission.
18 *
19 * THIS SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED BY THE COPYRIGHT HOLDERS AND CONTRIBUTORS
20 * "AS IS" AND ANY EXPRESS OR IMPLIED WARRANTIES, INCLUDING, BUT NOT
21 * LIMITED TO, THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR
22 * A PARTICULAR PURPOSE ARE DISCLAIMED. IN NO EVENT SHALL THE COPYRIGHT
23 * OWNER OR CONTRIBUTORS BE LIABLE FOR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL,
24 * SPECIAL, EXEMPLARY, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES (INCLUDING, BUT NOT
25 * LIMITED TO, PROCUREMENT OF SUBSTITUTE GOODS OR SERVICES; LOSS OF USE,
26 * DATA, OR PROFITS; OR BUSINESS INTERRUPTION) HOWEVER CAUSED AND ON ANY
27 * THEORY OF LIABILITY, WHETHER IN CONTRACT, STRICT LIABILITY, OR TORT
28 * (INCLUDING NEGLIGENCE OR OTHERWISE) ARISING IN ANY WAY OUT OF THE USE
29 * OF THIS SOFTWARE, EVEN IF ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGE.
30 */
31
32package org.jf.dexlib2.iface.reference;
33
34import javax.annotation.Nonnull;
35import javax.annotation.Nullable;
36
37/**
38 * This class represents a reference to a type.
39 *
40 * When possible, elsewhere in the interface, a type is referenced directly as a String. A TypeReference is only used
41 * in those cases where a generic Reference is needed
42 *
43 * The type being referenced is represented as a String in the format of a TypeDescriptor, as defined by the dex file
44 * specification.
45 *
46 * This type also acts as a CharSequence wrapper around the TypeDescriptor string. As per the CharSequence contract,
47 * calling toString() on a TypeReference yields the type descriptor as a String. This is the same value returned by
48 * getType()
49 */
50public interface TypeReference extends Reference, CharSequence, Comparable<CharSequence> {
51    /**
52     * Gets the string representation of the referenced type.
53     *
54     * The returned string will be a TypeDescriptor, as defined in the dex file specification
55     *
56     * @return The string representation of the referenced type.
57     */
58    @Nonnull String getType();
59
60    /**
61     * Returns a hashcode for this TypeReference.
62     *
63     * This is defined to be getType().hashCode()
64     *
65     * @return The hash code value for this TypeReference
66     */
67    @Override int hashCode();
68
69    /**
70     * Compares this TypeReference to another TypeReference, or more generally to another CharSequence for equality.
71     *
72     * This TypeReference is equal to a CharSequence iff this.getType().equals(other.toString()).
73     *
74     * Equivalently, This TypeReference is equal to another TypeReference iff this.getType().equals(other.getType()).
75     *
76     * @param o The object to be compared for equality with this TypeReference
77     * @return true if the specified object is equal to this TypeReference
78     */
79    @Override boolean equals(@Nullable Object o);
80
81    /**
82     * Compare this TypeReference to another TypeReference, or more generally to another CharSequence.
83     *
84     * The comparison is defined to be this.getType().compareTo(other.toString())
85     *
86     * @param o The CharSequence to compare with this TypeReference
87     * @return An integer representing the result of the comparison
88     */
89    @Override int compareTo(@Nonnull CharSequence o);
90}
91