When starting out, it can be difficult getting used to the different
style of function declarations and calls used in Objective-C, but as so
many others have said, that's a basic requirement when learning a
framework like Cocoa.
Anyone familiar with some C++-based object-oriented UI frameworks can
attest to the fact that the documentation for MacApp, THINK Class
Library, PowerPlant, wxWidgets, MFC, etc., do not explain the basics of
how to make C++ function calls.
One of the things that helped me in the transition from C++ to
Objective-C was to do a mental mapping of the different syntaxes. For
example, if NSWorkspace were a C++ class, it might be declared like this
(only the relevant details needed are included) with one of the more
parameterized methods (launchApplication:showIcon:autolaunch)
illustrated (also included is sharedWorkspace):
class NSWorkspace: public NSObject
{
public:
static NSWorkspace*
SharedWorkspace (void);
// This is named slightly differently in order to illustrate
// the mental mapping required when reading it.
virtual bool
LaunchApplicationWithOptionsToShowIconAndAutolaunch (
NSString* appName,
bool optionToShowIcon,
bool optionToAutolaunch);
};
Note that I purposely named the parameters differently in order to
illustrate what was part of the method name and what was not, and
NSWorkspace's declaration for launchApplication:showIcon:autolaunch
could similarly be:
-(BOOL)launchApplication:(NSString *)appName
showIcon:(BOOL)optionToShowIcon
autolaunch:(BOOL)optionToAutolaunch;
Anyone familiar with C++ would know that to call this method, they would
need an NSWorkspace object, and the presence of the class-static method
SharedWorkspace is a strong implication that it can be used.
bool didLaunch =
(NSWorkspace::SharedWorkspace ())->
LaunchApplicationWithOptionsToShowIconAndAutolaunch (
anApplicationNameInNSStringObjectFormat,
true,
false);
In Objective-C, you can map that C++ rendition into:
BOOL didLaunch =
[[NSWorkspace sharedWorkspace]
launchApplication:anApplicationNameInNSStringObjectFormat,
showIcon:YES,
autolaunch:NO];
When just starting out, try line-breaking after each parameter in your
own declarations and function calls to see if that helps you to
conceptualize the differences between Objective-C and C++; doing so also
helps if you don't have a 30" monitor to avoid horizontal scrolling when
trying to get an eyeful of your code.
If you're more familiar with Java, C#, or other object-oriented
languages, try to find a mental map that is familiar to you and, if
necessary, recite/rewrite your code in a way similar to above as long as
it takes until you don't need to do it anymore.
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