Characteristics of Object Oriented Programming

Top Characteristics of Object Oriented Programming

The characteristics of object oriented programming are as follows:

Classes 

Classes contain a group of objects that share common properties for data parts. A class is a blueprint for an object where all the attributes, methods, and other aspects are.

A class helps in data binding and making the code reusable. For example, a Dog has attributes like species, color, etc., but the attributes of the class Dog are the same for the different breeds and colors.

Objects

An object is an entity with some properties and behaviors. When an object is instantiated at that time, the memory is allocated. Each object has the ability to interact without having to know details of each other's information or code.

For example, Dog is the object of the breed name Pomeranian, having its properties and behaviors.

class Dog
{
    char name[20];
    char color[10];
    
public:
    void details(){}
};
  
int main()
{
   Dog obj; // obj is a object 
}

Encapsulation

Encapsulation in oops means to enclose all the important information in a capsule and expose all the other selected information to the outside world. It is important to encapsulate the data from attackers from modifying the data in the database.

For example, if you want your money from the ATM machine, the machine processes your request and gives you the money. It contains both data and functions wrapped under a single machine.

Encapsulation helps in binding data and methods. It also leads to abstraction or data hiding. In the above example, the internal working of the machine is hidden.

Abstraction

Abstraction is what a developer needs to implement in the software or a product for a better user experience.

Basically, abstraction is to hide all the complexities and displays only essential information to the outside world.

Let's consider an example of making coffee with a coffee machine. For this, you need to know how to use your coffee machine. Just provide the essential ingredients, switch it on and select the type of coffee you want. Now you need to know the internal working of the coffee machine.

Abstraction is the essential characteristics of object oriented programming because it hides complex details from users and provides them the flexibility to change things.

Without abstraction, it is difficult to add functionality without affecting others, and high complexity arises because of large code bases.

Inheritance

Inheritance means inheriting someone's characteristics. Just like you inherit features and habits from your parents, it is possible to inherit the data and methods from one class to another. Combining and inheriting the objects and their properties is one of the most essential and important  Characteristics of OOPS.

Super Class: The class from which the properties are inherited by the sub class/child class.

Sub Class: The class which inherits the properties from the super class/parent class.

Inheritance helps you do the separation of the same fields and functionality so that it can be reused in other classes. And this helps in code redundancy. 

Composition

Composition is the procedure of combining two or more objects together to create a new and unique object. Through this process developers find it easy to reuse the elements specifically needed for the object to create a new and unique object.

Know about Single Inheritance in Java in detail.

Polymorphism

Polymorphism means to have the same name of a method performing different tasks. For example, in finding out the area of the shape, the area of the square is length², and the area of the rectangle is length*breadth. 

It has the ability to display the message in more than one form. A person can possess different characteristics at the same time, so this is what polymorphism is all about.

Polymorphism exhibits two different behaviors:

Runtime Polymorphism/ Method Overriding: The subclass provides its own implementation of the function defined in the base class.

For example:

• Java

Java

class Person{  
 void walks(){
     System.out.println("Person is walking.");
 }  
}  
  
class Child extends Person{  
 void walks(){
     System.out.println("Child is walking.");
     
 }  
  
 public static void main(String args[]){  
  Child obj=new Child();  
  obj.walks();  
 }  
}  

You can also try this code with Online Java Compiler

Run Code

Output:

Explanation:

Both Person and Child classes have the same method, i.e., walks(), and the Child class overrides the walks() method by having its own implementation.

Static Polymorphism/ Method Overloading: It occurs when methods with the same name have differences in the number and types of parameters.

For example:

• Java

Java

class Example {
    private static void show(int x){
        System.out.println(x);
    }

    private static void show(int x, int y){
        System.out.println(x + " and " + y);
    }
    
    private static void show(String name){
        System.out.println(name);
    }

    public static void main(String[] args) {
        show(7);
        show(9, 2);
        show("sagar");
    }
}

You can also try this code with Online Java Compiler

Run Code

Output:

Explanation:

In the above code, the show() method is overloaded by changing the number of parameters as well as by changing the name of the data type. So this is known as Method Overloading.

Polymorphism has the ability to perform different tasks with the same method, due to which the code is clean.

Data Binding

Binding means to bind one thing to another one. Here in OOPS, binding refers to linking some attribute of one object to another one in the Application. 

There are two main types of binding:

• Static Binding
   
• Dynamic binding

Let's understand both of them using an example. 

Static Binding

In static binding, the property of one object is changed directly without changing the other property.

• Java

Java

class Person{  
 private void walks(){
     System.out.println("person is walking.");
     
 }  
 private void play(){
     System.out.println("person is playing.");
 }
 public static void main(String args[]){  
  Person obj=new Person();  
  obj.walks();
  obj.play();  
 }  
}  

You can also try this code with Online Java Compiler

Run Code

Output:

Explanation

When any type of object is determined at the compile time, then it is known as static binding. Also, play() and walks() are private methods, and that is the reason for the static binding.

Dynamic Binding

When any object is determined at the run time, then it is known as dynamic binding. 

Dynamic Binding occurs when the property of one object changes, and due to this, the property of another object gets changed.  

• Java

Java

class Person{  
 void walks(){
     System.out.println("Person is walking.");
 }  
}  
  
class Child extends Person{  
 void walks(){
     System.out.println("Child is walking.");
     
 }  
  
 public static void main(String args[]){  
  Person a=new Child();  
  a.walks();  
 }  
}

You can also try this code with Online Java Compiler

Run Code

Output:

Know What is Object in OOPs here in detail.

Explanation

In the above code, the instance of Child is also an instance of Person, So the compiler can't determine the object type.

Message Passing

Passing data around the program is the most important feature of the oop concept. Message passing is the sending of a message from one object to another. How does this occur? 

As we know that each object has its own specific address that other objects can use to send messages. Now that object can do whatever it needs to do based on the message. Multiple objects can communicate with each other in interesting ways.

Fibonacci Series in C++

Features and Application of object oriented programming

Let's discuss some of the key features of OOPS.

• With the help of oops, it is easier to write flexible code.
   
• Functions are used for communication between objects.
   
• Programs are divided into objects.
   
• OOPS promotes code readability.
   
• With the help of objects and functions, new functionality can be created easily.

Let's discuss some of the applications of OOPS.

Object-Oriented Database - Object-oriented databases store objects instead of data like integers, numbers, etc. 

Real-Time Systems - Real-time systems perform real-time applications that include complexities. OOPS offer schedulability analysis, adaptability, and reusability for the code.

Hypertext and Hypermedia - Oops lays the framework for hypertext and hypermedia. Hypertext is a normal text that connects the links to other texts.

Hypermedia is a superset or extension of hypertext that includes graphics, sound, etc.

Client-Server Systems - The client-server systems are those that provide IT infrastructure that creates Object-oriented server internet or the OCSI applications.

Office automation systems - These include informal electronic systems that are more focused on information sharing within and outside the organization.

AI expert systems - AI expert systems are developed to solve complex problems beyond the human brain's thinking. Oops is used to make the system highly intelligent, responsive, reliable, and high-performance.

Simulation and Modelling Systems - A good example is cars; there are difficult model complex systems developed due to varying variables. And oops provides an easier approach to simplify these complex models.

Frequently Asked Questions

What are the characteristics of OOPs?

Object-oriented programming (OOP) is characterized by encapsulation, inheritance, polymorphism, and abstraction. These features enable the creation of modular, reusable, and maintainable code by organizing data and behavior into objects and classes.

What are the characteristics of object?

An object in OOP is characterized by identity, state, and behavior. Identity distinguishes one object from another, state represents the current properties or attributes of the object, and behavior defines how the object interacts with other objects and responds to messages.

What are the characteristics of process-oriented programming?

Process-oriented programming focuses on procedures or functions that operate on data. It is characterized by a sequential execution model, where programs are organized as a series of steps to manipulate data directly, without emphasizing the concepts of objects or classes.

What are the three 3 main features of OOP?

The three main features of OOP are encapsulation, inheritance, and polymorphism. Encapsulation allows bundling data and methods within a class, inheritance enables the creation of new classes based on existing ones, and polymorphism allows objects of different classes to be treated uniformly through a common interface.

Conclusion

In this blog, we talked about the Characteristics of Object Oriented Programming. The characteristics of Object-Oriented Programming (OOP) encompass encapsulation, inheritance, polymorphism, and abstraction. These fundamental features facilitate the development of modular, reusable, and maintainable code by organizing data and behavior into objects and classes.

I hope this blog helps! Read more blogs based on a similar topic for more clarity.

1. Attributes in DBMS
2. Software Engineering.
3. Fibonacci Series in Java
4. Four Pillars of OOPS in Java.
5. OOPS in Python.
6. Inheritance in Java.
7. Abstraction.
8. Difference Between Procedural and Object Oriented Programming
9. Features of Object Oriented Programming
10. Turbo C++

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