001 /* ========================================================================
002 * JCommon : a free general purpose class library for the Java(tm) platform
003 * ========================================================================
004 *
005 * (C) Copyright 2000-2005, by Object Refinery Limited and Contributors.
006 *
007 * Project Info: http://www.jfree.org/jcommon/index.html
008 *
009 * This library is free software; you can redistribute it and/or modify it
010 * under the terms of the GNU Lesser General Public License as published by
011 * the Free Software Foundation; either version 2.1 of the License, or
012 * (at your option) any later version.
013 *
014 * This library is distributed in the hope that it will be useful, but
015 * WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of MERCHANTABILITY
016 * or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. See the GNU Lesser General Public
017 * License for more details.
018 *
019 * You should have received a copy of the GNU Lesser General Public
020 * License along with this library; if not, write to the Free Software
021 * Foundation, Inc., 51 Franklin Street, Fifth Floor, Boston, MA 02110-1301,
022 * USA.
023 *
024 * [Java is a trademark or registered trademark of Sun Microsystems, Inc.
025 * in the United States and other countries.]
026 *
027 * -----------------
028 * ClassFactory.java
029 * -----------------
030 * (C)opyright 2003, 2004, by Thomas Morgner and Contributors.
031 *
032 * Original Author: Thomas Morgner;
033 * Contributor(s): David Gilbert (for Object Refinery Limited);
034 *
035 * $Id: ClassFactory.java,v 1.3 2005/11/14 10:59:58 mungady Exp $
036 *
037 * Changes (from 19-Feb-2003)
038 * -------------------------
039 * 19-Feb-2003 : Added standard header and Javadocs (DG);
040 * 29-Apr-2003 : Distilled from the JFreeReport project and moved into JCommon
041 *
042 */
043
044 package org.jfree.xml.factory.objects;
045
046 import java.io.Serializable;
047 import java.util.Iterator;
048
049 import org.jfree.util.Configuration;
050
051 /**
052 * A class factory.
053 *
054 * @author Thomas Morgner
055 */
056 public interface ClassFactory extends Serializable {
057
058 /**
059 * Returns an object description for a class.
060 *
061 * @param c the class.
062 *
063 * @return The object description.
064 */
065 public ObjectDescription getDescriptionForClass(Class c);
066
067 /**
068 * Returns an object description for the super class of a class.
069 *
070 * @param d the class.
071 * @param knownSuperClass the last known super class or null.
072 *
073 * @return The object description.
074 */
075 public ObjectDescription getSuperClassObjectDescription
076 (Class d, ObjectDescription knownSuperClass);
077
078 /**
079 * Returns an iterator for the registered classes. This returns a list
080 * of pre-registered classes known to this ClassFactory. A class may be able
081 * to handle more than the registered classes.
082 * <p>
083 * This method exists to support query tools for UI design, do not rely on it
084 * for day to day work.
085 *
086 * @return The iterator.
087 */
088 public Iterator getRegisteredClasses();
089
090 /**
091 * Configures this factory. The configuration contains several keys and
092 * their defined values. The given reference to the configuration object
093 * will remain valid until the report parsing or writing ends.
094 * <p>
095 * The configuration contents may change during the reporting.
096 *
097 * @param config the configuration, never null
098 */
099 public void configure(Configuration config);
100
101
102 /**
103 * Compares whether two object factories are equal. This method must be
104 * implemented!
105 *
106 * @param o the other object.
107 * @return true, if both object factories describe the same objects, false otherwise.
108 */
109 public boolean equals (Object o);
110
111 /**
112 * Computes the hashCode for this ClassFactory. As equals() must be implemented,
113 * a corresponding hashCode() should be implemented as well.
114 *
115 * @return the hashcode.
116 */
117 public int hashCode();
118 }
119