[erlang-questions] Parameterized module initialization

[Richard Carlsson]

On 06/26/2012 05:56 PM, Joe Armstrong wrote:
> I've used this in several programs, and the resulting code is easy to
> understand. This nice thing is that using this you can make very nice
> client APIs. For example, for string processing you might say
>
>               Str = {ansi_string, "abc"},         or
>               Str = {utf8_string, "u+1234"}
>
> And then when you call
>
>               Str:substr(1,4)
>
> Get the correct behaviour depending upon the underlying string type

If you want to do it properly, Joe, then use the automatically generated 
instantiator functions "new/N" instead of building tuple literals like that:

                 Str = ansi_string:new("abc"),     or
                 Str = utf8_string:new("u+1234")

then the code will keep working even if module instances become a 
separate data type (like funs), be easier to understand when you or 
anyone else reads it later on, be possible to process using tools like 
Dialyzer and Wrangler, and be easier to grep for "ansi_string:" etc.

    /Richard