1. Introduction
In this article, we’re going to focus on Structural Design Patterns in Java – and discuss what these are and some fundamental differences between some of them.
2. Structural Design Patterns
According to the Gang Of Four (GoF), design patterns can be classified into three types:
- Creational
- Structural
- Behavioral
Simply put, Structural Patterns deal with the composition of classes and objects. They provide different ways of using object composition and inheritance to create some abstraction.
3. Proxy Pattern
With this pattern, we create an intermediary that acts as an interface to another resource, e.g., a file, a connection. This secondary access provides a surrogate for the real component and protects it from the underlying complexity.
For a detailed example of the pattern, have a look at the dedicated post: The Proxy Pattern in Java.
Key Points of Differentiation:
- The proxy provides the same interface as the object it’s holding the reference to, and it doesn’t modify the data in any manner; it’s in contrast to Adapter and Decorator patterns which alter and decorate the functionalities of pre-existing instances respectively
- The Proxy usually has the information about the real subject at the compile time itself whereas Decorator and Adapter get injected at runtime, knowing only the actual object’s interface
4. Decorator Pattern
This pattern is useful for enhancing the behavior of an object. For a detailed overview, have a look at the focused tutorial here: Decorator Pattern in Java
Key points of differentiation:
- Although Proxy and Decorator patterns have similar structures, they differ in intention; while Proxy’s prime purpose is to facilitate ease of use or controlled access, a Decorator attaches additional responsibilities
- Both Proxy and Adapter patterns hold a reference to the original object
- All the decorators from this pattern can be used recursively, an infinite number of times, which is not possible with other models
5. Adapter Pattern
The Adapter pattern is used for connecting two incompatible interfaces that otherwise cannot be connected directly. An Adapter wraps an existing class with a new interface so that it becomes compatible with the interface needed.
For a detailed description and implementation, have a look at the dedicated post: Adapter Pattern in Java
The main differences between Adapter and Proxy patterns are:
- While proxy provides the same interface, Adapter provides a different interface that’s compatible with its client
- Adapter pattern is used after the application components are designed so that we can use them without modifying the source code. This is in contrast to the Bridge pattern, which is used before the components are designed.
6. Bridge Pattern
The Bridge pattern is used to decouple an abstraction from its implementation so that the two can vary independently.
This means to create a bridge interface that uses OOP principles to separate out responsibilities into different abstract classes.
For a detailed description and implementation, have a look at the dedicated post: Bridge Pattern in Java
Key Points of Differentiation:
- A Bridge pattern can only be implemented before the application is designed.
- Allows an abstraction and implementation to change independently whereas an Adapter pattern makes it possible for incompatible classes to work together
7. Conclusion
In this article, we focused on the Structural Design Pattern and differences between some of its types.
As always, the full implementation of this tutorial can be found over on Github.
