What is objective-c?
Objective-C is an object-oriented primary programming language used for writing software for OS X and iOS. It is a dynamic runtime programming language that inherits the syntax, flow control statements, and primitive types of C and adds syntax for defining methods and classes. It also reduces the complexity by giving the programmers a clear structure to work with.
While certain programming languages function by providing a computer with a list of tasks to execute, object-oriented programming languages like Objective-C allows programmers to create virtual objects within the code. These virtual objects each have unique abilities and attributes which can interact with one another to perform various actions.
Initially, Objective-C was developed by NeXT for its operating system and it was then taken over by Apple for iOS and Mac OS X. Objective-C fully supports multiple inheritances and has four major pillars that make Objective-C an object-oriented programming language:
- 1
Encapsulation
Encapsulation or Data Hiding is removing access parts of your code and making things private. Each object in the code will control its own state.
- 2
Abstraction
It is an extension of encapsulation where the process of fetching, selecting, and removing the user information from a larger pool is performed.
- 3
Inheritance
Inheritance allows one object to acquire some or all the properties of another object. This feature allows the reuse of methods and fields of the existing class.
- 4
Polymorphism
It gives us a way to use class exactly like its parent also while keeping its methods and functions as they are.
Objective-c for ios application development
There are various important functionalities of Objective-C programming language which makes it the most used programming language at Apple Inc. Objective-C application development can be streamlined and can be a great way to add object-based features to your app. There are a few features to keep in mind while choosing Objective-C.
General Purpose
It is a multi-purpose programming language that can be used by developers to create different types of programs and applications.
Object-Oriented Programming
Objective-C being an object-oriented programming language supports all the concepts of object-oriented programming like class, inheritance, abstraction, polymorphism, data hiding, encapsulation, etc.
Fast Programs
It was originally designed to develop programs and applications faster and more efficiently.
Garbage Collector
The automatic garbage collector concurrently runs its own thread with the application code. It improves efficiency by targeting priority memory zones that are more likely to be garbage.
Cross-Platform
It is platform independent programming language which means it can be used in different operating systems.
Memory Management
It is a process by which the memory of objects is allocated and then taken back as and when it is required. Objective-C memory management can be broadly classified into two types:
- Manual Retain Release (MRR)
- Automatic Reference Counting (ARC)
Why choose objective-c?
Objective-C is a critical language for developing advanced applications for iOS and OS X. Rather than logic and functions, this object-oriented language is built around the concepts of data and code.
- Objective-C is a flexible traditional programming language that is purely object-oriented
- It is compatible with the C++ programming language
- Being a stable programming language, developers use this language to develop programs and applications.
- Objective-C supports a form of memory management known as a garbage collector. This system automatically determines which objects own which other objects and then automatically frees them when they are no longer needed during program execution.