OOP in Python

Object Oriented Programming

1. A defined class will have its own attributes and methods

2. An object can be created after a class is defined

3. Attributes are data that belong to an object

4. Methods are actionable code that the object can do

class Keyword

class Car:
    def __init__(self, make, model, year):
        self.make = make
        self.model = model
        self.year = year

    def start_engine(self):
        print(f"The {self.make} {self.model}'s engine is now running.")

    def stop_engine(self):
        print(f"The {self.make} {self.model}'s engine has been stopped.")
# end of class

# global programming flow:
car1 = Car("Tesla", "Model X", 2020) # we must provide 3 required arguments to create a Car

car1.start_engine() # self is not a required argument, rather it is always assumed to be there.
# car1 can now use the method "start_engine()" since it is a Car object

The example above is a class called "Car".

• Within a class code block, we write all codes that would belong to the class.

• class must be assigned a name, it follows the same name conventions as variables except that the name must be capitalized.

• __init(self)__ is an "initialization" method that auto runs when we create an object from a class.

__init__(self) The initialization method

The __init__ special method, also known as a Constructor, is used to initialize the Car class with attributes such as make, model, and year.

In Python, built-in classes are named in lower case, but user-defined classes are named in CamelCase, with the first letter capitalized.

1. Class Definition: First, you define a class. Inside the class, you can declare attributes (variables) that belong to objects of that class.

2. __init__() Method: Within the class, you define the __init__() method. This method takes at least one argument, self, which is a reference to the object being created. It is a convention to name this parameter self, but you can technically choose any name. self allows you to access and modify the object's attributes within the method.

3. Attribute Initialization: Inside the __init__() method, you set the initial values for the object's attributes using self. These attributes can vary from one instance to another, so you can customize them during object creation.

4. Object Creation: When you create an instance of the class, the __init__() method is automatically called, and it initializes the attributes for that specific object.

def __init__(self, make, model, year):

Our example Car class requires 3 arguments to create a car object: make, model, and year. We have these 3 arguments because we designed our class to have 3 attributes.

Attributes

Recall that: Attribute are the characteristics or qualities that an object of the class possesses as data of the object.

Attributes created in .init() are called instance attributes. An instance attribute’s value is specific to a particular instance of the class.

Our Car class has three instance attributes of make, model, and year. The init() method also has three arguments to help initialize the three attributes our class requires.

# Car Attributes

car1 = Car("Tesla", "Model X", 2020)
print(f"Our car's make: {car1.make}.") # Expecting Output: "Our car's make: Tesla"
print(f"Our car's model: {car1.model}.") # Expecting Output: "Our car's model: Model X"
print(f"Our car's year of release: {car1.model}.") # Expecting Output: "ur car's year of release: 2020"

We can access an object's attribute by using the dot notation and the referencing the name of the attribute like the example provided above.

Method vs Function

In Python, the key distinction between a method and a function lies in their association with objects. A function is a standalone block of code that takes input, performs operations, and returns a result.

In contrast, a method is a function that is associated with an object and is called on that object. Methods are invoked using dot notation on instances of a class and typically operate on the data within that instance.

class Car:
    def __init__(self, make, model, year):
        self.make = make
        self.model = model
        self.year = year

    def start_engine(self):
        print(f"The {self.make} {self.model}'s engine is now running.")

    def stop_engine(self):
        print(f"The {self.make} {self.model}'s engine has been stopped.")
# end of class

# global programming flow:
car1 = Car("Tesla", "Model X", 2020) # we must provide 3 required arguments to create a Car

car1.start_engine() # self is not a required argument, rather it is always assumed to be there.
# car1 can now use the method "start_engine()" since it is a Car object

For a class:

• We can define what methods an object can use from the class. The definitiion is the same as creating a function, but you require one argument called self.

• The car class has two custom methods: start_engine() and stop_engine()

• The car1 variable is a Car object; therefore, we can invoke/use the methods that the Car class has by using a dot then the method name. (Example: car1.start_engine())

In Python, self is a convention used to represent the instance of a class.

It is the first parameter in the method definition of a class and refers to the instance of the class on which the method is invoked.

When you call a method on an object, the object itself is passed as the first parameter to the method, and by convention, this parameter is named self.