Learning Objectives
Lesson Outline
Python offers powerful Object-Oriented features, but misusing them can lead to brittle code. The choice between inheritance ("is-a") and composition ("has-a") is critical.
The super() built-in function is the idiomatic way to access inherited methods. It dynamically delegates method calls to classes in the parent chain, crucial for cooperative multiple inheritance.
Python uses the C3 linearization algorithm to determine the order in which base classes are searched. You can inspect this order using the __mro__ attribute.
Inheritance locks you into a rigid hierarchy. Composition involves building classes by combining objects of other classes. This offers greater flexibility.
When you do need inheritance to define an interface, use the abc module. This enforces that subclasses implement specific methods.