Re: on the need to duplicate code for procedure signature in both body and interface files

[Manuel Collado <m.collado@domain.invalid>]

El 08/07/2012 1:08, Nasser M. Abbasi escribi�:
> Basic question from an Ada newbie.
>
> One thing that always bothered me in Ada is the need
> to physically duplicate the code that represents the API
> of the package procedures and functions in both the interface
> and the body files (.ads and .adb).
>
> I do not like duplicating code at all. Even if it is only
> for the signature of the API, and even though the Ada
> compiler will catch any difference (assuming one changes
> the .ads and forget to update the .adb for example).

It seems you are looking for a Java way of writing code. Java uses a single 
source file for each compilation unit. Signatures of public elements are 
implicitly assumed to be the interface part, while the remaining code gives 
the implementation.

>
> Was there no other alternatives to avoid this situation
> when Ada was originally designed in order to keep the same
> good concept of separating the interface from the body, but
> somehow at the same time, eliminate the need to duplicate by
> hand the API definition code in 2 separate places?

As said in other responses, the obvious solution would be a specialized IDE 
that lets you edit a single combined spec+body source, and later split it 
on the fly into spec and body separate files for compilation.

But such IDE seems not to exist yet.

>
> I am using GNAT. I Assume this is the same in other Ada
> implementations.

Yes.

-- 
Manuel Collado - http://lml.ls.fi.upm.es/~mcollado