How to prevent duplicate code when initializing variables? - swift

Question

A class has some variables to be initialized in init() and at the same time, the class provides a function to restore these variables to their initial values in restoreInitValues(). Is there any way I can achieve this without setting these values twice (duplicate code) inside both init() and restoreInitValues()?
class Foo {
var varA: Int
var varB: Int
var varC: Int
init() {
//restoreInitValues() // error: call method before all stored proproties are initalized
//or I have to have duplicate code here as restoreInitValues below
varA = 10
varB = 20
varC = 30
}
func restoreInitValues() {
varA = 10
varB = 20
varC = 30
}
}

Answer 1

Personally I would assign the 3 default values to 3 class scope constants, then use those values to init and restore. You could also eliminate the assigning statements in the init if you want, and assign the value when you declare the var. In addition, by having your defaults defined in a class constant if you need to add any other functions to the class they'll be available for use.
class Foo {
let defaultA = 10
let defaultB = 20
let defaultC = 20
var varA: Int
var varB: Int
var varC: Int
init() {
varA = defaultA
varB = defaultB
varC = defaultC
}
func restoreInitValues() {
varA = defaultA
varB = defaultB
varC = defaultC
}
}
You could also define a struct, use it to assign your values, and then use your reset function to init.
struct values{
static let defaultA = 10
static let defaultB = 20
static let defaultC = 30
}
class test {
var a: Int = 0
var b: Int = 0
var c: Int = 0
init(){
resetValues()
}
func resetValues(){
(a, b, c) = (values.defaultA, values.defaultB, values.defaultC)
}
}

Answer 2

Use implicitly unwrapped optionals.
class Foo {
var varA: Int!
var varB: Int!
var varC: Int!
init() {
restoreInitValues()
}
func restoreInitValues() {
varA = 10
varB = 20
varC = 30
}
}

Answer 3

Update: Code's answer below about Implicitly Unwrapped Optionals is the answer. I'm not sure why I couldn't find it in the docs before. I'm leaving my answer for posterity, but you should accept Code's answer.
being new to swift, I gave it a try and found these two solutions, but I'm not sure if they're the best solutions.
The problem seems to be that swift tries hard to ensure that no class instance will ever have uninitialized properties (unless they're marked as optional) after initialization has been performed. It won't let you call non-static methods because you might use the instance before all properties are set. Also, it doesn't trust you to call another method which initializes all of the properties for you presumably because that would be really hard to verify.
For classes, use a private static method to return default values:
class Foo {
//...
init() {
(varA, varB, varC) = Foo.defaultValues()
}
func restoreInitValues() {
(varA, varB, varC) = Foo.defaultValues()
}
static private func defaultValues() -> ( Int, Int, Int ) {
return (10, 20, 30)
}
}
If you don't need a class, structs are copyable by value:
struct Foo {
//...
mutating func restoreInitValues() {
self = Foo()
}
}
or you could give up on restoreInitValues() and just do this:
var f = Foo()
f.varA = 10000
// instead of resetting the internal state of `f`, just replace it with
// a new `Foo` instance
f = Foo()
or you could use a static private method that modifies Foo instances, but to get around the compiler you have to make your properties be optional. This solution has a definite Ick factor:
class Foo {
var varA: Int?
var varB: Int?
var varC: Int?
init() {
Foo.resetValues(in: self)
}
func restoreInitValues() {
Foo.resetValues(in: self)
}
static private func resetValues(in foo: Foo) {
foo.varA = 10
foo.varB = 20
foo.varC = 30
}
}
This leads us back to the heart of the problem: swift requires that all properties be optional or initialized. Another solution would be to simply give all of the properties values (meaningless or not). The downside is that the property definitions may be misleading to someone reading the code for the first time.
class Foo {
var varA = -1
var varB = -1
var varC = -1
init() {
restoreInitValues()
}
func restoreInitValues() {
varA = 10
varB = 20
varC = 30
}
}
Last, check out the answers to this similar question: How to implement two inits with same content without code duplication