>on 30/3/01 20:04, Franco Vaccari at vaccari /AT/ dsterra .D.OT univ.trieste.it wrote:
>
>>>> Definitely yes (but in Basic...). I try to destroy them on quit as
>>>> once discussed on the list. Of course when exception occur, the
>>>> destroy method is not called.
>>>
>>> I think "secret" is here.
>>>
>>
>> So, do you think that there could be a solution, or circular
>> references should be just avoided as evil? I feel bad just when
>> thinking of removing them from everywhere around...
>
>Actually I have found and sent to REAL VERY simple project which show bug in
>garbage collection in case of circular references. Without ANY plugin!
>
>But in that bug to get it developer need during debugging look on object
>value in window "Values". Then RB crashes on next restart.
>
>So, yes, looks like circular refs give us not needed headache,
at least now...
Circular references aren't evil, but they do require special
consideration. As I understand it, they are a problem for any
software that uses reference counting to manage memory -- so I
certainly don't depend on RB to clean up objects involved in such
alternative relationships.
Generally, it's okay to make a circular reference when one of the
objects involved is a control, because controls have Close events
that always fire, providing you with an opportunity to break the
reference chain. I use such references quite frequently in factoring
my code between objects and editable views of those objects.
Otherwise, I try to avoid them as much as possible. Mostly, I find
that unintended circular references are a sign that I need to
refactor some code.
Charles Yeomans
©2001 Charles Yeomans |
