What are advanced structural patterns in software design?

What are advanced structural patterns in software design?

Advanced structural patterns are design patterns that help organize code and manage relationships between objects. They include patterns like Composite, Decorator, and Proxy.

Can you explain the Composite pattern with an example?

Sure! The Composite pattern allows you to compose objects into tree structures to represent part-whole hierarchies. For example, in a graphic application, you can have a 'Shape' interface, with 'Circle' and 'Rectangle' classes as leaf nodes, and a 'CompositeShape' class that can contain multiple shapes.

What about the Decorator pattern?

The Decorator pattern allows behavior to be added to individual objects, either statically or dynamically, without affecting the behavior of other objects from the same class. For instance, you can have a 'Coffee' class and a 'MilkDecorator' that adds milk to the coffee without modifying the original class.

How do these patterns improve code maintainability?

These patterns promote code reusability and flexibility, making it easier to manage changes. They help in adhering to the Single Responsibility Principle by allowing you to separate concerns.