What are factory design patterns in software development?

What are factory design patterns in software development?

Factory design patterns are creational patterns that provide a way to create objects without specifying the exact class of the object.

Can you explain the difference between a factory method and an abstract factory?

Sure! A factory method defines an interface for creating an object but lets subclasses alter the type of objects that will be created. An abstract factory, on the other hand, provides an interface for creating families of related or dependent objects without specifying their concrete classes.

When should I use a factory pattern?

You should use a factory pattern when your code needs to create objects that share a common interface but may vary in implementation, especially when the exact type of the object isn't known until runtime.

Can you give me a real-world example of using a factory pattern?

Certainly! A common example is a document editor that can create different types of documents like Word or PDF. The editor uses a factory to create the appropriate document type based on user input.