What is advanced inheritance in Python?

What is advanced inheritance in Python?

Advanced inheritance in Python refers to complex inheritance patterns, including multiple inheritance, mixins, and method resolution order (MRO). It allows for more flexible and reusable code.

Can you explain multiple inheritance with an example?

Sure! In multiple inheritance, a class can inherit from more than one parent class. For example:

class A:
    def method_a(self):
        return 'Method A'

class B:
    def method_b(self):
        return 'Method B'

class C(A, B):
    pass

c = C()
print(c.method_a())  # Output: Method A
print(c.method_b())  # Output: Method B

What are mixins and how do they work?

Mixins are a sort of class that provides methods to other classes through inheritance, but they are not meant to stand on their own. For example:

class JsonMixin:
    def to_json(self):
        return 'JSON representation'

class User(JsonMixin):
    pass

user = User()
print(user.to_json())  # Output: JSON representation

How does method resolution order (MRO) work in Python?

MRO determines the order in which base classes are searched when executing a method. You can view the MRO of a class using the __mro__ attribute or the mro() method. For example:

print(C.__mro__)  # Output: (<class '__main__.C'>, <class '__main__.A'>, <class '__main__.B'>, <class 'object'>)