What is the Composite Pattern?

Can you explain what the Composite Pattern is in software design?

Sure! The Composite Pattern is a structural design pattern that lets you compose objects into tree structures to represent part-whole hierarchies.

How does it work in practice?

In practice, it allows clients to treat individual objects and compositions of objects uniformly. For example, in a graphic application, you can have shapes that are individual objects and groups of shapes that can be treated as a single object.

What are the benefits of using the Composite Pattern?

The main benefits include simplifying client code, promoting flexibility, and allowing for easier management of complex tree structures.

Can you give me a code example?

Certainly! Here's a simple example in Java:

interface Component {
    void operation();
}

class Leaf implements Component {
    public void operation() {
        System.out.println("Leaf operation");
    }
}

class Composite implements Component {
    private List<Component> children = new ArrayList<>();
    
    public void add(Component component) {
        children.add(component);
    }
    
    public void operation() {
        for (Component child : children) {
            child.operation();
        }
    }
}

This code defines a Component interface, Leaf class, and Composite class.