Why should I use inheritance and polymorphism in programming?

Why should I use inheritance and polymorphism in programming?

Inheritance allows you to create a new class based on an existing class, promoting code reuse. Polymorphism lets you use a single interface to represent different underlying forms (data types). Together, they enhance flexibility and maintainability in your code.

Can you give me an example of inheritance?

Sure! Imagine you have a base class called 'Animal'. You can create subclasses like 'Dog' and 'Cat' that inherit properties and methods from 'Animal', such as 'eat()' and 'sleep()'.

What about polymorphism? How does that work?

Polymorphism allows methods to do different things based on the object it is acting upon. For example, if both 'Dog' and 'Cat' have a method 'makeSound()', calling this method on a 'Dog' object might return 'Bark', while on a 'Cat' object, it returns 'Meow'.

Are there any downsides to using inheritance?

Yes, excessive use of inheritance can lead to a complex hierarchy that is hard to manage. It can also introduce tight coupling between classes, making changes more difficult.