<@U5G4AJ9HA> Top level extension functions are ext...

# random

[Ruckus]

@onionsoup Top level extension functions are extremely nice when dealing with third party code you can't modify.

[onionsoup]

ruckustboom: sorry i didn't really understand what you mean by that. so you have third party code, how does top level functions make it nicer?

[adamspeakman]

someThirdPartyObjectInstance.myExtensionMethod()

vs

SomeThirdPartyObjectUtils.myStaticMethod(someThirdPartyObjectInstance)

[onionsoup]

Adam, I think you misunderstood my question. I am not talking about extension functions, i am talking about top level functions, meaning a function that you can write outside of a class, straight into a file. the Kotlin developers seem to really like this feature but i don't see how is it really better than just putting a static function in a class.

[adamspeakman]

Ah.

[Ruckus]

If you define an extension function in the top level of your package, you can use if everywhere. If you define it in a class, you can only use it where that class is in scope.

[adamspeakman]

Ahh, okay, I see that now.

[adamspeakman]

That seems useful for things like println or log - things you'd use a static import for in Java.

[Ruckus]

Basically the advantage is code cleanliness/readability. They are functionally the exact same, one just looks better.

[fellshard]

I find myself reaching for extensions extremely frequently when a concept is best expressed in terms of another object; but if it's too local, I'll keep it within the scope of a file for cleanliness. Still, it often makes that file's logic incredibly crisp.

[fellshard]

Same thing in C#, just C# takes a lot more work to set those extension functions up.