Types as Values

Emojicode allows you to pass types as value. You can then call type methods on these types or instantiate them.

The Type of a Type Value

Naturally, if you treat a type as value, this value must have a type as well. This type has the same name as the type the value represents but prefixed with the emoji, with which the type was defined. Let’s take a look at these examples:

🖍🆕 the_integer_type 🕊🔢
🖍🆕 a_class_type 🐇🔡

In the example above two variables were declared. the_integer_type which can hold the type 🔢 and a_class_type which can hold the type 🔡.

Note that you cannot use any built-in type like ⚪️ or 🔵 or optionals or errors as value. Furthermore, the type must always be prefixed with the appropriate emoji. A value type, for example, must be prefixed with 🕊 or the compiler will raise an error.

type-value ⟶ type-value-type-emoji type
type-value-type-emoji ⟶ 🐇 | 🕊 | 🦃 | 🐊

Creating Type Values

Now let us create a type value. Type values are created exactly the same way their types are declared. So in order to populate our variables we can write this:

🕊🔢 ➡️ 🖍the_integer_type
🐇🔡 ➡️ 🖍a_class_type

Voila!

Compatibility of Type Values

With the exception of classes, the type of two type values are only compatible if they are identical. The type of a class type value, however, is compatible with the type of the type value of its superclass.

The following is therefore correct:

🐇 🌷 🍇🍉

🐇 🌺 🌷 🍇🍉

🏁 🍇
  🖍🆕 a_flower_type 🐇🌷
  🐇🌺 ➡️ 🖍a_flower_type
🍉

Using Type Values

You can use type values whenever a type expression is expected with ⬛️:

type-from-expr ⟶ ⬛️ expression

expresssion must naturally evaluate to a type value.

👇 is a shortcut for ⬛️👇 when a type expression is expected.

The following example stores three different type values in a list, instantiates them at run-time and calls a method on these instances:

🐇 🐟 🍇
  🔑 🆕 🍇🍉

  ❗️ 🙋 🍇
    😀 🔤I’m a fish.🔤❗️
  🍉
🍉

🐇 🐡 🐟 🍇
  🔑 🆕 🍇 ⤴️🆕❗️ 🍉

  ✒️ ❗️ 🙋 🍇
    😀 🔤I’m a blowfish.🔤❗️
  🍉
🍉

🐇 🐋 🐟 🍇
  🔑 🆕 🍇 ⤴️🆕❗️ 🍉

  ✒️ ❗️ 🙋 🍇
    😀 🔤I’m a whale.🔤❗️
  🍉
🍉

🐇 🐠 🐟 🍇
  🔑 🆕 🍇 ⤴️🆕❗️ 🍉

  ✒️ ❗️ 🙋 🍇
    😀 🔤I’m a tropical fish.🔤❗️
  🍉
🍉

🏁 🍇
  🍨🐇🐟 🐇🐡 🐇🐋 🐇🐠 🍆 ➡️ classes
  🔂 class classes 🍇
    🆕⬛️ class 🆕❗️ ➡️ fish
    🙋 fish❗️
  🍉
🍉