Pygmalions.Nebula.Translating 0.1.0

Nebula Translating

Fundamental library of Pygmalions' Nebula Framework.

This library provides a mechanism to allow converting objects between non-related types. This is designed NOT for customized type converting, but for customized non-intrusive serialization and deserialization.

Concepts

Translator

Translator is the object which can construct a new object of the required type according to the information of the given object and the customized rule. And that is the difference between the translating and converting.

Compared to ISerializable, Translators are designed for serialization and deserialization in a non-intrusive style with flexible protocol support. For example, you can create a translator which can translate a string into your customized data structure and transport it among the Internet.

Protocol

There may be multiple rules to do the translating, so register and translate methods have the optional parameter protocol. If the protocol parameter is "" (empty string), then the registry will firstly to find the translator which is register with "", then secondly it will try to use a random translator to translate.

Translator Registry

A translator registry is a translators set, which allows you to customize which translators to use in different scenarios.

The static class Translators is a static facade of a singleton registry instance. In most situations, you can directly register translators into it, and use it to translate objects.

How to Use

Implement a translator

A simple translator which translate a integer into a string is as follows. (Though it is meaningless, it is displayed to demonstrate the translator interface.)

[Translator]
public class SampleTranslator : ITranslator<int, string>
{
    public string Translate(int original)
    {
        return original.ToString();
    }
}

The TranslatorAttribute will let the static facade Translators auto discover and register it.

Register it

Register a translator in a registry:

var translators = new TranslatorRegistry();
translators.RegisterTranslator<int, string>(new SampleTranslator());

Translate

Use translators in a registry to translate a integer:

var result = translators.Translate<string>(3);

Remarks

This library is under rapid development, thus its API may be very unstable, DO NOT use it in the production environment, until its version reaches 1.0.0.