org.codehaus.jackson.type
Class TypeReference<T>

java.lang.Object
  extended by org.codehaus.jackson.type.TypeReference<T>
All Implemented Interfaces:
Comparable<TypeReference<T>>

public abstract class TypeReference<T>
extends Object
implements Comparable<TypeReference<T>>

This class is used to pass full generics type information, and avoid problems with type erasure (that basically removes most usable type references from runtime Class objects). It is based on ideas from http://gafter.blogspot.com/2006/12/super-type-tokens.html, Additional idea (from a suggestion made in comments of the article) is to require bogus implementation of Comparable (any such generic interface would do, as long as it forces a method with generic type to be implemented). to ensure that a Type argument is indeed given.

Usage is by sub-classing: here is one way to instantiate reference to generic type List<Integer>:

  TypeReference ref = new TypeReference<List<Integer>>() { };
which can be passed to methods that accept TypeReference.


Constructor Summary
protected TypeReference()
           
 
Method Summary
 int compareTo(TypeReference<T> o)
          The only reason we define this method (and require implementation of Comparable) is to prevent constructing a reference without type information.
 Type getType()
           
 
Methods inherited from class java.lang.Object
clone, equals, finalize, getClass, hashCode, notify, notifyAll, toString, wait, wait, wait
 

Constructor Detail

TypeReference

protected TypeReference()
Method Detail

getType

public Type getType()

compareTo

public int compareTo(TypeReference<T> o)
The only reason we define this method (and require implementation of Comparable) is to prevent constructing a reference without type information.

Specified by:
compareTo in interface Comparable<TypeReference<T>>