Messaging-with-the-GNU-Objective_002dC-runtime.html 5.3 KB

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  19. <title>Using the GNU Compiler Collection (GCC): Messaging with the GNU Objective-C runtime</title>
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  69. <h3 class="section">8.10 Messaging with the GNU Objective-C Runtime</h3>
  70. <p>This section is specific for the GNU Objective-C runtime. If you are
  71. using a different runtime, you can skip it.
  72. </p>
  73. <p>The implementation of messaging in the GNU Objective-C runtime is
  74. designed to be portable, and so is based on standard C.
  75. </p>
  76. <p>Sending a message in the GNU Objective-C runtime is composed of two
  77. separate steps. First, there is a call to the lookup function,
  78. <code>objc_msg_lookup ()</code> (or, in the case of messages to super,
  79. <code>objc_msg_lookup_super ()</code>). This runtime function takes as
  80. argument the receiver and the selector of the method to be called; it
  81. returns the <code>IMP</code>, that is a pointer to the function implementing
  82. the method. The second step of method invocation consists of casting
  83. this pointer function to the appropriate function pointer type, and
  84. calling the function pointed to it with the right arguments.
  85. </p>
  86. <p>For example, when the compiler encounters a method invocation such as
  87. <code>[object init]</code>, it compiles it into a call to
  88. <code>objc_msg_lookup (object, @selector(init))</code> followed by a cast
  89. of the returned value to the appropriate function pointer type, and
  90. then it calls it.
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