Object-oriented (OO) LotusScript programming is not an academic undertaking. You can use it to develop business applications with substantial advantages over applications developed using more traditional programming styles, such as procedural coding and utility function libraries. At Foconis, we´ve been using an OO LotusScript framework for about two years, and we´ve seen for ourselves the difference object-oriented programming (OOP) makes. Let us show you how to work with the same framework we use, so you too can reap the benefits of OOP best practices, common design patterns, and all of the other virtues of OOP.

In Part 1 (THE VIEW, February 2009), we showed how our Foconis Object Framework (FOF) makes OO LotusScript development both easy and powerful, yielding code that is well-structured and -organized, easy to test, and simple to maintain. We explained the functions provided by this production-ready, free, open-source LotusScript library, introduced its architecture, and covered some essential OO concepts. Now we´ll take you deeper into the FOF core layer, which provides the central, language-level concepts and features that are necessary for doing serious OOP in LotusScript.

The core layer complements the existing “BASIC with classes” possibilities of LotusScript, enabling you to consistently use an OOP style throughout your applications. Classes become the building blocks of everything, rather than existing as helpful, but somewhat exotic, citizens of LotusScript city. Stick around, and you´ll learn what it means for your code to be FOF-based and exactly how to use the framework to write your own classes. You´ll also learn how to define and use interfaces and get the most benefit from dynamic class loading.