smalltalk-implementation-finder

Smalltalk Implementation Finder

Find and analyze method implementations across class hierarchies to understand abstract methods, implementation patterns, and assess refactoring opportunities.

Purpose

Use this skill to:

• Learn implementation idioms by studying existing code
• Assess refactoring impact before making changes
• Discover implementation patterns across class hierarchies
• Find duplicate implementations that could be consolidated
• Understand subclass responsibilities for abstract methods

Core Workflow

1. Find implementors → search_implementors(method_name)
2. Get source code → get_method_source(class, method)
3. Analyze patterns → Compare implementations
4. Apply learnings → Use discovered idioms in your code

Primary Use Cases

1. Learning Implementation Idioms

When to use: Implementing a method for the first time and want to follow conventions.

Quick workflow:

1. search_implementors("methodName")
2. Sample 5-10 well-known classes
3. get_method_source for each
4. Identify common pattern
5. Apply to your implementation

Common idioms:

• hash → Combine fields with bitXor:
• initialize → Call super initialize first
• = → Check class equality, then compare fields
• printOn: → Use class identifier + element printing

Example: Learning hash implementation

Point>>hash → "^ x hash bitXor: y hash"
Association>>hash → "^ key hash bitXor: value hash"

Pattern: field1 hash bitXor: field2 hash

2. Assessing Refactoring Impact

When to use: Planning to change a method signature or refactor implementations.

Quick workflow:

1. Count implementors: search_implementors(method)
2. Count references: search_references(method)
3. Assess impact: Low (<5 impl, <20 refs) / Medium (5-20, 20-100) / High (20+, 100+)
4. Decide: Proceed / Add new method / Don't change

Example: Changing at:put:

Implementors: 50+ classes
References: 500+ call sites
Impact: VERY HIGH
Decision: Don't change. Add new method instead.