Generics in ActionScript

ActionScript doesn’t have built-in support for generics, but we can simulate some of the functionality using dynamic typing and interfaces. Here’s an example that demonstrates concepts similar to the original code:

package {
    import flash.display.Sprite;
    import flash.utils.Dictionary;

    public class GenericsExample extends Sprite {
        public function GenericsExample() {
            // Simulating a generic function
            function slicesIndex(arr:Array, value:*):int {
                for (var i:int = 0; i < arr.length; i++) {
                    if (arr[i] == value) {
                        return i;
                    }
                }
                return -1;
            }

            // Simulating a generic class
            class List {
                private var head:ListNode;
                private var tail:ListNode;

                public function push(value:*):void {
                    var newNode:ListNode = new ListNode(value);
                    if (tail == null) {
                        head = tail = newNode;
                    } else {
                        tail.next = newNode;
                        tail = newNode;
                    }
                }

                public function allElements():Array {
                    var elements:Array = [];
                    var current:ListNode = head;
                    while (current != null) {
                        elements.push(current.value);
                        current = current.next;
                    }
                    return elements;
                }
            }

            class ListNode {
                public var value:*;
                public var next:ListNode;

                public function ListNode(value:*) {
                    this.value = value;
                    this.next = null;
                }
            }

            // Using the slicesIndex function
            var s:Array = ["foo", "bar", "zoo"];
            trace("index of zoo:", slicesIndex(s, "zoo"));

            // Using the List class
            var lst:List = new List();
            lst.push(10);
            lst.push(13);
            lst.push(23);
            trace("list:", lst.allElements());
        }
    }
}

In this ActionScript example, we’ve simulated some of the generics functionality:

The slicesIndex function works with any array type and any value type, similar to the generic function in the original example.
The List class simulates a generic linked list. It can store elements of any type.
We use * as the type for values that can be of any type, which is similar to using T in the original generic example.
The push and allElements methods of the List class work similarly to the original example.

To run this ActionScript code:

Create a new ActionScript project in your preferred IDE (like Flash Builder or FlashDevelop).
Replace the main class content with the code above.
Compile and run the project.

The output will be similar to:

index of zoo: 2
list: 10,13,23

Note that ActionScript doesn’t have true generics, so this example doesn’t provide the same level of type safety as the original code. However, it demonstrates similar concepts using ActionScript’s dynamic typing system.

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Generics in ActionScript