Adapter Design Pattern

Bridge between incompatible interfaces

In a nutshell, the adapter Design Pattern is a powerful tool for building flexible and future-proof software by creating bridges between incompatible interfaces.

Flow

1. Client wants “A”, adaptee provides “B”.
2. Adapter wraps “B” and pretends to be “A”.
3. Client interacts with adapter, unaware of “B”.

Benefits

• Increased compatibility Existing code and new code can work together without modifying their original interfaces.
• Improved flexibility Makes code more adaptable to changes in requirements or external components.
• Enhanced reusability Adapters promote code reuse by allowing objects to work with different interfaces.
• Simplified integration Integrating third-party libraries or legacy systems becomes smoother.

Example

# Target interface: the interface the client expects
class Target:
    def request(self):
        pass

# Adaptee: the existing class with a different interface
class Adaptee:
    def specific_request(self):
        print("Adaptee's specific request")

# Adapter: bridges the gap between Target and Adaptee
class Adapter(Target):
    def __init__(self, adaptee):
        self.adaptee = adaptee

    def request(self):
        self.adaptee.specific_request()

# Client code
client = Client()
adapter = Adapter(Adaptee())
client.do_something(adapter)  # Client interacts with the adapter seamlessly

Remember

• Use adapters when existing interfaces pose a compatibility issue, not just for minor differences.
• Overusing adapters can lead to a complex code structure. Balance is key.