Class creation assistant for textual programming languages

摘要

A program file may include code blocks, such as properties and methods blocks. An assistant module may provide a contextual information tool, a class diagram tool, and a template tool. The assistant module may monitor the location of a user interface element as it is moved about the program file. The assistant may provide information regarding the current location of the user interface element through the contextual information tool. The assistant module also may track the construction of the program, and provide information through the class diagram tool regarding program elements, such as properties and methods, defined so far in the program file. The assistant module may present design information, such as a class construction template, in the template tool, and may dynamically update this information during the creation of the program file.

主权项

1. A method comprising:
presenting a textual program in an editor of a user interface, the textual program defining a class that
inherits from a super class for which design information has been defined, andincludes at least one methods code block that defines one or more methods having names; determining a current location of a moveable user interface element within the textual program, the current location of the user interface element being in the at least one methods code block; presenting a contextual information tool in the user interface; including in the contextual information tool information identifying the at least one methods code block in which the user interface element is currently located; when the user interface element is moved to a new location within the textual program, dynamically updating the information included in the contextual information tool, where the updated information identifies the new location of the user interface element in the textual program; presenting a class diagram tool in the user interface, the class diagram tool having a methods region that displays the names of the methods; dynamically updating the methods region of the class diagram tool as a new method is defined in the textual program; and presenting a template tool that displays the design information defined for the super class.