Methodscomponents

Methodscomponents are modular software units that expose a clearly defined set of public methods. Each component encapsulates internal state and behavior but presents an interface consisting of methods that callers invoke. The emphasis on method-level contracts distinguishes methodscomponents from other component models by focusing on behavior.

In practice, a methodscomponent is a component in component-based design where the interface is expressed as a collection of methods. Interfaces, protocols, or abstract classes specify the contract, enabling loose coupling, substitutability, and easier testing.

Common patterns include interface-based programming, dependency injection to supply implementations, adapters for signature changes, and versioned interfaces to maintain compatibility during evolution.

Applications include plugin systems, workflow engines, data processing pipelines, and API wrappers where components are composed by calling their methods rather than exchanging messages.

Key design considerations are clear method semantics, predictable side effects, error handling, thread-safety, and performance. Overly granular interfaces add maintenance burden; too coarse interfaces limit flexibility. Documentation, tests, and explicit versioning are advisable.

Example: a logger component exposes methods such as logInfo, logWarning, and setLogLevel; another component implementing the same interface can be swapped without changing callers. See also concepts like interfaces, component-based software engineering, and dependency inversion.