klasseswitch

Klasseswitch is a term used in programming to describe the ability to swap the class of an object at runtime to change its behavior without changing its identity. The concept emphasizes decoupling an object's external interface from its concrete implementation, allowing dynamic reconfiguration of how the object behaves in a running system.

Implementation of klasseswitch can vary by language and design goals. In dynamic languages, it may involve changing the object's internal type tag or prototype linkage so that subsequent method lookups resolve to a different implementation. In statically typed languages, it is usually achieved through delegation or composition, often via a proxy or wrapper that can swap the active delegate, or through a policy/interface-based design that selects an alternate implementation at runtime. Frameworks and patterns that support hot-swapping or feature toggles, dependency injection, and plugin architectures commonly provide mechanisms aligned with klasseswitch concepts.

Applications include feature flag–driven behavior changes, A/B testing of functionality, live patches and hot updates, and extensible systems where new implementations can be loaded without replacing references to the objects that use them. Benefits include increased flexibility and the ability to adapt runtime behavior without breaking object graphs; drawbacks include added complexity, potential violations of encapsulation, diagnostics difficulty, and potential type-safety or performance costs.

See also: dynamic dispatch, Strategy pattern, State pattern, Proxy pattern, Decorator, Plugin architecture, Hot swapping.