Method and apparatus for implementing fast subclass and subtype checks

A computer system arranged to determine a subtype associated with a first object that is resident on the computer system, the computer system including:

• a processor;
• a loading mechanism arranged to load a candidate type into memory associated with the computer system, the candidate type being obtained from a dynamic storage location accessible when the class of the object is accessed, wherein the dynamic storage location is operable to include subtype check results;
• a comparison mechanism arranged to compare the candidate type against a first type;
• a determination mechanism arranged to determine whether the candidate type is substantially equal to the first type;
• and
• an indicator arranged to provide an indication that the candidate type is a subtype of the first type when it is determined that the candidate type is substantially equal to the first type.

A computer program product arranged to cause a computer to determine a subtype associated with a first object that is a part of an object-based computing system, the computer program product comprising:

• computer code that obtains a candidate type from a class object in a dynamic storage location associated with the first object, wherein the class object contains previous subtype check results;
• computer code that compares the candidate type against a first type;
• computer code that determines whether the candidate type is substantially equal to the first type;
• computer code that provides an indication that the candidate type is a subtype of the first type when it is determined that the candidate type is substantially equal to the first type;
• and
• a computer readable medium that stores the computer codes.

A computer-implemented method for performing a subtype check on an object that is a member of a particular class, the method comprising:

• obtaining a stored element from a dynamic storage location associated with the particular class, the stored element including information relating to a first subtype tat is potentially associated with the object, wherein the stored element is obtained without referencing data structure external to the class;
• determining whether the information included in the stored element is related to an actual subtype that is associated with the object;
• and
• providing an indication that the information included in the stored element is related to the actual subtype when it is determined that the information included in the stored element is related to the actual subtype.

A computer-implemented method for determine whether a class associated with an object that is a part of an object-based computing system is a subtype of another type, the object being of a first type, the method comprising:

• obtaining a second type from a data structure containing multiple types, the second type being a candidate type for the object;
• comparing the first type against the second type;
• determining whether the second type is substantially equal to the first type;
• and
• storing information associated with the second type it a dynamic storage location associated with the class associated with the object when it is determined that the second type is substantially equal to the first type, wherein storing the information in the dynamic storage location allows the information to be accessed for a subsequent type check without accessing the data structure containing multiple types.

A computer-implemented method for determining whether a class associated with an object that is a part of an object-based computing system is a subtype of another type, the method comprising:

• storing a fist candidate type in a dynamic storage location associated with the class associated with the object;
• obtaining the first candidate type from be dynamic storage location, wherein the dynamic storage location is operable to include subtype check results;
• comparing the first candidate type against an object type, the object type being associated with the object;
• determining whether the first candidate type and the object type are substantially the same;
• and
• providing an indication that the first candidate type is a subtype of the object type when it is determined that the first candidate type and the object type are substantially the same.

A computer system arranged to determine a subtype associated with an object of a first type that is resident on the computer system, the computer system including:

• a processor;
• a first mechanism arranged to obtain a second type from a data structure containing multiple types, the second type being a candidate type for the object;
• a comparator for comparing the first type against the second type;
• a determination mechanism for determining whether the second type is substantially equal to the first type;
• and
• a dynamic storage mechanism for storing information associated with the second type in a dynamic storage location associated with the class associated with the object when it is determined that the second type is substantially equal to the first type, the information in the dynamic storage location is arranged to be accessed for a subsequent type check without accessing the data structure containing multiple types.