Overriding for Dummies

Overriding is a word that we often use when we talk about making a decision or a choice that is stronger or more important than another one. It's like when you're playing a game and you have a special power or ability that allows you to take control and make your move, even if someone else wants to do something different. You're basically saying, "No, I'm in charge here!"

In a more technical sense, when we talk about "overriding" in programming, it means that we are changing or replacing something that was already there with something new. Think of it like working on a painting. You might start with a rough sketch and then add layers of paint on top to make the final picture. Sometimes, you might want to change one of those layers because you decide it doesn't look quite right. So, you take a new brush and paint over the old layer, replacing it with a fresh one. That's kind of what happens in programming when we talk about overriding.

Now, let's dive a bit deeper into the different meanings of "overriding" so we have a clear understanding. In everyday life, "overriding" can mean having control or being more important than something else. For example, when we talk about a parent overriding a child's decision, it means that the parent's decision is the one that counts and is more important. Similarly, when a law is overriding, it means that it takes priority over other laws and should be followed first.

In the programming world, on the other hand, "overriding" specifically refers to the concept of replacing or modifying a particular piece of code that was originally defined in a class or a function. It's like giving new instructions to the computer on what to do instead of following the original instructions. This can be really helpful when we want to customize or tweak the behavior of a program without changing the entire thing. By overriding certain parts, we can add our own special touches and make the program work the way we want it to.

To give you a simple example, let's say we have a base class called "Animal" with a method called "makeSound()". This method just prints "Generic animal sound." Now, let's say we have a subclass called "Dog" that inherits from the "Animal" class. We can override the "makeSound()" method in the "Dog" class and make it print "Woof!" instead. By doing this, whenever we create a Dog object and call the "makeSound()" method, it will display "Woof!" rather than the generic animal sound. The "Dog" class is overriding the behavior defined in the "Animal" class.

In summary, "overriding" means taking control or being more important than something else, whether it's in everyday life or in programming. It's like painting over an existing layer to replace it with something new or customizing the behavior of a program by replacing or modifying specific parts. So, next time you hear the term "overriding," you can think of it as being in charge and making changes to get the desired result. You're the boss!