Analysis

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Evaluate design patterns side by side across intent, tradeoffs, languages, and integration fit.

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Abstract FactoryAdapterBridgeBuilderChain of ResponsibilityCommandCompositeDecoratorFacadeFactory MethodFlyweightInterpreterIteratorMediatorMementoObserverPrototypeProxySingletonStateStrategyTemplate MethodVisitor

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Analysis

Pattern comparison

Reviewing 3 patterns.

Criteria
structuralDecoratorView pattern
structuralFlyweightView pattern
structuralProxyView pattern
Basics
Categorystructuralstructuralstructural
SummaryWrap an object with other objects that implement the same contract so responsibilities can be layered dynamically.——
IntentWrap an object with other objects that implement the same contract so responsibilities can be layered dynamically.Use sharing to support large numbers of fine-grained objects efficiently by separating shared intrinsic state from per-object extrinsic state.Provide a surrogate or placeholder for another object to control access to it.
Decision factors
ProblemA system needs to add optional behaviors to an object without creating many subclasses for every feature combination.A system creates a large number of similar objects, but storing all of their state separately uses too much memory.A client needs to interact with an object indirectly because the real object may be expensive, sensitive, or remote.
Tradeoffs
  • Can introduce many small wrapper classes that are harder to trace in debugging.
  • Ordering of decorators matters, so composition needs to be deliberate.
  • Keeps responsibilities modular and easy to combine.
  • Adds complexity because state must be split into shared and unshared parts
  • Can be harder to understand when many objects depend on an external context
  • Adds another layer of indirection
  • Can make the design more complex when the extra control is unnecessary
Practical fit
Languages
  • typescript
  • java
  • python
  • angular
  • react
  • react-native
  • csharp
  • dotnet
  • typescript
  • java
  • python
  • angular
  • react
  • react-native
  • csharp
  • dotnet
  • typescript
  • java
  • python
  • angular
  • react
  • react-native
  • csharp
  • dotnet
Platforms
  • frontend
  • backend
  • services
  • Web
  • Backend
  • Mobile
  • UI kits
  • Cross-platform systems
  • Web
  • Backend
  • Mobile
  • UI kits
  • Cross-platform systems
Integration notesDecorators work well for cross-cutting concerns such as logging, retry, caching, compression, and telemetry because each layer keeps the same interface while adding one concern.Flyweight is useful when thousands or millions of similar objects need to be represented efficiently, such as trees, glyphs, tiles, or UI tokens.Proxy is useful for lazy loading, access control, caching, logging, and remote service wrappers.