Object-Oriented vs. Functional Programming

by Richard Warburton

The schism between the functional and object-oriented programmers is really a false binary. Yes, the first group argues that FP is superior for a multicore world, while the second insists that OOP is better at matching technical solutions to business problems. However, as this O’Reilly report explains, this is not an either-or proposition.

Technologist Richard Warburton, author of Java 8 Lambas, discusses similarities between these programming paradigms and points out that both FP and OOP are actually moving closer toward one another. One prominent example is the use of lambda expressions in Java and other OOP languages such as C#, C++, and Swift.

Genres: Programming, Technology, Nonfiction, Technical, Computers

46 pages, ebook

Published November 1, 2015

About the author

Richard Warburton is an empirical technologist and solver of deep-dive technical problems. He has recently written a book on Java 8 Lambdas for O'Reilly and is running java8training.com.

He has worked as a developer in many areas including Statistical Analytics, Static Analysis, Compilers and Network Protocols. He is a leader in the London Java Community and runs OpenJDK Hackdays.

Richard is also a known conference speaker, having talked at Devoxx, JavaOne, JFokus, Devoxx UK, Geecon, Oredev, JAX London and Codemotion. He has obtained a PhD in Computer Science from The University of Warwick.

Reviews

[Tomáš · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book title promises more than can be provided within 50 pages, but I'm not disappointed. It reminds SOLID principles (Single responsibility, Open-close, Liskov substitution, Interface segregation and Dependency inversion) in the light of Java 8's lambdas and stream API.

[Hafiz Hussain · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent reading, short book which helps to revise concepts about FP and OOP.
If you are an OOP developer and new to FP and vice versa, then, in my opinion, this is not a good start. This book contains good information about convincing FP and OOP programmers that you usually use the same patterns and terminologies but don't recognize them.

[ᴀᴍɪᴛ · Rating 1 out of 5]

A book which is less than a book;

This book is just to give ..... introduction to lambda expressions, method references, SOLID principles, Command/Strategy pattern . I am yet to figure out the collective essence of all these points ...

I hope .... this Book gives the preface of Richard's Big Book on Java Lambda......

[Zbyszek Sokolowski · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nice book regarding differences and how SOLID principles transform from imperative to functional programming. This is of course free book in form of report but still concise and I think worth reading and worth returning from time to time because functional programming are getting more and more popular. approach also fits into the way that resource management is performed in functional languages

[Henry Suryawirawan · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very concise and quick overview about functional programming from OOP point of view illustrated in Java 8. This book touches on SOLID principle and few design patterns in which functional programming can help to simplify.

Two key takeaways from the book:
* Software development isn’t about idealism or religious evangelism: it’s about producing reliable software that works for our clients and business
* Hybrid paradigm: pick the best features and ideas from both functional and object-oriented approaches in order to solve the problem at hand

[Maxwell Kendall · Rating 4 out of 5]

Helpful in understanding the broad distinctions between these two different approaches to software development. Helped me personally understand Java Syntax, but I definitely failed to benefit from this book because I read it before understanding the language. Will definitely come back to it at some point and think my second read will be much more profitable to me as an engineer.

[Alex Prodrom · Rating 3 out of 5]

Unfortunately the ease of read and beautiful way of writing doesn’t overcome the lack of good and considerate examples. Maybe it was meant for programmers at early stages of combining the two styles but the title sets the expectations quite high

[Cédric Walter · Rating 4 out of 5]

not a book, more a report/introduction to, easy to read, not going too much in details

[Kʜᴀɴ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very rapid, but some quite clear ideas.

[Stefan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was great. It was clear and succinct and showed examples of how OO and functional concepts can complement each other using some of the features added in Java 8.

[André Gomes · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good reading. A little controversial, but good...

[Khaled Al-Ansari · Rating 2 out of 5]

This ~30 page booklet (or report as O'Reilly likes to call it) is very basic and written around the idea of "enhancing Java OOP using some FP", I like how the author described the SOLID principles briefly in the 2nd chapter but the 3rd chapter it was obvious he was proposing a way to optimize your code with Lambda expressions instead of writing the whole patterns in FP style as I was expecting, even in the final chapter his conclusions was on how the hybrid style is enhancing the codebase and it is the future for programming.

I won't recommend the book for people who have enough Java experience or those who wants to understand the main differences between OOP and FP but I will recommend it to new Java developers in general.

One last thing, if you are looking for a good Java FP book where you can learn how lambdas and functional interfaces work I would recommend Java 8 Lambdas: Pragmatic Functional Programming by the same author of this book*, it is simple and well written with some nice examples to understand how lambdas can reduce the amount of code you usually write.

*: At the introduction the author says this book is a follow up for his Java 8 Lambdas book but I do disagree to be honest.

[Max Borysov · Rating 4 out of 5]

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