How do you refactor your code to follow the DRY (Don't Repeat Yourself) principle?

1 What is the DRY principle?

The DRY principle is a software engineering concept that states that every piece of information or logic should have a single, unambiguous, and authoritative source in your code. This means that you should avoid duplicating code or data that can be derived from other sources, and instead use abstraction, modularization, and inheritance to reuse and organize your code. The DRY principle can help you avoid bugs, inconsistencies, and complexity that arise from having multiple copies of the same code or data.

2 Why is the DRY principle important?

The DRY principle is important for improving the quality, readability, and maintainability of your code. By following the DRY principle, you can reduce the amount of code you have to write, test, and debug, making it easier to understand, modify, and extend. This can help you avoid the errors and inconsistencies that can occur when you have to update or change the same code or data in multiple places. Additionally, the DRY principle can increase the reusability and flexibility of your code, allowing you to create more robust and adaptable software. (This section has been updated by LinkedIn editors based on member feedback.)

3 How to apply the DRY principle using object oriented principles and patterns?

Object oriented programming (OOP) is a paradigm that organizes your code into classes and objects that have attributes and behaviors. This can help you apply the DRY principle by using principles and patterns such as abstraction, modularization, inheritance, composition, and polymorphism. Abstraction is the process of hiding implementation details and exposing only the essential features of a class or an object. Modularization divides your code into smaller, independent, and reusable units or modules. Inheritance creates new classes or objects that inherit the attributes and behaviors of existing classes or objects. Composition creates new classes or objects that contain or use other classes or objects as their components or attributes. Polymorphism is the ability of a class or an object to have different forms or behaviors depending on the context or the input. By using these object oriented principles and patterns, you can refactor your code to follow the DRY principle and create more clean, maintainable, and reusable software.