Chapter 5. Keeping Up with the Times with the Observer
One of the knottiest design challenges is the problem of building a system that is highly integrated—that is, a system where every part is aware of the state of the whole. Think about a spreadsheet, where editing the contents of one cell not only changes the number in the grid but also changes the column totals, alters the height of one of the bars in a bar chart, and enables the Save button. Even more simply, how about a personnel system that needs to let the payroll department know when someone’s salary changes?
Building this kind of system is hard enough, but throw in the requirement that the system be maintainable and now you are talking truly difficult. How can you tie the disparate ...
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