Python Object Oriented Programming: Attributes, Classes, Features and More

Python is a super-popular programming language particularly suited for developing GUIs and web applications. It is also a popular choice for application development because it offers dynamic typing and binding options. In this article, we will be learning about Python object-oriented programming (OOP) concepts.

We will cover the following topics in this article:

• What is the Python object-oriented programming concept?
• What is a class?
• What is an object?
• The _init_method
• Creating classes and objects in Python
• Python OOPs concept
• Inheritance
• Polymorphism
• Abstraction
• Encapsulation

What Is the Python Object-Oriented Programming Concept?

Object-oriented programming (OOP) is a methodology that focuses on classes and objects. The concept of OOP in Python focuses on building efficient and reusable code. This is also known as DRY (don't repeat yourself). Every individual object represents a different part of the application having its own logic.

For instance, an object could represent a car with a name, model, and color as attributes.

What Is a Class?

The class can be defined as a collection of objects that define the common attributes and behaviors of all the objects. 

Class is defined under a “Class” keyword.

Example:

Fig: Defining a class

What Is an Object?

The object is an entity that has state and behavior. It is an instance of a class that can access the data.

Example:

Fig: Defining an object

The _init_method

The _init_ method is run as soon as an object of a class is created. This method is useful for passing initial value to your objects. 

Fig: _init_ method

Creating Classes and Objects in Python

Fig: Creating class and objects

Here, emp1 and emp2 are objects of the class employee.

Python OOP Concepts

The four major OOP concepts are:

1. Inheritance

• This refers to defining a new class with little or no modification to an existing class
• The new class is known as a derived (or child) class, and the one from which it inherits is known as  the base (or parent) class. 
• The derived class inherits features from the base class, which adds new features to it. 

Example:

Fig: Inheritance

We have created a class called childemployee, which is inheriting the properties of a parent class, and emp1 is passed as a parameter.

2. Polymorphism

In OOP, polymorphism refers to a programming language's ability to process objects in more than one form. It is the ability to redefine methods for derived classes.

Example:

Fig: Polymorphism

In the preceding example, we have created two classes—childemployee1 and childemployee2—which are derived from the base class employee.

3. Abstraction

Abstraction is a programming methodology in which details of the programming code are hidden from the user—only the essential information is displayed. Abstraction focuses on ideas, rather than events. 

Examples:

Fig: Abstraction

In the preceding example, we have imported an abstract method. An object is created for childemployee base class, and the functionality of the abstract class is used.

5. Encapsulation

The binding of data and function into one single unit is known as encapsulation. Encapsulation keeps the data safe from misuse and changes in the code can be done independently.

Example:

Fig: Encapsulation 

In the class “Person,” there are two variables, and we have accessed those variables directly and through a method.

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Conclusion

In this article, we looked at the Python OOPs concepts. We discussed the four major OOP concepts and illustrated those concepts with visual examples. 

If you have any questions, please ask them in the comments section, and we'll have our experts answer them for you.

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