common functions issues while converting code from objective c to swift - ios

Question

Currently I have been working on a task of converting code from objective c to swift. The work was going smooth until I occured with a common resuable code that works in objective c but I haven't getting any idea how should I do that in swift.
The scenario working in objective c is.
I have a common function in my dataManager class
- (void)saveRequest:(id)request forId:(NSNumber *)requestId {
WebRequest *requestData = [[WebRequest alloc] initWithEntity:[NSEntityDescription entityForName:WEB_REQUEST inManagedObjectContext:self.context] insertIntoManagedObjectContext:self.context];
requestData.data = [request toJSON];
requestData.requestId = requestId;
requestData.timestamp = [NSDate date];
[self save];
}
in my project the request classes are already created which contains the toJSON function.
from my controller according to user changes I created the request object and passes the request object to this function and this function calls the toJSON function in the request class and everything works in objective c.
But when I convert this function in swift then it didn't support id as function input variable and if I use Any in place of id then it gives an error that Any don't have any toJSON function.
As this function is common different request objects will come from different controllers.
I don't have any idea how should I go further from hear, If anyone have any idea please help me out

Answer 1

Your class should be like
class WebRequest:NSObject
{
var data :Data?
var requestId: NSNumber?
var timestamp: Date?
init(entity:String , insertIntoManagedObjectContext:NSManagedObjectContext)
{
//your code here
}
}
and your code will be as follows
func saveRequest(request:Request, requestId:NSNumber)
{
let requestData = WebRequest(entity: "entityName", insertIntoManagedObjectContext:self.context)
requestData.data = request.toJSON();
requestData.requestId = requestId;
requestData.timestamp = Date()
}
and Request class in which toJson() present
class Request: NSObject
{
//has some members
func toJSON()->Data
{
return Data()
}
}

Answer 2

There is an existing Swift protocol, Codable (or you can do just Encodable if you want, as Codable is merely Encodable and Decodable), which is designed explicitly for representing an object in JSON (or other formats).
You then use JSONEncoder (rather than JSONSerialization, for example) to encode the object into JSON. See Encoding and Decoding Custom Types:
Consider a Landmark structure that stores the name and founding year of a landmark:
struct Landmark {
var name: String
var foundingYear: Int
}
Adding Codable to the inheritance list for Landmark triggers an automatic conformance that satisfies all of the protocol requirements from Encodable and Decodable:
struct Landmark: Codable {
var name: String
var foundingYear: Int
}
You can then do:
let landmark = Landmark(name: "Big Ben", foundingYear: 1859)
do {
let data = try JSONEncoder().encode(landmark)
print(String(data: data, encoding: .utf8)!)
} catch {
print(error)
}
That will product JSON like so:
{
"name": "Big Ben",
"foundingYear": 1859
}
See that Encoding and Decoding Custom Types for more information.
But, if you make your types Codable/Encodable, you could then retire your toJSON method entirely. There’s no need to write code to encode JSON anymore.
If you’re looking for a more tactical edit to your project as you convert it from Objective-C to Swift, you could define your own protocol, say JsonRepresentable, that has a single method requirement, your toJSON (or to whatever you’ve renamed this method during your conversion process).
protocol JsonRepresentable {
func toJSON() -> Data
}
And then, for all of the types that have implemented this method, just add this conformance.
Ideally, go back to those individual files and move the method into an extension for that protocol, e.g., for your first object type:
extension RequestObject1: JsonRepresentable {
func toJSON() -> Data {
...
}
}
And for your second:
extension RequestObject2: JsonRepresentable {
func toJSON() -> Data {
...
}
}
Etc.
is not there a simpler way rather than changing it in whole project
I would suggest that the above is best, but, if you don’t want to go back to all of those individual type declarations, you can just add conformance with an empty extension right where you defined JsonRepresentable:
extension RequestObject1: JsonRepresentable { }
extension RequestObject2: JsonRepresentable { }
As long as those types have implemented that method, these extensions will let the compiler know about their conformance to your protocol.
Anyway, this method can then use this protocol:
func save(_ request: JsonRepresentable, requestId: Int) {
let requestData = ...
requestData.data = request.toJSON()
requestData.requestId = requestId
requestData.timestamp = Date()
save()
}