Switch over type in java

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Here is an approach that does not deal with class names at all, and dispatches as fast as a switch statement does: make a hash map to map Class<T> objects to class-specific handlers, and use the map instead of a switch:

// Declare an interface for your polymorphic handlers to implement.
// There will be only anonymous implementations of this interface.
private interface Handler {
    void handle(Object o);
}
// Make a map that translates a Class object to a Handler
private static final Map<Class,Handler> dispatch = new HashMap<Class,Handler>();
// Populate the map in a static initializer
static {
    dispatch.put(A.class, new Handler() {
        public void handle(Object o) {
            handleA((A)o);
        }
    });
    dispatch.put(B.class, new Handler() {
        public void handle(Object o) {
            handleB((B)o);
        }
    });
    dispatch.put(C.class, new Handler() {
        public void handle(Object o) {
            handleC((C)o);
        }
    });
}
// This object performs the dispatch by looking up a handler,
// and calling it if it's available
private static void handle(Object o) {
    Handler h = dispatch.get(o.getClass());
    if (h == null) {
        // Throw an exception: unknown type
    }
    h.handle(o); // <<== Here is the magic
}

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