Object (Concept)

The concept of an object in object-oriented programming refers to an entity that holds information and can communicate with other objects. All objects can be instantiated, but some objects may not perform any function when instantiated, while others may need to be instantiated to be utilized. An example of an object would be any of the resources in Game Maker, since they can be referred to by other resources. In Game Maker, this is limited, and objects have the most functionality, since they can refer to practically anything in the game. But in other programming languages, virtually any object can call another. Systems such as polymorphism also exist both in GML and other programming languages that allow more flexibility in the structure of a program. These systems utilize objects that have a polymorphic structure, such as an objects meant to add, take away, or change the functionality of another objects.