R devel - Nov 2010 - Reference Classes: removing methods -> implications for objects/instances of that class

Dear list,

just to make sure that I understand 'unregistering' methods for S4
reference
classes correctly:

If I registered a method and want to 'unregister' (i.e. remove) this
method
again, objects/instance created of the respective class still feature the
removed method until I do an explicit reassign ('my.instance <-
getRefClass("Classname")$new()'), right? 

setRefClass("Shab", fields=list(a="numeric"))
# Register method
getRefClass("Shab")$methods(list(aSquare=function() a^2))
getRefClass("Shab")$methods()

# Create instance
shab    <- getRefClass("Shab")$new()
shab$a  <- 10
# Use method
shab$aSquare()

# Remove method
getRefClass("Shab")$methods(list(aSquare=NULL))
getRefClass("Shab")$methods() 	# Gone.
shab$aSquare() 				# Still possible

shab    <- getRefClass("Shab")$new()
shab$aSquare() 				# Not possible anymore

Is it also possible to remove a method so that all instances do not feature
the respective method anymore without having to resort to an explicit
reassign? Or is this technically not possible or not a desired feature? 

TIA,
Janko

########## SYSTEM INFO ##########
Windows XP SP3
R 2.12.0 (patched as of 2010-11-22)
Eclipse 3.6.1 (Helios)
StatET 0.9.x
###############################

"Janko Thyson" <janko.thyson at ku-eichstaett.de> writes:
> Dear list,
>
> just to make sure that I understand 'unregistering' methods for S4
reference
> classes correctly:
>
> If I registered a method and want to 'unregister' (i.e. remove)
this method
> again, objects/instance created of the respective class still feature the
> removed method until I do an explicit reassign ('my.instance <-
> getRefClass("Classname")$new()'), right? 
>
> setRefClass("Shab", fields=list(a="numeric"))
> # Register method
> getRefClass("Shab")$methods(list(aSquare=function() a^2))
> getRefClass("Shab")$methods()
>
> # Create instance
> shab    <- getRefClass("Shab")$new()
> shab$a  <- 10
> # Use method
> shab$aSquare()
>
> # Remove method
> getRefClass("Shab")$methods(list(aSquare=NULL))
> getRefClass("Shab")$methods() 	# Gone.
> shab$aSquare() 				# Still possible
If I am not mistaken methods are cached in the object during the first
invocation.

So, if you change the method after the method has been used with the
instance. The object will not see the change.

This can not happen with the fields though, because they can not be installed
after the generator class is defined.
>
> shab    <- getRefClass("Shab")$new()
> shab$aSquare() 				# Not possible anymore
>
> Is it also possible to remove a method so that all instances do not feature
> the respective method anymore without having to resort to an explicit
> reassign? Or is this technically not possible or not a desired feature? 
>
> TIA,
> Janko
>
> ########## SYSTEM INFO ##########
> Windows XP SP3
> R 2.12.0 (patched as of 2010-11-22)
> Eclipse 3.6.1 (Helios)
> StatET 0.9.x
> ###############################