Enums and Hair Colors

Enums, or enumerated types, are data types that can take on a fixed set of values. The elements in the enumerated set are named, allowing programmers to reference specific elements in an understandable form. These data types allow stricter checking (elements must be one of a limited set) and improved code readability (actual names are used).

"It is blue!" wailed a lady three chairs over.

Angela snuck a glance. Sure enough, the woman's hair was a vibrant, electric blue. Angela turned her attention back to the head in front of her.

"I… I…" stammered Derek. He stood behind the blue-haired woman. His face registered a mixture of shock and fear.

"It is supposed to be blond," screamed the lady. "But it is blue!"

"I know," said Derek. "It is just that… I thought… Umm... let me go check something."

Angela heard Derek rush toward the supply room. Knowing the seriousness of the problem, Angela paused, excused herself, and followed Derek. It was only Derek's first week; he could probably use some help.

Angela found Derek in the supply room staring at a shelf full of dye bottles. The salon's owner Karen stood next to him gesturing angrily.

"I picked the wrong bottle," moaned Derek. "I thought blond was bottle #14, but it was #15. Oh no! What am I going to do?"

"It is not his fault," interjected Angela. After a brief pause she added, "Well, technically it IS his fault. But this system makes it easy to make mistakes."

Karen spun toward Angela, anger in her eyes. "Not this again! I have used this system for ten years. Everyone who works here learns it."

Feeling protective of Derek, Angela pressed on. "It is a bad system. You have 20 different hair dyes in numbered bottles. In order to find the correct dye, you need to either remember or look up the correct 'magic number' for that color. It is too easy to make a mistake."

Karen waved dismissively. "What would you suggest?" she asked. "We already implemented a bunch of your ideas, and they always seem to add overhead. Just last month, we started unit testing the hair dryers. What now?"

Angela noticed the Karen had omitted the fact that the ideas also prevented errors. She decided not to press the point.

"Enums," answered Angela.

"Enums?" asked Derek.

Karen squinted in confusion as if wracking her brain.

"An enumerated type is basically a set of NAMED elements. You refer to an element in the set using its name, instead of some magic number. For example, in this case we could create an enumerated type for hair dyes. It would contain items like BLOND, DIRTY_BLOND, PLATINUM_BLOND, SUNSET_RED, and so forth. Then, to find the correct color, you give the name of the type."

"We tried that," said Karen. "Remember, the stock person could never remember how to spell 'blond'. The bottles were labeled 'blund' or 'bloond'. That is why we started using numbers."

"Enums give the best of both worlds," Angela assured her. "Like the numeric options, you have a limited set of options. And, like the free text labels, you have descriptive names. No more spelling errors. No more memorizing magic numbers."

Karen was silent for a moment. "What will it cost me?" she asked.

From outside they heard a loud, tearful scream. "Blue!!!"

Angela shrugged. "I guess that it will take longer to write the color code on the form, since the name will be longer than a number."

"BLUE!!!" came another scream.

"I think it might be worth it though," Angela added.

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Thank you to David Karl for recommending the topic of enumerated types!

Want to learn more about practical programming tips? Read about the importance of: variable initialization, unit testing, source control, comments, or data validation.