In software engineering, the singleton pattern is a design pattern that restricts the instantiation of a class to one object. This is useful when exactly one object is needed to coordinate actions across the system. The concept is sometimes generalized to systems that operate more efficiently when only one object exists, or that restrict the instantiation to a certain number of objects. The term comes from the mathematical concept of a singleton.
There is criticism of the use of the singleton pattern, as some consider it an anti-pattern, judging that it is overused, introduces unnecessary restrictions in situations where a sole instance of a class is not actually required, and introduces global state into an application.
In C++ it also serves to isolate from the unpredictability of the order of dynamic initialization, returning control to the programmer.
Read more about Singleton Pattern: Common Uses, Implementation, Example, Prototype-based Singleton, Example of Use With The Factory Method Pattern, Drawbacks
Famous quotes containing the words singleton and/or pattern:
“When the sword of rebellion is drawn, the sheath should be thrown away.”
—quoted in letter, Aug. 6, 1775, by painter John Singleton Copley on the subject of the American Revolution. British proverb.
“It was her stern necessity: all things
Are of one pattern made; bird, beast, and flower,
Deceive us, seeming to be many things,
And are but one. Beheld far off, they differ
As God and devil; bring them to the mind,
They dull its edge with their monotony.”
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882)