mizerExtensionTemplate marker classes

S4 marker subclasses of MizerParams and MizerSim that enable S3 dispatch for extension-specific methods defined in this package.

Details

These classes add no new slots. All extension-specific data lives in other_params(params)$mizerExtensionTemplate and in the component parameters of the "plankton" component (see setComponent()).

Objects of class mizerExtensionTemplate are created by newExtensionTemplateParams(). Objects of class mizerExtensionTemplateSim are returned automatically by project() when called on a mizerExtensionTemplate params object.

Note that the classes are not defined statically with setClass(). Instead mizer creates them when the package is loaded: .onLoad() calls mizer::registerExtension(), which recognises this package as a dispatching extension from the S3 methods it registers for its marker class (for example projectEncounter.mizerExtensionTemplate()) and inserts the class at the correct place in the S4 hierarchy relative to any other extension packages loaded in the same session. This is what lets independently developed extensions be chained in either load order. Defining the class statically as contains = "MizerParams" would instead fix it as a direct sibling of every other extension and, because the class would then be sealed, prevent mizer from re-parenting it into the chain.