What is the type of C.prototype?

[lth]

C.prototype is not exactly the same type as an instance of C. Is it an implicit subclass?

Wiki location => proposals:builtin_classes

Related ticket: Ticket #10: Where does C.prototype.constructor.name get set?

[jeffdyer]

Dynamic type of C.prototype has the following characteristics:

* is dynamic * has prototype properties, but not intrinsics * has some magic behavior associated with its class

For this reason and others its not an Object, but not a C either.

[jeffdyer]

The magic behavior in the builtins can be implemented using static methods of the class. There is no apparent reason for why prototypes of user defined classes would normally have such magic, and if it did that behavior could be implemented in the same way as in the builtins.

Resolution: The dynamic type of C.prototype is Object.

s/Proposals/RefImpl/ s/M0/M1/

[lth]

I don't think I understand the resolution. On other occasions we've said that the manifest type of the object that is the value of D.prototype is some class type D' which is like D except that:

• D' is a dynamic class
• D'.prototype has is a value whose manifest type is the same as that of B.prototype, where B is the base class of D.

The declared type of the prototype property in a class is probably Object, though, if that's what's meant here (but the word "dynamic" indicates something else is meant).

[graydon]

The RI still has a big pile of bugs that relate to this ticket. Do we have documented consensus elsewhere on the dynamic type of C.prototype?