Run-Time Type Information
Run-Time Type Information (RTTI) is a feature in programming languages like C++ that allows a program to determine the type of an object at runtime. This is particularly useful in scenarios involving polymorphism, where a base class reference can point to derived class objects. RTTI enables safe type casting and dynamic type identification, enhancing flexibility in code.
RTTI typically involves two key operators: typeid and dynamic_cast. The typeid operator retrieves the type information of an object, while dynamic_cast safely converts pointers or references to base or derived classes. This ensures that operations on objects are type-safe, reducing runtime errors.