What is the difference between an Instance and an Object?

Solution 1:

The Instance and Object are from Object Oriented Programming.

For some programming languages like Java, C++, and Smalltalk, it is important to describe and understand code. In other languages that used in Structured Programming, this concept doesn't exist.

This is a view from Structural Programming. There's no real significant difference that should consume too much of your time. There might be some fancy language that some people might take up a lot of spaces to write about, but at the end of the day, as far as a coder, developer, programmer, architect, is concerned, an instance of a class and an object mean the same thing and can often be used interchangeably. I have never met anyone in my career that would be picky and spend a half-hour trying to point out the differences because there's really none. Time can be better spent on other development efforts.

UPDATE With regards to Swift, this is what Apple who invented Swift prefers :

An instance of a class is traditionally known as an object. However, Swift classes and structures are much closer in functionality than in other languages, and much of this chapter describes functionality that can apply to instances of either a class or a structure type. Because of this, the more general term instance is used.

Solution 2:

Excellent question.

I'll explain it in the simplest way possible: Say you have 5 apples in your basket. Each of those apples is an object of type Apple, which has some characteristics (i.e. big, round, grows on trees).

In programming terms, you can have a class called Apple, which has variables size:big, shape:round, habitat:grows on trees. To have 5 apples in your basket, you need to instantiate 5 apples. Apple apple1, Apple apple2, Apple apple3 etc....

Alternatively: Objects are the definitions of something, instances are the physical things.

Does this make sense?

Solution 3:

Instance: instance means just creating a reference(copy).

object: means when memory location is associated with the object (is a run-time entity of the class) by using the new operator.

In simple words, Instance refers to the copy of the object at a particular time whereas object refers to the memory address of the class.

Solution 4:

Object:

It is a generice term basically it is a Software bundle that has state(variables) and behaviour(methods)

Class:

A blue print(template) for an object instance-it's a unique object thing for example you create a object two times what does that mean is yo have created two instances

Let me give an example

Class student()
{
   private string firstName;
  public student(string fname)
  {
    firstName=fname;
  }
  Public string GetFirstName()
  {
    return firstName;
  }
}

Object example:

Student s1=new student("Martin"); Student s2=new student("Kumar");

The s1,s2 are having object of class Student

Instance:

s1 and s2 are instances of object student the two are unique.

it can be called as reference also.

basically the s1 and s2 are variables that are assigned an object