How do I call a super constructor in Dart?

Question

How do I call a super constructor in Dart? Is it possible to call named super constructors?

Answer 1

Yes, it is, the syntax is close to C#, here is an example with both default constructor and named constructor:

class Foo {
  Foo(int a, int b) {
    //Code of constructor
  }

  Foo.named(int c, int d) {
    //Code of named constructor
  }
}

class Bar extends Foo {
  Bar(int a, int b) : super(a, b);
}

class Baz extends Foo {
  Baz(int c, int d) : super.named(c, d);  
}

If you want to initialize instance variables in the subclass, the super() call must be last in an initializer list.

class CBar extends Foo {
  int c;

  CBar(int a, int b, int cParam) :
    c = cParam,
    super(a, b);
}

You can read about the motivation behind this super() call guideline on /r/dartlang.

Answer 2

This is a file I am sharing with you, run it as is. You'll learn how to call super constructor, and how to call super parameterized constructor.

// Objectives
// 1. Inheritance with Default Constructor and Parameterised Constructor
// 2. Inheritance with Named Constructor

void main() {
    var dog1 = Dog("Labrador", "Black");
    var dog2 = Dog("Pug", "Brown");
    var dog3 = Dog.myNamedConstructor("German Shepherd", "Black-Brown");
}

class Animal {
    String color;

    Animal(String color) {
        this.color = color;
        print("Animal class constructor");
    }

    Animal.myAnimalNamedConstrctor(String color) {
        print("Animal class named constructor");
    }
}

class Dog extends Animal {
    String breed;

    Dog(String breed, String color) : super(color) {
        this.breed = breed;
        print("Dog class constructor");
    }

    Dog.myNamedConstructor(String breed, String color) : super.myAnimalNamedConstrctor(color) {
        this.breed = breed;
        print("Dog class Named Constructor");
    }
}