Add option to let nulls through custom deserializers

[joffrey-bion]

This option fixes the "bug" that custom deserializers don't get called for null values, but without breaking backwards compatibility.
The issue #171 was already marked as closed but the problem was never truly adressed.

Resolves:
#171

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[joffrey-bion]

I signed the CLA!

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[JakeWharton]

The linked issue has a workaround without needing any changes though. Why
is this better?

On Tue, May 10, 2016, 7:36 PM Joffrey Bion [email protected] wrote:

I signed the CLA!

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#852 (comment)

[joffrey-bion]

Because, as you said, this is a workaround, and it forces the users to write more code than necessary. It doesn't really solve the initial problem.
The problem is that the current behaviour is not what is expected by users. As stated in the first answer on the issue, the only reason preventing the fix was backwards compatibility, which is preserved in this PR.
I'm sure that other users like me and the reporter of the issue will stumble upon this problem while using custom deserializers and the serializeNulls() global setting.

[joffrey-bion]

Also, I may be missing something, but is there any reason not to make this change? I don't find that very costly to provide such an option.

[swankjesse]

If you want null you should use a TypeAdapter instead of a Deserializer. That already does what you want.

I'm opposed to this change because it adds a global setting to configure local behavior. In particular I don't expect all of my deserializers want this behavior, and enabling it means they all must be made null safe.

[joffrey-bion]

I'm opposed to this change because it adds a global setting to configure local behavior.

I don't really love using a global setting either, but this was the only easy way I could think of to keep the backwards compatibility. And I don't find it totally unacceptable.

In particular I don't expect all of my deserializers want this behavior, and enabling it means they all must be made null safe.

This is only necessary if you activate the feature and if you have explicit null values. And I think it is worth considering it anyway. If you activate the feature, it means you are in the mindset of handling your nulls in your deserializers so I don't see the problem.

If you want null you should use a TypeAdapter instead of a Deserializer.

I don't think Deserializer is conceptually a wrong choice just because null values are involved.

Using a TypeAdapter, could you please help me find the equivalent of the following:

@Override
public Property<?> deserialize(JsonElement json, Type typeOfT, JsonDeserializationContext context) throws
        JsonParseException {
    if (json.isJsonNull()) {
        return new SimpleObjectProperty<>(null);
    }
    Type typeParam = ((ParameterizedType) typeOfT).getActualTypeArguments()[0];
    Object obj = context.deserialize(json, typeParam);
    return new SimpleObjectProperty<>(obj);
}

This is a custom deserializer for JavaFX Property<T>.

Maybe I'm not familiar enough with TypeAdapters, but it looks like using it would require me to know the whole object hierarchy inside my object, which I don't. How would you suggest replacing:

context.deserialize(json, typeParam);

[JakeWharton]

public final class PropertyTypeAdapterFactory implements TypeAdapterFactory {
  @Override public <T> TypeAdapter<T> create(Gson gson, TypeToken<T> type) {
    if (type.getRawType() != Property.class) return null;
    Type param = ((ParameterizedType) type.getType()).getActualTypeArguments()[0];
    TypeAdapter<?> delegate = gson.getDelegateAdapter(this, TypeToken.get(param));
    return (TypeAdapter<T>) new PropertyTypeAdapter<>(delegate);
  }

  static class PropertyTypeAdapter<V> extends TypeAdapter<Property<V>> {
    private final TypeAdapter<V> delegate;

    PropertyTypeAdapter(TypeAdapter<V> delegate) {
      this.delegate = delegate;
    }

    @Override public void write(JsonWriter out, Property<V> value) throws IOException {
      delegate.write(out, value.getValue());
    }

    @Override public Property<V> read(JsonReader in) throws IOException {
      boolean isNull = in.peek() == JsonToken.NULL;
      return new SimpleObjectProperty<>(isNull ? null : delegate.read(in));
    }
  }
}

[joffrey-bion]

Thanks a lot Jake for the adaptation, so in fact the TypeAdapterFactory is where I can get information about the inner target type and find a delegate TypeAdapter. That was my issue.

For future readers, there is a small bug in the above code, because it's not consuming the NULL token:

    @Override public Property<V> read(JsonReader in) throws IOException {
        if (in.peek() == JsonToken.NULL) {
            in.nextNull();
            return new SimpleObjectProperty<>(null);
        } else {
            return new SimpleObjectProperty<>(delegate.read(in));
        }
    }

Now I understand the workaround better, but anyway, don't you think Serializers should be able to handle it as well?
I mean, just because a workaround exists doesn't make the actual behaviour of the serializers more obvious to the users of Gson. I still believe null is a valid use case for deserialization, especially when they are explicit like that. Maybe I just don't have the correct mindset.

[joffrey-bion]

Interestingly, in the rush of giving sample code to convert, I reproduced the very thing I'm fighting against: I didn't let the chance to the delegate serializer to handle null as it pleases. It should instead have been:

@Override
public Property<?> deserialize(JsonElement json, Type typeOfT, JsonDeserializationContext context) throws
        JsonParseException {
    Type typeParam = ((ParameterizedType) typeOfT).getActualTypeArguments()[0];
    Object obj = context.deserialize(json, typeParam);
    return new SimpleObjectProperty<>(obj);
}

[AlexeyGorovoy]

Tried to use a code snippet provided @JakeWharton (except that I replaced types with my own), but unfortunately the TypeAdapter.read() method never gets called for null values.