In Swift, when writing software, you typically use multiple files to build complex programs. To organize and manage these files, Swift provides a powerful feature called modules.
Modules serve two main purposes: code reuse and code encapsulation. By grouping related code into modules, you can write a particular functionality once and then import it into different places and projects. This promotes efficiency and reduces duplication.
Moreover, encapsulation ensures that the internal working of a module remains hidden while exposing only necessary components to the outside. This means that a module can perform complex tasks internally, but you can interact with it through a simplified interface.
To start using modules, you need to import them in your project. You might already be familiar with importing modules like SwiftUI or UIKit. These frameworks are examples of modules that you import into your codebase to gain access to their functionalities.
When you import a module, all the public declarations from that module become visible in your application code. Additionally, modules can import other modules, granting you automatic access to their contents. For instance, when you import SwiftUI, you don’t need to separately import Foundation, as it’s already imported by SwiftUI.
It’s worth mentioning that your application itself is also considered a module in Swift. Similarly, Swift itself is a module that is automatically imported for you, so you don’t need to explicitly import it in your code.
By leveraging Swift modules, you can effectively organize your code, promote code reuse, and encapsulate complex functionalities.