looking for FAQ on interconversion of IntFoo and Foo<Integer>

[Remi Forax]

On 04/16/2013 09:01 AM, John Rose wrote:
> Where is the standard place to find the design discussion for primitive-type specializations of the new interfaces (functions, producers, consumers, optionals...)?
>
> In particular, will users be able to ignore higher-order functions of unboxed values and later adjust code locally for efficiency?
>
> If so, are there conversion operators that correspond to auto-box and auto-unbox of non-functional, which can be used to make adjustments at the boundaries?

 From the compiler point of view, in a lambda conversion Integer as is 
not a boxed int,
so there is no such auto-boxing. Said differently a Stream of Integers 
and a Stream of ints are not the same object.

>
> Finally (and this is what prompted me to ask) why not make IntSupplier or OptionalInt be sub-interfaces of the reference-bearing ones, with autoboxing around the edges (see below)?

At some point in the past, IntSupplier was a subtype of Supplier but it 
doesn't play well with type inference
and method resolution in the compiler
Supplier or IntSupplier because they are functional interface are seen 
by the compiler as structural types
and mixing structural types and classical subtyping relationship has 
some hairy interactions.

>
> Since this is probably a rehash of past discussions, I'm looking to be pointed at some sort of Email thread or even (!) a wiki page.
>
> Best,
> — John

cheers,
Rémi

>
> P.S. It looks like this sort of stuff was in the repo at first and then was yanked recently.
>
> diff --git a/src/share/classes/java/util/function/IntSupplier.java b/src/share/classes/java/util/function/IntSupplier.java
> --- a/src/share/classes/java/util/function/IntSupplier.java
> +++ b/src/share/classes/java/util/function/IntSupplier.java
> @@ -32,7 +32,12 @@
>   * @since 1.8
>   */
> @FunctionalInterface
> -public interface IntSupplier {
> +public interface IntSupplier
> +    extends Supplier<Integer>
> +{
> +    /** Returns the result of {@code getAsInt}, boxed. */
> +    // in my dreams, this would allows IntSupplier to convert to Supplier<Integer>
> +    public default Integer get() { return getAsInt(); }
>
>      /**
>       * Returns an {@code int} value.
>
>