NAME

       itcl::local - create an object local to a procedure

SYNOPSIS

       itcl::local className objName ?arg arg ...?
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DESCRIPTION

       The  local  command  creates an [incr Tcl] object that is local to the current call frame.  When the call
       frame goes away, the object is automatically deleted.  This command is useful for creating  objects  that
       are local to a procedure.

       As  a  side  effect, this command creates a variable named "itcl-local-xxx", where xxx is the name of the
       object that is created.  This variable detects when the call frame is destroyed and automatically deletes
       the associated object.

EXAMPLE

       In the following example, a simple "counter" object is used within the procedure "test".  The counter  is
       created  as  a  local  object,  so  it  is automatically deleted each time the procedure exits.  The puts
       statements included in the constructor/destructor show the object coming and going as  the  procedure  is
       called.

              itcl::class counter {
                  private variable count 0
                  constructor {} {
                      puts "created: $this"
                  }
                  destructor {
                      puts "deleted: $this"
                  }

                  method bump {{by 1}} {
                      incr count $by
                  }
                  method get {} {
                      return $count
                  }
              }

              proc test {val} {
                  local counter x
                  for {set i 0} {$i < $val} {incr i} {
                      x bump
                  }
                  return [x get]
              }

              set result [test 5]
              puts "test: $result"

              set result [test 10]
              puts "test: $result"

              puts "objects: [itcl::find objects *]"

KEYWORDS

       class, object, procedure

itcl                                                                                                local(3itcl)