/*************************************************************************
 *
 * ADOBE CONFIDENTIAL
 * __________________
 *
 *  Copyright 2002 - 2007 Adobe Systems Incorporated
 *  All Rights Reserved.
 *
 * NOTICE:  All information contained herein is, and remains
 * the property of Adobe Systems Incorporated and its suppliers,
 * if any.  The intellectual and technical concepts contained
 * herein are proprietary to Adobe Systems Incorporated
 * and its suppliers and may be covered by U.S. and Foreign Patents,
 * patents in process, and are protected by trade secret or copyright law.
 * Dissemination of this information or reproduction of this material
 * is strictly forbidden unless prior written permission is obtained
 * from Adobe Systems Incorporated.
 **************************************************************************/
package flex.messaging.io;

/**
 * A utility to convert between data types, useful for mapping
 * loosely typed client classes to more strongly typed server classes.
 */
public interface TypeMarshaller
{
    /**
     * Creates an instance of the desired class without populating the type.
     * 
     * @param source The raw <tt>Object</tt> to be converted into an instance of the desired class.
     * @param desiredClass The type to which the source needs to be converted.
     * @return An instance of the desired class.
     */
    Object createInstance(Object source, Class desiredClass);

    /**
     * Converts the supplied source instance to an instance of the desired <tt>Class</tt>.
     * 
     * @param source The source instance.
     * @param desiredClass The type to which the source needs to be converted.
     * @return The converted instance of the desired class.
     */
    Object convert(Object source, Class desiredClass);

}