method dictionary lookups and walking up the inheritance tree

[Andreas Raab]

Hi Tim -

> VisualWorks (and probably other VMs at a guess) got some serious 
> benefits out of polymorphic inline caches. I rather doubt inline caching 
> is going to work in an interpreter but there might be some advantage in 
> making the current global cache polymorphic. It could be a decent 
> experiment to try out as a class exercise for example, since even if it 
> turns out not to be beneficial it would be instructive and require all 
> the usual investigative, analytical and explicative skills. I'd even 
> volunteer to help with reviewing and grading, subject to time constraints.

But isn't the global method cache polymorphic by definition? It maps 
class+selector -> method (actual class of object; not class where the 
method is defined in) and unless I got the meaning of the word wrong 
this is polymorphic, is it not? ;-)

Cheers,
   - Andreas