Question

I need something like this:

class MyClass(a: String = "", b: String = "") {
  def a = this.a
  def b = if(this.b.isEmpty) this.a else this.b
}

can I reuse names of the constructor arguments some way? I need this because I want to use named arguments in constructor calls and still customize the output of the same-named properties.

Answer 1

Use other names in the primary constructor and the names you want in an auxiliary one:

class MyClass private(_a: String, _b: String, _c: Any) { // _c is a dummy
  def this(a: String = "", b: String = "") = this(a, b, null)
  def a = _a
  def b = if(_b.isEmpty) _a else _b
}