NSString: isEqual vs. isEqualToString
isEqual:
compares a string to an object, and will return NO
if the object is not a string. isEqualToString:
is faster if you know both objects are strings, as the documentation states:
Special Considerations
When you know both objects are strings, this method is a faster way to check equality than
isEqual:
.
isEqualTo<Class>
is used to provide specific checks for equality. For instance; isEqualToArray:
checks that the arrays contain an equal number of objects, and that the objects at a given index return YES
for the isEqual:
test.
Also, for writing your own -isEqual:
and -isEqualTo<Class>:
methods, the convention is to allow nil arguments for -isEqual:
and raise an exception for nil arguments to -isEqualTo<Class>: