Thread: More parameters vs more methods

Hi there.

I have a theoretical question about good coding practice.

Lets assume I have some kind of GUI component class. This component has a lot of functionality and I would like it to have many attachment points for various listeners.
Now, should I rather do this:

	public void add_some_listener(Listener l);
	public void add_someOther_listener(Listener l);
	public void add_yetAnother_listener(Listener l);

(please ignore the lack of camel-casing; underscores are just used for easier reading)

or would this be more user-friendly:

	public void addListener(ListenerType type, Listener l);
 
	public static enum ListenerType {
		SOME_LISTENER,
		SOME_OTHER_LISTENER,
		YET_ANOTHER_LISTENER;
	}

Then, in comparison, the user could would use it like this:

	public void initComponent() {
		/*
		 * First approach
		 */
		add_some_listener(someListener);
		add_someOther_listener(someListener);
		add_yetAnother_listener(someListener);
 
		/*
		 * Second approach
		 */
		addListener(ListenerType.SOME_LISTENER, someListener);
		addListener(ListenerType.SOME_OTHER_LISTENER, someListener);
		addListener(ListenerType.YET_ANOTHER_LISTENER, someListener);
	}

What do you think is more "clean" and easier to use?

I mean, the second approach would cut down the number of methods; the documentation would be shorter, easier to read, easier to memorize.
On the other hand the enum adds some more code to all of that; you have to simply write more stuff. There is also the problem about passing "null" as an argument.

What should I do? Is this simply a matter of taste or are there any factual benefits to either of those solutions?

Thank you very much.