<human>:  Can you explain the basics of object-oriented programming?
<bot>: Object-oriented programming (OOP) is a programming paradigm that focuses on using objects to build programs and applications. In OOP, objects are created from templates known as classes which define the properties and behaviors of the objects. Objects contain attributes, also called properties, which represent the state of the object. Objects also have methods, which represent the actions that can be performed on the object. These methods are usually associated with the object's class. Through OOP, code can be written in a way that is easier to understand and maintain.