What distinguishes inline functions and what are their advantages in programming?

Inline functions in programming are functions that the compiler tries to replace directly with the function code at the call site, rather than making a regular call through the stack. In Android (Kotlin), the keyword inline is used for such functions.

Advantages of inline functions:

• Reducing overhead on function calls. Instead of jumping to the function's address and returning, the code is inserted directly.
• Improving performance, especially for small functions that are called frequently.
• Ability to use reified types in Kotlin, which is not possible in regular generic functions.
• Optimization of lambda expressions, passed to functions, which reduces the creation of additional objects.

However, it is important to remember that excessive use of inline can increase the size of the final code (code bloat). Therefore, inline functions are usually used for small and frequently called functions.