Things you can do in C++ ... just a bit beyond the first basics of a class:

1. You can declare that a method is const if it doesn't change any of the instance variables and that will make it a bit more efficient when you run it.

2. You can refer to an instance variable within a method using this-> if you want to use the same variable name for a parameter to the method (or as a local variable within it)

3. You can declare a destructor method (which has the same name as the class name preceded by a ~ - a tilde) which is code to be run when you've finished with an object, and before the program finishes

4. You can have two methods of the same name but with a different 'pattern' of parameters, and your program will work out which is the one you're calling in each case. This is similar to polymorphism ... but not actually polymorphism; Polymorphism IS supported by C++ as well!

These are all just slightly beyond the first basics, and you certainly won't use ALL of them in a single program (unless you're doing a class exercise as I was yesterday!) Here are sample declarations for three of these techniques:

class MSheet {
 public:
  MSheet(float ecs, float why);
  MSheet(float ecs); // No. 4 - 2 methods of same name
  ~MSheet(); // No. 3 - destructor
  void setx(float size);
  void sety(float size) ;
  float getarea() const; // No. 1 - const
 private:
  float x;
  float y;
 };


and for "this":

MSheet::MSheet(float x, float yy) {
 this->x = x; // No. 2 - this

(written 2006-11-14, updated 2009-01-01)

 C239 - C and C based languages - Putting it all together
  [836] Build on what you already have with OO - (2006-08-17)
  [945] Code quality counts - (2006-11-26)
  [1181] Good Programming practise - where to initialise variables - (2007-05-09)
  [2646] Compile but do not run PHP - syntax check only - (2010-02-22)
  [2673] Multiple Inheritance in C++ - a complete example - (2010-03-12)
  [2674] Make and makefiles - a commented example to help you learn - (2010-03-12)
  [2851] Further C++ material - view new or old - (2010-07-04)
  [3067] Using C and C++ functions in the same program - how to do it - (2010-11-24)
  [3069] Strings, Garbage Collection and Variable Scope in C++ - (2010-11-25)
  [3252] C++ - unknown array size, unknown object type. Help! - (2011-04-17)
  [3810] Reading files, and using factories to create vectors of objects from the data in C++ - (2012-07-21)
  [4326] Learning to program - comments, documentation and test code - (2014-11-22)
  [4374] Test driven development, and class design, from first principles (using C++) - (2014-12-30)
  [4559] When do I use the this keyword in C++? - (2015-10-29)

C233 - C and C based languages - OO in C++ - beyond the basics
  [798] References and Pointers in C++ - (2006-07-10)
  [801] Simple polymorphism example - C++ - (2006-07-14)
  [831] Comparison of Object Oriented Philosophy - Python, Java, C++, Perl - (2006-08-13)
  [1217] What are factory and singleton classes? - (2007-06-04)
  [1572] C - structs and unions, C++ classes and polymorphism - (2008-03-13)
  [1674] What a lot of files! (C++ / Polymorphism demo) - (2008-06-12)
  [1819] Calling base class constructors - (2008-10-03)
  [2577] Complete teaching example - C++, inheritance, polymorphism - (2010-01-15)
  [2845] Objects and Inheritance in C++ - an easy start - (2010-07-01)
  [3056] C++ - a complete example with polymorphism, and how to split it into project files - (2010-11-16)
  [3123] C++ objects - some short, single file demonstrations - (2011-01-07)
  [3124] C++ - putting the language elements together into a program - (2011-01-08)
  [3142] Private and Public - and things between - (2011-01-22)
  [3244] C and C++ - preprocess, compile, load, run - what each step is for - (2011-04-12)
  [3251] C++ - objects that are based on other objects, saving coding and adding robustness - (2011-04-17)
  [3508] Destructor methods in C++ - a primer - (2011-11-05)
  [3811] Associated Classes - using objects of one class within another - (2012-07-21)
  [3979] Extended and Associated objects - what is the difference - C++ example - (2013-01-18)
  [4356] Object factories in C++, Python, PHP and Perl - (2014-12-19)
  [4375] Final examples for 2014 - and a look at our 2015 training course options - (2014-12-31)
  [4377] Designing a base class and subclasses, and their extension, in C++ - (2015-01-01)
  [4560] Variables, Pointers and References - C and C++ - (2015-10-29)

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