Self Assignment check in Copy ctor

[AlgoMan]

Do you need to provide a self assignment check in a copy ctor
(like you provide in an assignment operator).

If not, why not?

[Artie Gold]

AlgoMan wrote:

Do you need to provide a self assignment check in a copy ctor
(like you provide in an assignment operator).

If not, why not?

<sarcasm>
"Do you smell something?"

"Yeah."

"What is it?"

"Wait...it's, it's..."

"Yup. Smells like homework to me..."

"Me too."
</sarcasm>

Two words: What `self'?

HTH,
--ag
--
Artie Gold -- Austin, Texas
http://it-matters.blogspot.com (new post 12/5)
http://www.cafepress.com/goldsays

[Clark S. Cox III]

On 2005-02-05 16:45:27 -0500, "AlgoMan" <al*****@mailinator.com> said:

Do you need to provide a self assignment check in a copy ctor
(like you provide in an assignment operator).

If not, why not?

Just think about it, what does a self assignment check actually check for?

--
Clark S. Cox, III
cl*******@gmail.com

[Risto Lankinen]

> AlgoMan wrote:

Do you need to provide a self assignment check in a copy ctor
(like you provide in an assignment operator).

Artie Gold <ar*******@austin.rr.com> wrote in message news:<36*************@individual.net>... Two words: What `self'?
Well, you know, the... the... the 'self':

- - -

struct C
{
C( const C &r )
{
if( this == &r )
{
cout << "Hello myself!" << endl;
}
}
};

int main()
{
C c(c);
}

- - -

(Go ahead, try it out if you don't believe it works!)
AlgoMan wrote:

If not, why not?

Because the risk is very very small that somebody would
accidentally copy-initialize with reference to self. It
can be done, but the only way to do it is deliberately.

- Risto -

[Ron Natalie]

AlgoMan wrote:

Do you need to provide a self assignment check in a copy ctor
(like you provide in an assignment operator).

If not, why not?

It's possible to initialize an object with itself, but it's not overly
useful nor something most worry about. Assignment is another matter.