considering taking the plunge

[Sean McIlroy]

hi all

i'm thinking of "diving into c++", but first i have a couple of
general questions which hopefully somebody here will be kind enough to
answer. my programming background is that i'm fairly familiar with
python, and i once took a single-semester course in c++, although that
was some time ago. here are the questions:

*) are class-instances first class, in the sense of being permissible
arguments for a function and also permissible return-values for a
function?

*) same question as above, except substitute "pointers" for "class-
instances"

hopefully these questions aren't too retarded. unfortunately my c++
instructor was something of a chucklehead; i never managed to see the
big picture, so most of the knowledge subsequently leaked out of my
ears. anyway, thanks if you can help.

peace
stm

[Victor Bazarov]

Sean McIlroy wrote:

i'm thinking of "diving into c++", but first i have a couple of
general questions which hopefully somebody here will be kind enough to
answer. my programming background is that i'm fairly familiar with
python, and i once took a single-semester course in c++, although that
was some time ago. here are the questions:

*) are class-instances first class, in the sense of being permissible
arguments for a function and also permissible return-values for a
function?

Yes. You are allowed to return objects from functions, if that's the
correct understanding of your question.

*) same question as above, except substitute "pointers" for "class-
instances"

Yes, pointers are objects. Even further, you can return references from
functions even though references are not objects.

hopefully these questions aren't too retarded. unfortunately my c++
instructor was something of a chucklehead; i never managed to see the
big picture, so most of the knowledge subsequently leaked out of my
ears. anyway, thanks if you can help.

Get a good book and you can probably undo most of the damage done by
your instructor.

V
--
Please remove capital 'A's when replying by e-mail
I do not respond to top-posted replies, please don't ask

[red floyd]

On Sep 15, 2:21*pm, Sean McIlroy <[e-mail]:

*) are class-instances first class, in the sense of being permissible
arguments for a function and also permissible return-values for a
function?

Yes

*) same question as above, except substitute "pointers" for "class-
instances"

Yes. And the same goes for references as well.

hopefully these questions aren't too retarded. unfortunately my c++
instructor was something of a chucklehead; i never managed to see the
big picture, so most of the knowledge subsequently leaked out of my
ears. anyway, thanks if you can help.

Get a copy of "Accelerated C++" by Koenig and Moo. It's a great book
for beginners who have some programming experience.

[Sean McIlroy]

On Sep 15, 2:51*pm, red floyd <[e-mail]:

On Sep 15, 2:21*pm, Sean McIlroy <[e-mail]:

*) are class-instances first class, in the sense of being permissible
arguments for a function and also permissible return-values for a
function?

Yes

*) same question as above, except substitute "pointers" for "class-
instances"

Yes. *And the same goes for references as well.

hopefully these questions aren't too retarded. unfortunately my c++
instructor was something of a chucklehead; i never managed to see the
big picture, so most of the knowledge subsequently leaked out of my
ears. anyway, thanks if you can help.

Get a copy of "Accelerated C++" by Koenig and Moo. *It's a great book
for beginners who have some programming experience.

i'll look for it. thanks

[newbarker]

On 15 Sep, 22:21, Sean McIlroy <[e-mail]:

*) are class-instances first class, in the sense of being permissible
arguments for a function and also permissible return-values for a
function?

Instances of classes are, yes.

*) same question as above, except substitute "pointers" for "class-
instances"

I'm not overly familiar with the terminology but I know how these
things work so can say the pointers themselves can be copied, assigned
to, etc just like an int or char can, so are first class. The objects
the pointers point to do not get copied when you copy the pointer.

I was reading the Modern C++ Design book last night by Andrei
Alexandrescu (second print). Section 7.2. There's a comparison between
simple pointers and smart pointers and he says:

"An object with value semantics is an object that you can copy and
assign to. Type int is the perfect example of a first-class object
....
Consequently pointers to allocated objects do not have value semantics
- you cannot copy and assign to them at will."

So could you define what you mean by first class, as pointers may or
may not be first class depending on your definition.

Regards,

Pete