C++ Tutorial

Rob Jagnow

Overview
Pointers Arrays and strings Parameter passing Class basics Constructors & destructors Class Hierarchy Virtual Functions Coding tips Advanced topics

Pointers
int *intPtr; intPtr = new int; *intPtr = 6837;

Create a pointer

Allocate memory
Set value at given address
*intPtr intPtr 6837

0x0050

delete intPtr; int otherVal = 5; intPtr = &otherVal; *intPtr intPtr

Deallocate memory Change intPtr to point to a new location

5 0x0054 otherVal &otherVal

Arrays
Stack allocation
int intArray[10]; intArray[0] = 6837;

Heap allocation
int *intArray; intArray = new int[10]; intArray[0] = 6837; ... delete[] intArray;

Strings
A string in C++ is an array of characters
char myString[20]; strcpy(myString, "Hello World");

Strings are terminated with the NULL or '\0' character

myString[0] = 'H'; myString[1] = 'i'; myString[2] = '\0';

printf("%s", myString);

output: Hi

Parameter Passing
pass by value
int add(int a, int b) { return a+b; } int a, b, sum; sum = add(a, b);

Make a local copy of a and b

pass by reference
int add(int *a, int *b) { return *a + *b; } int a, b, sum; sum = add(&a, &b);

Pass pointers that reference a and b. Changes made to a or b will be reflected outside the add routine

Parameter Passing
pass by reference alternate notation
int add(int &a, int &b) { return a+b; } int a, b, sum; sum = add(a, b);

Class Basics
#ifndef _IMAGE_H_ #define _IMAGE_H_ #include <assert.h> #include "vectors.h class Image { public: ... private: ... }; #endif

Prevents multiple references Include a library file Include a local file

Variables and functions accessible from anywhere

Variables and functions accessible only from within this classs functions

Creating an instance
Stack allocation
Image myImage; myImage.SetAllPixels(ClearColor);

Heap allocation
Image *imagePtr; imagePtr = new Image(); imagePtr->SetAllPixels(ClearColor); ... delete imagePtr;

Organizational Strategy
image.h

Header file: Class definition & function prototypes

void SetAllPixels(const Vec3f &color);

image.C

.C file: Full function definitions

void Image::SetAllPixels(const Vec3f &color) { for (int i = 0; i < width*height; i++) data[i] = color; } main.C

Main code: Function references

myImage.SetAllPixels(clearColor);

Constructors & Destructors

class Image { public: Image(void) { width = height = 0; data = NULL; } ~Image(void) { if (data != NULL) delete[] data; }

Constructor: Called whenever a new instance is created

Destructor: Called whenever an instance is deleted

int width; int height; Vec3f *data;

};

Constructors
Constructors can also take parameters
Image(int w, int h) { width = w; height = h; data = new Vec3f[w*h]; }

Using this constructor with stack or heap allocation:

Image myImage = Image(10, 10); Image *imagePtr; imagePtr = new Image(10, 10);

stack allocation heap allocation

The Copy Constructor

Image(Image *img) { width = img->width; height = img->height; data = new Vec3f[width*height]; for (int i=0; i<width*height; i++) data[i] = img->data[i]; }

A default copy constructor is created automatically, but it is often not what you want:
Image(Image *img) { width = img->width; height = img->height; data = img->data; }

Passing Classes as Parameters

If a class instance is passed by value, the copy constructor will be used to make a copy.
bool IsImageGreen(Image img);

Computationally expensive

Its much faster to pass by reference:

bool IsImageGreen(Image *img);

or
bool IsImageGreen(Image &img);

Class Hierarchy
Child classes inherit parent attributes Object3D
class Object3D { Vec3f color; }; class Sphere : public Object3D { float radius; }; class Cone : public Object3D { float base; float height; };

Sphere

Cone

Class Hierarchy
Child classes can call parent functions
Sphere::Sphere() : Object3D() { radius = 1.0; Call the parent constructor }

Child classes can override parent functions

class Object3D { virtual void setDefaults(void) { color = RED; } }; class Sphere : public Object3D { void setDefaults(void) { color = BLUE; radius = 1.0 } };
Superclass Subclass

Virtual Functions
A superclass pointer can reference a subclass object
Sphere *mySphere = new Sphere(); Object3D *myObject = mySphere;

If a superclass has virtual functions, the correct subclass version will automatically be selected
Superclass Subclass

class Object3D { virtual void intersect(Ray *r, Hit *h); }; class Sphere : public Object3D { virtual void intersect(Ray *r, Hit *h); };
myObject->intersect(ray, hit);

Actually calls
Sphere::intersect

Pure Virtual Functions

A pure virtual function has a prototype, but no definition. Used when a default implementation does not make sense.
class Object3D { virtual void intersect(Ray *r, Hit *h) = 0; };

A class with a pure virtual function is called a pure virtual class and cannot be instantiated. (However, its subclasses can).

The main function

This is where your code begins execution
int main(int argc, char** argv);

Number of arguments

Array of strings

argv[0] is the program name argv[1] through argv[argc-1] are command-line input

Coding tips
Use the #define compiler directive for constants
#define PI 3.14159265 #define MAX_ARRAY_SIZE 20

Use the printf or cout functions for output and debugging

printf("value: %d, %f\n", myInt, myFloat); cout << "value:" << myInt << ", " << myFloat << endl;

Use the assert function to test always true conditions

assert(denominator != 0); quotient = numerator/denominator;

Coding tips
After you delete an object, also set its value to NULL (This is not done for you automatically)
delete myObject; myObject = NULL;

This will make it easier to debug memory allocation errors

assert(myObject != NULL); myObject->setColor(RED);

Segmentation fault (core dumped)

Typical causes:
int intArray[10]; intArray[10] = 6837;

Access outside of array bounds

Image *img; img->SetAllPixels(ClearColor);

Attempt to access a NULL or previously deleted pointer

These errors are often very difficult to catch and can cause erratic, unpredictable behavior.

Common Pitfalls
void setToRed(Vec3f v) { v = RED; }

Since v is passed by value, it will not get updated outside of The set function

The fix:
void setToRed(Vec3f &v) { v = RED; }

or
void setToRed(Vec3f *v) { *v = RED; }

Common Pitfalls
Sphere* getRedSphere() { Sphere s = Sphere(1.0); s.setColor(RED); return &s; }

C++ automatically deallocates stack memory when the function exits, so the returned pointer is invalid. The fix:
Sphere* getRedSphere() { Sphere *s = new Sphere(1.0); s->setColor(RED); return s; }

It will then be your responsibility to delete the Sphere object later.

Advanced topics
Lots of advanced topics, but few will be required for this course

friend or protected class members

inline functions const or static functions and variables compiler directives operator overloading
Vec3f& operator+(Vec3f &a, Vec3f &b);