1.14. Summary¶

• Computer science is the study of problem solving.
• Computer science uses abstraction as a tool for representing both processes and data.
• Abstract data types allow programmers to manage the complexity of a problem domain by hiding the details of the data.
• C++ is a powerful object-oriented language.
• All variables must be declared before use in C++.
• C++ has typical built-in numeric types: int is for integers and float and double are used for floating point depending on the number of digits desired.
• C++ has the Boolean type bool that holds true or false.
• The character data type char holds a single character which is encased in single quotes.
• Pointers are a type of variable that stores a memory address. To declare a pointer, an * is used before the variable name that is supposed to store the location.
• A statically allocated C++ array is an ordered collection of one or more C++ data values of identical type stored in contiguous memory.
• A vector is a dynamically allocated array with many useful methods.
• C++ strings are a sequential collection of zero or more characters.
• A hash table is used to store keys-value pairs. It applies a related hash function to the key in order to compute the location of the associated value. Look-up is typically very fast.
• A set is an unordered collection of unique values.
• Arrays, vectors, and strings are C++ sequential collections.
• Hash tables and sets are nonsequential collections of data.
• In C++, a function definition requires a name, a group of parameters, a return type, and a body.
• Non-fruitful functions in C++ must contain the keyword void in its function definition.
• You can pass variables by value as well as by reference in C++ functions. Passing by reference utilizes the use of pointers.
• Pass by reference is useful when you require a function to return multiple variables.
• To pass an array to a function you need to use an array parameter. The array parameter is denoted by the array variable name followed by set of square brackets ([ and ]).
• Defining a new meaning for an already existing operator (such as the arithmetic operators plus “+” or times “*”) is called overloading the operator. The operators ::, #, ., and ? are reserved and cannot be overloaded.
• Some operators such as =, [], () and -> can only be overloaded as member functions of a class and not as global functions.
• Classes allow programmers to implement abstract data types.
• Programmers can override standard methods as well as create new methods.
• Classes can be organized into hierarchies.
• A class constructor should always invoke the constructor of its parent before continuing on with its own data and behavior.