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From: bs@alice.UUCP
Newsgroups: comp.lang.c++
Subject: Re: Two dumb questions.
Message-ID: <7444@alice.UUCP>
Date: Sun, 15-Nov-87 08:46:28 EST
Article-I.D.: alice.7444
Posted: Sun Nov 15 08:46:28 1987
Date-Received: Mon, 16-Nov-87 05:44:19 EST
References: <203@caeco.UUCP> <4880003@hpiacla.HP.COM>
Organization: AT&T Bell Laboratories, Murray Hill NJ
Lines: 16
Summary: . and ::



In ye olden days . was used instead of :: in member function definitions:

	myclass.myfunction() { ... }

A surprising amount of confusion arose from the fact that . here was used in
the same way as :: was used in expressions. So it was changed:

	myclass::myfunction() { ... }

and the confusion went away. This all happened before the book and before the
release of the software. However, there was already quite a bit of code around
so the dot notation was supported as an anachronism. See pg 311. Don't use it.
It will eventually go away even in cfront. Newer compilers are unlikely to
support anachonisms.