Example of Object-Oriented Programming (OOP) in C++

This article provides an illustrative example of object-oriented programming (OOP) in C++, covering concepts such as classes, objects, inheritance, and polymorphism.

In C++, object-oriented programming is a programming paradigm that allows you to organize code in a way that makes it easier to manage and extend. This article will present the basic concepts of OOP through practical examples.

C++ code

#include <iostream>
#include <string>

// Base Class
class Animal {
public:
    // Method to display animal sound
    virtual void speak() {
        std::cout << "Animal speaks" << std::endl;
    }
};

// Derived Class from Animal
class Dog : public Animal {
public:
    // Override the speak method
    void speak() override {
        std::cout << "Dog barks" << std::endl;
    }
};

// Derived Class from Animal
class Cat : public Animal {
public:
    // Override the speak method
    void speak() override {
        std::cout << "Cat meows" << std::endl;
    }
};

int main() {
    Animal* animal1 = new Dog(); // Create Dog object
    Animal* animal2 = new Cat(); // Create Cat object

    animal1->speak(); // Call speak method of Dog
    animal2->speak(); // Call speak method of Cat

    delete animal1; // Free memory
    delete animal2; // Free memory

    return 0;
}

Detailed explanation

• #include <iostream>: Library for input/output functionality.
• #include <string>: Library for string data type.
• class Animal: Declaration of the base class Animal.
• virtual void speak(): A virtual method that can be overridden in derived classes.
• class Dog : public Animal: Declaration of the Dog class inheriting from Animal.
• void speak() override: Override the speak method from the base class.
• Animal* animal1 = new Dog(): Create a Dog object and assign it to an Animal pointer.
• animal1->speak(): Call the speak method for the Dog object.
• delete animal1;: Free memory for the Dog object.

System Requirements:

• C++ compiler (such as g++ or MSVC)

How to install the libraries needed to run the C++ code above:

Just install a C++ compiler.

Tips:

• Use virtual methods to achieve polymorphism in OOP.
• Be mindful of memory management to avoid memory leaks.

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