“As it suggests, this article (or tutorial, if you will) is all
about OOP in the computer language C++. Okay, let’s get to the
intros. The name’s Williams, Mike Williams. My mission? To teach
novice programmers, such as yourselves about the art of
programming. Through the months, I’m hoping to take you through a
variety of programming techniques, starting right here, right now
with C++. Are you sitting comfortably? Then I shall begin….”
“OOP is undoubtedly one of the most complex programming
techniques to explain. In fact, it’s not so much a ‘technique’
rather than a whole new method of looking at programming
itself. There are entire books on the subject, and it’s well
beyond the scope of this article to introduce you to every
philosophy and implication of OOP. To understand OOP, you must
first understand what programming was like before OOP.”
“Back then, the basic definition of programming was this : a
program is a sequence of logical instructions followed by the
computer. And that’s it. All well and good, but let’s face it, it’s
hardly inspiring. Until now, that is. It’s been hiding in the
background for quite some time now, but OOP has finally taken off.
In an OO programming language, the emphasis is placed far more on
the data, or the ‘objects’ used and how the programmer manipulates
them. Before OOP, numbers were simply an address in memory; a
sequence of bytes that meant nothing. Now, however, through OOP
they have become far more than that. The program is now a solution
to whatever problem it is you have, but now it is done in the terms
of the objects that define that problem, and using functions that
work with those objects. Confused? Don’t worry, you won’t need to
understand OOP to use it within your programs. Indeed, the best way
to learn what OOP is all about is through using it in your
programming.”