copy constructor

[brekehan]

Do you need to release any resources that have been allocated in for
object's member data before assigning new data in a copy constructor?


Bleh & Bleh(const Bleh rhs)
{
// Is this needed? Can a copy constructor ever get called on an
existing instance of an object?
delete bleh_member;

bleh_member = new Something();
bleh_member->SetData(rhs.bleh_member->(GetData());
}

 

[Thomas Tutone]

Do you need to release any resources that have been allocated in for
object's member data before assigning new data in a copy constructor?

No. It sounds like you're confusing the copy constructor - which
constructs a _new_ object - with the assignment operator, aka
operator=(), which operates on an existing object.

Bleh & Bleh(const Bleh rhs)
{
// Is this needed? Can a copy constructor ever get called on an
existing instance of an object?
No.

delete bleh_member;

bleh_member = new Something();
bleh_member->SetData(rhs.bleh_member->(GetData());
}

Best regards,

Tom

 

[Rolf Magnus]

Do you need to release any resources that have been allocated in for
object's member data before assigning new data in a copy constructor?


Bleh & Bleh(const Bleh rhs)

This is quite a bit off if it's supposed to be a copy constructor.
Constructors don't return anything, and a copy constructor must take a
reference.

{
// Is this needed? Can a copy constructor ever get called on an
existing instance of an object?

No. Constructors construct new objects. They are never called on existing
objects (at least not in a correct program).