What are the differences between operator overloading and inheritance in C++?

What are the differences between operator overloading and inheritance in C++?

Operator overloading allows you to define custom behavior for operators (like +, -, etc.) for user-defined types, while inheritance is a way to create a new class based on an existing class, allowing for code reuse and polymorphism.

Can you give me an example of operator overloading?

Sure! Here's a simple example:

class Complex {
public:
    float real, imag;
    Complex operator+(const Complex &other) {
        return Complex{real + other.real, imag + other.imag};
    }
};

This overloads the + operator to add two Complex numbers.

And how about inheritance? Can you show me that?

Absolutely! Here's a basic example of inheritance:

class Animal {
public:
    void speak() { std::cout << "Animal speaks"; }
};

class Dog : public Animal {
public:
    void speak() { std::cout << "Woof!"; }
};

In this case, Dog inherits from Animal and can override the speak method.

When should I use operator overloading instead of inheritance?

Use operator overloading when you want to define custom operations for your classes, while inheritance is best for establishing a hierarchical relationship between classes. They serve different purposes.