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CS253 Traps

C++ traps for the unwary Java programmer

• This is not a list of all Java/C++ differences.
• Instead, it is a list of differences that are likely to cause problems for a programmer who knows Java but is learning C++.

• Don’t get me wrong—Java is a wonderful language.
  • I have no problems with it.
  • However, C++ is different in some ways.
  • When I point out these differences, there is no implication of superiority.
  • This is not a competition. Please, no wagering.

Prophecy

In 1572, Nostradamus wrote:

Age

• C++: 1983
• Java: 1995

If you ask, “Why doesn’t C++ do such-and-such a thing like Java?”, then you’re asking the wrong question.

I resemble my father—he doesn’t resemble me.

Methods & Functions

• A function is a bunch of code with a name.
• A method is a function that’s part of a class.
• methods ⊂ functions
• A free function is a function that’s not part of a class.
• Java has methods
  • In Java, everything’s a method, because everything’s in a class.
• C++ has functions & methods
  • C++ has methods inside of classes, such as string::length().
  • However, C++ also has functions outside of classes, like main() & exit().

main

• Java: public static void main(String[] args)
• C++: int main()
• C++: int main(int argc, char *argv[])

In C++, the main() function returns an int indicating success/failure. Zero means success, positive numbers means failure. It’s not a boolean value—it’s an integer code.

In C++, main() uses an array of old-style C char * strings, for compatibility with C.

Poor George Boole

bool b = true;
if (b)
    cout << "C++ rules!\n";

C++ rules!

boolean b = true;
if (b)
    System.out.println("Java drools!");

Java drools!

Neither is “Boole”, which was the guy’s name.

Booleanosity

In Java, true is true. In C++, a non-zero value is true. So is a pointer, unless it’s nullptr.

if (42)
    System.out.println("true in Java");

Code.java:1: error: incompatible types: int cannot be converted to boolean
class Code { public static void main(String[] args) { if (42)
                                                          ^
1 error

if (true && 42 && 3.14159 && 'x' && "hello")
    cout << "true in C++\n";

true in C++

Byte

• Java: char, byte
• C++: char
• C++: byte (C++17)

C++’s char type is the closest approximation to Java’s byte.

Java’s char can hold Unicode characters. C++’s char has an implementation-defined size, but it’s typically a single byte, so ASCII only—no ñ, ⻥, or 😈.

final/const/constexpr

• Java: final
• C++: final, const, constexpr

In Java, final indicates a non-overrideable method, or a constant value.

In C++, final indicates a non-overridable method. const indicates a method that doesn’t alter object state, or a value that you can’t change. constexpr indicates a compile-time constant.

Arrays

• Java: int[] a = new int[100];
• C++: int a[100];

In C++, arrays are not objects. Hence, they have no methods. Hence, you can’t ask an array how long it is. Use a vector or std::array instead, if you want that.

The simple term “array” is, alas, ambiguous. We will use the phrases “C-style array” or std::array to resolve this.

Strings

• Java: String
• C++: string

In Java, classes start with a capital letter. That’s not always so in C++.

"what type am I?"

• Various strings:
  • cout << "a C-style string";
  • cout << "a C++ string, alias std::string"s;
  • char name[] = "C string; no methods";
  • string s = "C++ string initialized with C string";
• A plain quoted string, "foo", is not an object of type std::string. It is an anonymous array of constant characters, or a const char [], which is pretty much the same as const char *.
• On the other hand, "bar"s (with a trailing s) is a C++ string object.
• You can assign a C string to a C++ string, or use a C string to initialize a C++ string.

Objects: heap or not?

• Java: String s = new String;
• C++: string s;
• In Java, objects are always in the heap (dynamic memory), and scalars (int, double) are always on the stack.
• In C++, both objects & scalars can be on the heap or the stack, as you choose. The stack generally makes for easier code—don’t have to invoke new and delete.
• Java programmers have a lot of trouble with this, so this course generally forbids using new in homework. Get used to it!

String Subscripting

String s = "abcdefg";
System.out.println(s.charAt(3));

d

string s = "hijklmn";
cout << s[3] << '\n';
cout << s.at(4) << '\n';

k
l

• Sure, C++ has the string::at() method, but, why?
  • Error checking, that’s why.

Order of Operations

Java yields 5, because the order of operations is defined: left side ++, then right side --, then +.

int n=2;
System.out.print(++n + --n);

5

C++ invokes undefined behavior. The compiler is free to do the operations (++, +, --) in whatever order it likes. The compiler is not required to tell you that you broke the rules, though a good compiler might, if you ask nicely (-Wall):

int n=2;
cout << ++n + --n;  // 🦡

c.cc:2: warning: operation on ‘n’ may be undefined
c.cc:2: warning: operation on ‘n’ may be undefined
4

Plus-sign overloading

• Java:

System.out.println("foobar"+3);

foobar3

• C++:

cout << "foobar"+3 << '\n';

bar

In Java, + is overloaded to handle arguments of String and int, and so yields "foobar3".

C++ performs address arithmetic in this case, and so yields "bar".

Pointers and references

• Java has only references, which are like pointers with automatic indirection.
• C++ has both explicit pointers, and references.

int[] reed = {1,2,3}, sue = reed;
// In Java, reed & sue share data.
reed[0] = 4;
System.out.println(reed[0] + " " + sue[0]);

4 4

vector<int> ben = {1,2,3}, johnny = ben;
// In C++, johnny is a copy of ben.
ben[0] = 4;
cout << ben[0] << ' ' << johnny[0] << '\n';

4 1

This C++ code uses no pointers or references.

Copying

• Java: obj1 = obj2;
• C++: obj1 = obj2;

In Java, this copies a reference. No new object is created, no real data is copied. This is a shallow copy. If I modify obj2, it changes obj1, because there’s only one object, with two references to it.

In C++, the copy ctor of the class is called. This typically copies the data in the object, making this a deep copy. If I modify obj2, obj1 doesn’t change—they’re separate objects.

Method/Member Access

String s = "foobar";
System.out.println(s.length());

6

string a = "xyzzy";
string *b = new string("alakazam");
cout << a.length() << ' ' << b->length() << '\n';
cout << a.size()   << ' ' << b->size()   << '\n';

5 8
5 8

• Java: alpha.beta(), since alpha can only be a reference.
• C++: alpha.beta() or alpha->beta(), because alpha might be an object, a reference to an object, or a pointer to an object.

Garbage Collection

• Java: garbage collection
• C++: delete and delete[]

In C++, your options are (hardest to easiest):

• Allocate memory with new / new[], deallocate with delete / delete[].
• Use container classes like vector or set which do the memory allocation/deallocation for you.
• Just use the stack.

Out of Bounds

• C++ has faith in you (justified or not).
• Java throws an exception.

int a[] = {44, 55, 66};
cout << a[-9]        << endl;  // 🦡
cout << a[-90000000] << endl;  // 🦡

2142055632
SIGSEGV: Segmentation fault

int[] a = {11, 22, 33};
System.out.println(a[-9]);  // 🦡

Exception in thread "main" java.lang.ArrayIndexOutOfBoundsException: -9
	at Code.main(Code.java:2)

Nothingness

• Java: null
• C++: nullptr or NULL or 0

In Java, null is the reference to nothing.

In C++, a pointer to nothing useful can be initialized to nullptr or NULL or 0.

• nullptr is best.
• NULL is compatible with C.
• 0 is just plain silly.

Really, just pointers

⁰/₁

• Java programmers, used to references, tend to think that NULL is magic, and that anything can be null. They often guess that uninitialized variabes are null, whatever that means.
• Only pointers can be nullptr or NULL. Not objects, not numbers, not C++ string objects.
• A 32-bit integer cannot be nullptr or NULL.
• It’s 32 bits. Each bit is either a zero or a one. A bit can’t be anything but zero or one. A bit can’t possibly be null–what would that mean‽ Put those 32 bits together, and you get a number. Nothing else is possible.

Parting Shot