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c++inheritancestatic
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Q_A

Reputation: 451

C++ - Do derived classes inherit static members of the base class?

I've got a base class GameObject that has a member

static Cell **grid;

I've also got a derived class Character which is the base class for another class Player. So my question is: will all objects of GameObject, Character, and Player classes have access to that same grid?

Upvotes: 1

Views: 1332

Answers (3)

Brent Bradburn
Brent Bradburn

Reputation: 54869

A Player is a Character, which is a GameObject. So yes, they all have access to the static grid.

...Subject to access protection of course (as pointed out by Sam). So you need to declare grid within a public or protected region for this to be true, and furthermore, you would need to declare the inheritance using protected or public modes:

class GameObject
   {
protected:
   static Cell **grid;
   };

class Character : protected GameObject
   {
   };

Upvotes: 4

artybug
artybug

Reputation: 30

I believe that unless you explicitly use the protected modifier, this property would be considered private. In your example, you didn't prefix it with either protected or public, so it would be considered private and hence not accessible in the derived classes.

Upvotes: 1

Sam Varshavchik
Sam Varshavchik

Reputation: 118330

The rules for whether the static class members of a base class are available to the immediately derived class, the most derived class, or any other class in between, in the class hierarchy depends on:

  • whether the static class member is public, protected, or private.

  • and, in the inheritance chain, whether each class inherits the base class as a public class, protected class, or a private class.

So the answer to your question is: depends. Depends on these factors.

Upvotes: 1

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