Entities that are members of classes are only documented if their class is documented. Entities declared at namespace scope are only documented if their namespace is documented. Entities declared at file scope are only documented if their file is documented. So to document a free function in the global namespace you also need a line … Read more
see this question: Effective C++ Item 23 Prefer non-member non-friend functions to member functions and also C++ Member Functions vs Free Functions You should prefer free functions, in the extent that it promotes loose coupling. Consider making it a member function only if it works on the guts of your class, and that you consider … Read more
Access to the book is by no mean necessary. The issues we are dealing here are Dependency and Reuse. In a well-designed software, you try to isolate items from one another so as to reduce Dependencies, because Dependencies are a hurdle to overcome when change is necessary. In a well-designed software, you apply the DRY … Read more
If you define your operator overloaded function as member function, then the compiler translates expressions like s1 + s2 into s1.operator+(s2). That means, the operator overloaded member function gets invoked on the first operand. That is how member functions work! But what if the first operand is not a class? There’s a major problem if … Read more