Re: [pygccxml-development] special functions/operators

[Matthias B. <ba...@ir...>]

Neal Becker wrote:
>>>> cls = mb.class_("X")
>>>> f = mb.free_function( "addAssign" )
>>>> cls.add_method( f )
> 
> I don't understand all of what you guys said, but it sounds like this is what 
> I had in mind.
> 
> f = mb.free_function ("addAssign")
> 
> what is "free_function"?  Is this new or already existing?

It's the syntax of the Py++ high-level API, the pypp_api equivalent is 
the Function() method.

So back to your initial example. Using the add_method approach you could 
write the following:

f = root.Function("addAssign")
f.rename("__iadd__")
f.setPolicy(return_self())
root.Class("X").addMethod(f)

Currently, you would have to write the following instead:

root.Class("X").cdef("__iadd__", "addAssign", return_self())


Well, if *I* had to choose in this example, I would still use the latter 
option because of its brevity. Your goal has been to be less "low level" 
and get to a "better" API. But frankly, I don't see how the first option 
should have achieved these goals.

But don't get me wrong, I don't say that add_method() is always a bad 
thing and cdef() is always better. There's merit in having something 
like add_method(), but probably not in this particular case (which was 
used as an example that a new API should improve).

- Matthias -