Overloading post-increment operator

Question

MyClass MyClass::operator++(int) {
    return ++(*this);
}

That's the code I have written. I works correctly, but all tutorials say that I have to create a temporary object and return it:

MyClass MyClass::operator++(int) {
    MyClass tmp = *this;
    ++(*this);
    return tmp;
}

Please tell me which way is the best?

Answer 1

The first version is wrong, because it returns the new value. The postincrement operator is supposed to return the old value.

Answer 2

Second One! Post Increment means that the variable is incremented after the expression is evaluated.

Simple example:

int i = 10;
int j = i++;

cout<<j; //j = 10
cout<<i; // i = 11

Your First example would make j = 11, which is incorrect.

Answer 3

The tutorials are correct.

Your version returns the wrong value. The post-increment operator is supposed to return the previous value, not the new value. Check for yourself with a plain old int:

int x = 5;
int y = x++;
cout << x << y << endl; // prints 56, not 66.