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Learn Object-Oriented Programming in C++

Abstraction in Header Files

Explore how to implement abstraction in C++ by dividing code into header and implementation files. Understand how header files hide class details from users, enabling better data hiding, encapsulation, and code reusability.

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When our goal is to hide the unnecessary details from the users, we can divide the code into different files. This is where header files come into play.

Creating Header Files

Let’s take a look at the Circle class below.

C++
#include <iostream>
using namespace std;
class Circle{
  double radius;
  double pi;
  
  public:
  Circle (){
    radius = 0;
    pi = 3.142;
  }
  Circle(double r){
    radius = r;
    pi = 3.142;
  }
  
  double area(){
    return pi * radius * radius;
  }
  
  double perimeter(){
    return 2 * pi * radius;
  }
};
int main() {
  Circle c(5);
  cout << "Area: " << c.area() << endl;
  cout << "Perimeter: " << c.perimeter() << endl;
}

To hide our class, we will follow a few steps. The first step is to create a header file. This file will only contain the declaration of the class and ...