Invoking One Member Function from Another

As you might expect, it is legal and common to invoke one member function from another. For example, to normalize a complex number, you divide through (both parts) by the absolute value. It may not be obvious why this is useful, but it is.

Let's write the function normalize as a member function, and let's make it a modifier.

The first line finds the absolute value of the current object by invoking abs on the current object. In this case I named the current object explicitly, but I could have left it out. If you invoke one member function within another, C++ assumes that you are invoking it on the current object.

As an exercise, rewrite normalize as a pure function. Then rewrite it as a nonmember function.