The + overload constructs a new object. Perl uses that overload, and then overwrites the stored value. This means every += op creates a new object

Thanks for the explanation - helps me understand what's going on, and also helps me understand the overload documentation.
Not that it needed to be checked, but with the help of Devel::Peek::Dump() I was able to verify that, with Math::GMP, the address of the object does indeed change with every +=
And I was also able to verify that the same is not true of Math::GMPz.

I find this overloading of '=' to be a bit of a headache, in that it provides a lot more rope than I would like.
WRT Math::GMP, if you have a Math::GMP object ($x) to which you wish to add, say, 4 then there's 2 ways you can do that: 
$x += 4;
or
$x->add_ui_gmp(4);

[download]
They both do the same thing in that they increase the value held in $x by 4.
But they don't do the same thing if they were preceded by $x = $orig; where $orig is a Math::GMP object: 
$x = $orig;
$x += 4; # $orig remains unchanged
         # $x has been incremented by 4

[download]
VERSUS: 
$x = $orig;
$x->add_ui_gmp(4); # Both $x and $orig have
                   # been incremented by 4

[download]
AFAIK, the same sort of trap occurs in every math module that overloads '=', including my own Math modules, along with Math::BigInt and Math::BigFloat. (This is not limited to Math::GMP, and I'm not singling it out.)
Although it doesn't really fit with the title I've given this thread, a second question is "Should the documentation of the module (eg Math::GMP) draw attention to this trap ?".
Or is it acceptable to say nothing and put the onus of dodging the trap upon the user ?

BTW, this all started with this Math::MPFR bug report, which is about this same trap in a different module. I keep changing my mind about what, if anything, should be done ....

Cheers,
Rob

In reply to Re^2: How does Math::GMP overload the assignment operator ? by syphilis
in thread How does Math::GMP overload the assignment operator ? by syphilis

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