What does 'inheritance' allow a new class to do?

Inheritance enables a new class to derive properties and behaviors from an existing class, which is often referred to as the parent or base class. This mechanism allows the new class, known as the child or derived class, to access and utilize the properties (attributes) and methods (functions) defined in the parent class without needing to rewrite or replicate that code.

By using inheritance, developers can create a hierarchy of classes that promotes code reuse and establishes a relationship between different classes. For example, if there is a base class named "Vehicle" that has properties like "speed" and methods like "drive," a derived class like "Car" can inherit these attributes, gaining access to the "speed" property and the "drive" method. This allows for a more organized structure and easier maintenance of code, as any changes made to the parent class can automatically apply to all derived classes unless they are overridden.

Using inheritance helps in building a robust design, where common functionalities are centralized in parent classes, while specific functionalities can be implemented in the derived classes. In this way, inheritance fosters efficient code management and better alignment of software design principles.