Explain the programming steps necessary to make a class's member function static.

To create and use a static member function in a class, follow these steps: 1. Understand the purpose: Static member functions are class-level functions that don't depend on a class instance and can be called without creating an object of the class. These functions can access static data members and other static member functions but not non-static members. 2. Create a class: Define a class where you want to implement the static member function. For example: ```cpp class Counter { public: Counter() { count++; } private: static int count; }; ``` 3. Initialize the static data member: Ensure the static data member is initialized outside the class. In our case, initialize the `count` variable to 0. ```cpp int Counter::count = 0; ``` 4. Declare a static member function: Add the `static` keyword before the return type of the function in the class declaration. ```cpp class Counter { public: Counter() { count++; } static int getCount() { return count; } private: static int count; }; ``` 5. Call the static member function: Call the static member function directly using the class name and scope resolution operator. ```cpp #include using namespace std; int main() { Counter c1; Counter c2; Counter c3; cout << "Number of instances created: " << Counter::getCount() << endl; return 0; } ``` This example demonstrates the creation and use of static member functions in a class, resulting in the output: ``` Number of instances created: 3 ```