[LC++]Is there a place for public data members?

[Mark Phillips]

Hi,

Instead of doing

class myClassTy {
public:
  int myInt;
};

another approach is to do:

class myClassTy {
private:
  int myIntVt;
public:
  int myInt() const {return myIntVt;}
  int& myInt() {return myIntVt;}
};

The impression I have gained is that people think the latter is 
better because it allows myClassTy to be implemented differently 
later on if I so desire, without it affecting code that uses myClassTy.

But are there cases where it is overkill?  Should I only take the
latter approach for more complicated kinds of classes, or is it
wise to _always_ take the latter approach?  If the former approach
is sometimes appropriate, is there any rule-of-thumb for determining
which approach to use in a given situation?

Of course this is all probably a matter of opinion... but I'm interested
in hearing what people's opinions are.

Thanks,

Mark.