C++ Builder also has them in their extensions to C++. My guess is that it looks convenient for languages that have a de facto GUI framework/library. In Delphi/O

C++ Builder also has them in their extensions to C++. My guess is that it looks convenient for languages that have a de facto GUI framework/library. In Delphi/Object Pascal, C#, C++ Builder, it becomes convenient to, for example, change a button's text as if assigning to its text value. And it is often taken for granted how the form's UI just "magically" updates. I'm pretty sure classic VB's control "properties" work that way as well. When I was new to their corresponding GUI frameworks, the dot + property notation was appealing because it looked clean. However, as I got more experienced I'm no longer seeing the advantage of saving two parentheses characters at the expense of potentially hiding function calls where anything can happen. I'm not sure why D joined the club given it doesn't have a corresponding de facto GUI framework, and its users even discourage it.