/usr/bin/gcc (from gcc-2.7.2.3-14) knows to invoke cc1plus when compiling C++ source files (namely, files that end in ".cc"). However, cc1plus is not included in this RPM, with the result that "gcc main.cc" responds with gcc: installation problem, cannot exec `cc1plus': No such file or directory I can compile successfully with "g++ main.cc", but the behavior and installation of /usr/bin/gcc are, by all rational standards, broken.
gcc is supplied with Red Hat 5.2 mainly for the purposes of building 2.0.x kernels. C++ development should use egcs for C++, and programs that mix CC and C++ code should use egcs everywhere.