Core C++, 3 of N: Overload Resolution -- Stephan T. Lavavej

By Blog Staff | Jul 24, 2012 07:36 PM | Tags: intermediate advanced

Core C++, 3 of N: Overload Resolution -- Stephan T. Lavavej

Stephan T. Lavavej, aka STL, will take us on a journey of discovery within the exciting world of Core C++. We know lots of folks are either coming back to C++, coming to C++, or have never left C++. This lecture series, in n parts, is for all of you! Only STL can make that work (novice, intermediate, and advanced all bundled together and presented in a way only STL can do).

In Part 3, STL digs into Overload Resolution. A function template can overload non-template functions of the same name. In this scenario, function calls are resolved by first using template argument deduction to instantiate the function template with a unique specialization (STL taught us all about TAD in Part 2). If template argument deduction fails, the other function overloads are considered to resolve the call. These other overloads, also known as the candidate set, include nontemplate functions and other instantiated function templates. If template argument deduction succeeds, then the generated function is compared with the other functions to determine the best match, following the rules for overload resolution. [source]

As STL says: "I walk through why foo(const T&) beats foo(const T *), when given int *. The reason is surprisingly subtle."

Tune in.

C++ Primer 5th Edition, Part 1: How To Revise a Textbook

By Blog Staff | Jul 23, 2012 04:14 PM | Tags: None

The C++11 update to the classic C++ Primer is almost here! Andy Koenig reports:

Barbara Moo shipped the completed text of the C++ Primer, Fifth Edition to the publisher on July 13. As far as I know, copies are already being printed; they should be on bookstore shelves by mid-August.

This book has been a major project for her for the past two years or so, and an all-consuming one since about the beginning of this year. I've spent a fair amount of time on it as well: reading drafts, making comments and suggestions, running test programs, and so on. As a result, I've had a pretty good idea of what she's been thinking about as she wrote the book, and I'm in a position not only to tell you what I've learned about her strategy, but also why I think her strategy is a sensible one

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Core C++, 2 of N: Template Argument Deduction -- Stephan T. Lavavej

By Blog Staff | Jul 9, 2012 07:35 PM | Tags: advanced

Core C++, 2 of N: Template Argument Deduction -- Stephan T. Lavavej

Stephan T. Lavavej, aka STL, will take us on a journey of discovery within the exciting world of Core C++. We know lots of folks are either coming back to C++, coming to C++, or have never left C++. This lecture series, in n parts, is for all of you! Only STL can make that work (novice, intermediate, and advanced all bundled together and presented in a way only STL can do).

In part 2, STL will teach us all about Template Argument Deduction. Template arguments are deduced when a call is made to a template function, but some or all template arguments are omitted. The compiler will attempt to deduce the intended template arguments. In most cases, this works as expected. If it does not, a compilation error occurs, in which case you should specify the template arguments explicitly. Now, let's see what Stephan has to say about this.

Tune in. Learn.