Re: [boost] [safebool] Can we generalize it and put it into utilities?

Subject: Re: [boost] [safebool] Can we generalize it and put it into utilities?
From: Stewart, Robert (Robert.Stewart_at_[hidden])
Date: 2009-04-01 08:32:38

On Tuesday, March 31, 2009 6:07 PM
Vladimir Batov wrote:
> > Stewart, Robert <Robert.Stewart <at> sig.com> writes:
> >
> > > { return safebool<Foo>(c); }
> > > { return safebool<Foo>::apply(c); }
> >
> > The former relies on creating a temporary and accessing a
> nested type,
> > ... The latter involves a static member function, ...
> > It's just a more straightforward mechanism with more consistency
> > between the return type and invocation,
> > together making it slightly nicer.
>
> I actually agree with you... but that's implementation detail
> that the user does
> not care or deal with. As for the interface due to utter
> simplicity of that
> safe_bool I'd like it to be deployable with as little effort
> as possible.
> Therefore, I feel from the *user* point of view the former
> wins over the latter.

That was the point of view from which I was looking, too.  I think the following is the easier usage because of the consistency (highlighted, to be sure, by the formatting used here):

struct Foo
{
   operator safe_bool<Foo>::type()
   { return safe_bool<Foo>::apply(condition); }
};

This is a valid case to reserve until review in the hopes of getting additional opinions.

_____
Rob Stewart                           robert.stewart_at_[hidden]
Software Engineer, Core Software      using std::disclaimer;
Susquehanna International Group, LLP  http://www.sig.com

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