Re: state of the Boost threads package

From: williamkempf_at_[hidden]
Date: 2001-05-18 13:39:34

--- In boost_at_y..., Dietmar Kuehl <dietmar_kuehl_at_y...> wrote:
> Hi,
> 
> we are currently thinking about switching thread packages and 
switching
> to a Boost thread package would be our favorite choice. There is
> something in the vault but we are unclear of the state of this 
package.
> Here is a brief list of features we are currently using with a
> different thread package:
> 
> - a fast process specific lock for resources

Available, though recent comments have me re-evaluating a few things 
to make for more optimal mutex implementations.  Basically, I'm going 
to add a few more mutex types.

> - thread local storage

Planned for Phase 3.

> - thread creation and termination

Planned for Phase 2.  Termination is the tricky part here (by 
termination I assume you mean cancellation, which is nearly 
impossible to handle "correctly" in C++).  I'm currently thinking 
that termination should not be a part of the library, leaving issues 
such as this up to user design instead.  However, discussion about 
this has not really even begun yet, so this may not be the route 
taken.

> Apparently the current package does not include all of those. What 
is
> the current state of this work? Is anybody working on these things?

I'm working on it as much as I can.  Just had a little boy, though, 
so work is going slowly right now.  That's probably a good thing, 
though.  Interest in this library is very high and the design needs 
to be as complete, portable and _safe_ as possible.  Just a guess, 
but I'd say a full Boost.Threads library is probably a year or so off 
yet.  Of course, with some help this time frame might be made a bit 
more reasonable.

Bill Kempf