Re: [boost] Re: Boost.Threads - thread_desc concept

From: John Max Skaller (skaller_at_[hidden])
Date: 2001-06-28 16:34:05

Greg Colvin wrote:

> To be clear, just stopping a thread "out of nowhere" is
> a bad idea, as there is then no way to get out of any
> monitors it has entered.  Better is a way to throw an
> exception on the thread, so as to let destructors run.

        You did not meet the requirements.
The thread is blocked. It cannot throw anything.

        It is a core language issue whether destructors
are run when a thread is cancelled.

> Sometimes it is even better to spawn processes instead
> of threads, so the OS can take care of cleaning up a
> killed process.

        Sometimes it is. And sometimes not.
I have seen the application in question, a very sophisticated
database. The designer is an expert. He swears by cancellation.
FYI the design supports distribution, replication,
and recovery, all while the DB remains operational.

-- 
John (Max) Skaller, mailto:skaller_at_[hidden] 
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