RE: [boost] Proposal for lexical_cast/lexical_convert

From: Björn Karlsson (bjorn.karlsson_at_[hidden])
Date: 2002-01-25 10:58:01

> From: Fernando Cacciola [mailto:fcacciola_at_[hidden]]
> 
> I think this would be really useful, but I would use a 
> different signature:
> 
>    template<typename Target, typename Source>
>    Target lexical_convert(Source arg, bool* succeeded = 0 )  ;
> 
> This has some advantages:
> 
> 1) You don't have to remember which parameter, first or second, is the
> source/target.
> 2) It looks closer to any other convertion function in that 
> it returns the
> converted value.
> 3) You can use it ignoring the boolean flag in cases you 
> don't care to test
> if it succeeded at all
>     (that's why the boolean parameter is a pointer and not a 
> reference)
> 

Alas, there's also a downside to this approach - the type of Target cannot
be deduced.

Bjorn