Re: Standardization of Boost libraries

From: danl_miller (danl_miller_at_[hidden])
Date: 2002-03-06 15:05:38

--- In boost_at_y..., Beman Dawes <bdawes_at_a...> wrote:
> Ouch!  This just arrived from Clark Nelson:
> 
>  >This is your reminder that the deadline for the pre-Curaçao
mailing is 
> one
>  >week from today, 2002-03-12. Acceptable document formats include
plain
>  >text, HTML and PDF. Please contact me with questions, and for
numbers to
>  >apply to your documents.
> 
> That means it is time to think again about what additional Boost
libraries 
> should be submitted to the committee for possible inclusion in the
upcoming 
> TR. (Because they will be presented but not voted on, we don't
actually 
> have to have stuff ready in a week.  But the notice is a wake up
call to 
> start getting ready for April's committee meeting.)
> 
> The following Boost libraries are already on the committee's
proposal list:
> 
> 1) Header <cstdint>.  (Tabled pending more comprehensive proposal
from Bill 
> Plauger.)
> 2) Type Traits.
> 3) Regular Expressions.
> 4) Smart Pointers.
> 5) Random Numbers.
> 6) Rational Numbers.
> 7) Threads.
> 
> How about suggestions for perhaps six more Boost libraries to add to
the 
> list?  Which of the remaining libraries are most "widely useful"
for 
> example?
> 
> --Beman
> 
> PS:  I'll be out of email contact until Sunday, so won't respond to 
> suggestions until next week.

  1A) graph containers
  1B) graph iterators
  1C) graph algorithms
  as one graph library

  Why?  Because the Boost graph library (composed of these portions)
is extremely useful in any software which must model networks/meshes
(e.g., telecom, datacom, applied math research, simulation,
electronics).  C++98's STL focuses on linear data-structures (list,
queue, deque, stack) and tree data-structures (map, set, multimap,
multiset), their iterators, and their algorithms.  Glaringly absent
in C++98 are all data-structures other than linear & tree
data-structures.  The graph library is designed in a way which is an
extrapolation of C++98's STL and fits with C++98's STL vision quite
nicely.

  2A) math
  2B) math/common factor
  2C) math/special functions
  2D) rational
  2E) random
  as one math library

  Why?  The Boost math library (comprised of all of these portions)
extends the vision of the existing math portions of C++98's standard
libraries, forming a comprehensive treatment of more & more
broadly-useful math topics.