Re: [boost] API Review request: XML API for C++, second round

From: Stefan Seefeld (seefeld_at_[hidden])
Date: 2003-06-26 13:51:59

Hamish Mackenzie wrote:

>>>>And I don't use a 'document' class, as that is managed implicitely
>>>>by my dom::document_ptr:
>>>>
>>>>dom::document_ptr document; // create new document;
>>>>dom::document_ptr doc(document); // create second reference to it
>>>>dom::document_ptr doc2 = document.clone(); // clone it, i.e. make deep
>>>>                                              copy
>>>
>>>
>>>This is not consistent with the standard library or C++ in general.  It
>>>will seem strange that the pointer class
>>>1) Does not require dereferencing
>>
>>would you say the same if the class name was spelled 'document_ref'
>>instead ?
> 
> 
> 1 & 4 would be ok, but 3 would stand and having an 'operator bool' would
> be added to the list.
> 
> 
>>>3) Has a constructor such as document_ptr( "config.xml" )
>>>4) Has member functions such as write_to_file
>>>
>>>The alternative would allow both...
>>>
>>>boost::shared_ptr< dom::document > doc( new dom::document() );
>>>boost::shared_ptr< dom::document > doc1( doc );
>>>dom::document doc2( *doc1 );
>>>
>>>and if the 'doc1' reference was non-owning...
>>>
>>>dom::document doc();  // Create new doc
>>>dom::document & doc1( doc ); // Second reference
>>>dom::document doc2( doc1 );  // Deep copy
>>
>>right, but given such an approach, what would nodes return in their
>>'parent()' method ?
> 
> 
> The parent is always an element (is that right?) so it would return
> element_ptr or element_ref.

yes. Sorry, I meant to ask what 'document()' would return.

Stefan