RE: [boost] Re: immutable string

From: Ben Hutchings (ben.hutchings_at_[hidden])
Date: 2004-09-20 09:47:48

David B. Held <dheld_at_[hidden]> wrote:
> Maxim Yegorushkin wrote:
> 
> > I've been working on a small library - an immutable C++ string. Now
> > it is in usable state and has been put in use in a couple of real
> > projects.  Although it needs further polishing, I would like to know
> > is there any  interest in such a library?
> > 
> > Here is the link: http://conststring.sourceforge.net/
> 
> First, I'll say that yes, I am very interested in a library such as
> this.  Second, let me say that "const_string<>" and "immutable string"
> don't seem like the right terms to me.  The fact that you can call
> operator?=() and append() on it tell me that there is little that is
> "const" or "immutable" about it.  It seems to me that "cow_string<>"
> would be more appropriate, but perhaps others have different opinions.

I once wrote a string template class similar to this, though without the
clever storage policy.  Unfortunately this was done in the course of my
employment and I left that job without having got permission to make it
public.  Anyway, I think the name I settled on was atomic_string.

> I suppose its not completely a COW string, since you don't support the
> full set of mutating operations.
<snip>

It never modifies buffers once they've been initialised, so it has no
use for COW.

Ben.