Re: [boost] Interest in a flyweight library?

From: JOAQUIN LOPEZ MU?Z (joaquin_at_[hidden])
Date: 2006-07-01 12:09:05

----- Mensaje original -----
De: Jeff Garland <jeff_at_[hidden]>
Fecha: Sábado, Julio 1, 2006 5:52 pm
Asunto: Re: [boost] Interest in a flyweight library?

> JOAQUIN LOPEZ MU?Z wrote:
> 
> > 
> > Please see my previous answer to Steve Harris. It'd help me
> > a lot if, for uniformity's sake, name proposals could be given
> > in this format:
> > 
> >   lib name / namespace names / main utility
> > 
> > like for instance:
> > 
> >   Boost.Intern / boost::intern / boost::interned<>
> > 
> > So, cast your vote :)
> 
> I have a problem with these names -- Boost.intern sounds like a 
> developer that should be working on an SOC project.  'Interned'
> sounds like what happens when  someone dies and is buried
> -- not too pleasant. 

:)

> I think flyweight is better, although maybe some variant of 'wrapper'
> might be better.

Would you care to submit your name proposal in the aforementioned
format? Although I haven't said it before, it'd be good if
the namespace did *not* coincide with that of the main utility,
since it can lead to problems as descibred in

http://boost.org/libs/tuple/doc/design_decisions_rationale.html

in connection with the choice of namespace tuples instead of
namespace tuple.

> Another question, C# and some other languages have the idea of
> 'boxing' -- perhaps that's what this really is?

I don't think so. From my limited knowledge of Java and C#, where
this term is used, boxing consists of the procedure by which
a stack-based type is wrapped into a heap-based type so that it
can be used in certain contexts: for instance, in Java ints cannot
be used in containers so one has to box them in
java.lang.Integer's. There's a weak connection with my proposal
in that (at least in Java) these numeric wrappers are immutable
and as such candidates for flyweighing techniques. Is this what
you were referring to, perhaps?

> Jeff

[One final question you didn't address: do you think this worth
elaborating into a proposal for Boost?]

Joaquín M López Muñoz
Telefónica, Investigación y Desarrollo