Re: [boost] Call for interest - BOOST_AUTO_FUNCTION

Subject: Re: [boost] Call for interest - BOOST_AUTO_FUNCTION
From: Paul A. Bristow (pbristow_at_[hidden])
Date: 2010-10-07 05:30:38

> -----Original Message-----
> From: boost-bounces_at_[hidden] [mailto:boost-bounces_at_[hidden]]
> On Behalf Of Robert Kawulak
> Sent: Thursday, October 07, 2010 1:59 AM
> To: boost_at_[hidden]
> Subject: Re: [boost] Call for interest - BOOST_AUTO_FUNCTION
> 
> > From: Matt Calabrese
> > The frustrating thing is that I'm pretty sure most people who first
> > hear about auto when applied to function templates assume that it
> > would mean something along the lines of what the macro does, and then
> > they are disappointed to find out that that is not the case. I agree
> > that for arbitrarily long functions with many statements and returns
> > it would not be appropriate, but for 1-liners it seems like something
> > that's both an extremely common case and trivial for compilers to
> > implement. At least for me, it seems that the vast majority of the
> > times one wants to use the function arguments when specifying the
> > return type it is to duplicate the expression in a return statement
> > exactly anyway. Was such an idea simply never proposed despite
> > everyone I've talked to expecting it to be there? It wouldn't surprise
> > me if the next standard remedied this, but at the moment that seems
light
> years away.
> 
> If a national body would point it out as a defect in its comments,
wouldn't that
> be a thing small enough to fix it before the final draught? Just thinking
aloud, I
> don't know if it sounds reasonable at this stage of standardisation
process.

I'm sure it is too late for this standard, but I suggest you write up your
justification with code examples and submit to the WG21 committee yourself
(you need to get a document number and use the customary format).

http://www.open-std.org/jtc1/sc22/wg21/

(Anyone can do this - but don't hold your breath!).

Meanwhile, having a macro that does something that people find useful is
very persuasive that your 'feature' is needed.

Paul
---
Paul A. Bristow,
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[phone]  07714330204
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