Re: [boost] Compiler warnings after boost update

Subject: Re: [boost] Compiler warnings after boost update
From: John Maddock (jz.maddock_at_[hidden])
Date: 2015-09-25 04:44:20

> IMO, trying to be warning-free on the multitude compilers Boost 
> supports is what can be called a sysiphus job. Not only this is 
> tedious and practically inachievable, it actually makes the code worse 
> - typically, in terms of maintainability, sometimes performance. 
> Striving for no warnings at the highest levels gives false sense of 
> purity but really nothing more than that.
>
> But, if you're really interested in keeping Boost warning-free, you 
> should put some effort into it. Run tests regularly, monitor changes, 
> submit pull requests. Nothing is going to change unless someone 
> interested acts.
>

This is tricky: I do try and keep my stuff warning free - but every new 
compiler release introduces warnings for things that weren't considered 
issues before (meanwhile things that I feel really should be warnings - 
like incorrect use of noexcept specifications remain curiously 
diagnostic free).  Then you have to ask - which compiler? MSVC and GCC 
warnings are generally fixable - though I have certainly come up against 
warnings that seem to be unsilenceable no matter what you do.  Intel is 
another matter - this generally produces pages and pages of "remarks" 
that aren't even warnings as such.

BTW we do have some guidance on this: 
https://svn.boost.org/trac/boost/wiki/Guidelines/WarningsGuidelines

And a now completely out of date effort to make Boost warning free: 
https://svn.boost.org/trac/boost/wiki/WarningFixes

This might actually be easier to achieve now that we have PR's available 
as a tool.   But it's a big job for sure.

Best, John.