Re: [Boost-users] question on boost-compliant code conventions

From: Alan M. Carroll (amc_at_[hidden])
Date: 2008-07-21 12:09:20

At 06:21 AM 7/21/2008, Richard Dingwall wrote:
> Not a prefix, but a a trailing
> underscore suffix is generally used
> (identifiers starting with an underscore are reserved for the
> compiler).
>
> class foo
> {
> public:
>         int bar() const { return bar_;
> }
> private:
>         int bar_;
> };

According to various language references [1][2][3] the C++ specification
says

"Each name that contains a double
underscore _ _
or begins with an underscore followed
by an uppercase letter
(2.11
) is reserved to the implementation for any
use.
— Each name that begins with an underscore is reserved to the
implementation for use as a name in the global
namespace"

which means that member variables of the form "_bar" are
legal C++.

[1]

http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/565w213d.aspx
[2]

http://publib.boulder.ibm.com/infocenter/compbgpl/v9v111/index.jsp?topic=/com.ibm.xlcpp9.bg.doc/language_ref/ident.htm
[3]

http://www.open-std.org/jtc1/sc22/wg21/docs/papers/2008/n2691.pdf,
17.4.3.2.2