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4<title>Chapter 2. Boost.Array</title>
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26<div class="titlepage"><div>
27<div><h2 class="title">
28<a name="array"></a>Chapter 2. Boost.Array</h2></div>
29<div><div class="author"><h3 class="author">
30<span class="firstname">Nicolai</span> <span class="surname">Josuttis</span>
31</h3></div></div>
32<div><p class="copyright">Copyright © 2001-2004 Nicolai M. Josuttis</p></div>
33<div><div class="legalnotice">
34<a name="id938650"></a><p>Distributed under the Boost Software License, Version 1.0.
35      (See accompanying file <code class="filename">LICENSE_1_0.txt</code> or copy at
36      <a href="http://www.boost.org/LICENSE_1_0.txt" target="_top">http://www.boost.org/LICENSE_1_0.txt</a>)
37      </p>
38</div></div>
39</div></div>
40<div class="toc">
41<p><b>Table of Contents</b></p>
42<dl>
43<dt><span class="section"><a href="array.html#array.intro">Introduction</a></span></dt>
44<dt><span class="section"><a href="array/reference.html">Reference</a></span></dt>
45<dd><dl><dt><span class="section"><a href="array/reference.html#header.boost.array.hpp">Header &lt;boost/array.hpp&gt;</a></span></dt></dl></dd>
46<dt><span class="section"><a href="array/rationale.html">Design Rationale</a></span></dt>
47<dt><span class="section"><a href="array/more/info.html">For more information...</a></span></dt>
48<dt><span class="section"><a href="array/ack.html">Acknowledgements</a></span></dt>
49</dl>
50</div>
51<div class="section" lang="en">
52<div class="titlepage"><div><div><h2 class="title" style="clear: both">
53<a name="array.intro"></a>Introduction</h2></div></div></div>
54<p>The C++ Standard Template Library STL as part of the C++
55    Standard Library provides a framework for processing algorithms on
56    different kind of containers. However, ordinary arrays don't
57    provide the interface of STL containers (although, they provide
58    the iterator interface of STL containers).</p>
59<p>As replacement for ordinary arrays, the STL provides class
60    <code class="computeroutput">std::vector</code>.  However,
61    <code class="computeroutput">std::vector&lt;&gt;</code> provides
62    the semantics of dynamic arrays. Thus, it manages data to be able
63    to change the number of elements. This results in some overhead in
64    case only arrays with static size are needed.</p>
65<p>In his book, <span class="emphasis"><em>Generic Programming and the
66    STL</em></span>, Matthew H. Austern introduces a useful wrapper
67    class for ordinary arrays with static size, called
68    <code class="computeroutput">block</code>.  It is safer and has no worse performance than
69    ordinary arrays. In <span class="emphasis"><em>The C++ Programming
70    Language</em></span>, 3rd edition, Bjarne Stroustrup introduces a
71    similar class, called <code class="computeroutput">c_array</code>, which I (<a href="http://www.josuttis.com" target="_top">Nicolai Josuttis</a>) present
72    slightly modified in my book <span class="emphasis"><em>The C++ Standard Library -
73    A Tutorial and Reference</em></span>, called
74    <code class="computeroutput">carray</code>. This is the essence of these approaches
75    spiced with many feedback from <a href="http://www.boost.org" target="_top">boost</a>.</p>
76<p>After considering different names, we decided to name this
77    class simply <code class="computeroutput"><a href="boost/array.html" title="Class template array">array</a></code>.</p>
78<p>Note that this class is suggested to be part of the next
79    Technical Report, which will extend the C++ Standard (see
80    <a href="http://std.dkuug.dk/jtc1/sc22/wg21/docs/papers/2003/n1548.htm" target="_top">http://std.dkuug.dk/jtc1/sc22/wg21/docs/papers/2003/n1548.htm</a>).</p>
81<p>Class <code class="computeroutput"><a href="boost/array.html" title="Class template array">array</a></code> fulfills most
82    but not all of the requirements of "reversible containers" (see
83    Section 23.1, [lib.container.requirements] of the C++
84    Standard). The reasons array is not an reversible STL container is
85    because:
86      </p>
87<div class="itemizedlist"><ul type="disc" compact>
88<li>No constructors are provided.</li>
89<li>Elements may have an undetermined initial value (see <a href="array/rationale.html" title="Design Rationale">the section called &#8220;Design Rationale&#8221;</a>).</li>
90<li>
91<code class="computeroutput"><a href="boost/array.html#id719226-bb">swap</a></code>() has no constant complexity.</li>
92<li>
93<code class="computeroutput"><a href="boost/array.html#id718877-bb">size</a></code>() is always constant, based on the second template argument of the type.</li>
94<li>The container provides no allocator support.</li>
95</ul></div>
96<p>
97    </p>
98<p>It doesn't fulfill the requirements of a "sequence" (see Section 23.1.1, [lib.sequence.reqmts] of the C++ Standard), except that:
99      </p>
100<div class="itemizedlist"><ul type="disc" compact>
101<li>
102<code class="computeroutput"><a href="boost/array.html#id719036-bb">front</a></code>() and <code class="computeroutput"><a href="boost/array.html#id719070-bb">back</a></code>() are provided.</li>
103<li>
104<code class="computeroutput"><a href="boost/array.html#id718932-bb">operator[]</a></code> and <code class="computeroutput"><a href="boost/array.html#id718984-bb">at</a></code>() are provided.</li>
105</ul></div>
106<p>
107    </p>
108</div>
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110<table width="100%"><tr>
111<td align="left"><small><p>Last revised: December 01, 2006 at 11:34:43 GMT</p></small></td>
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