C++ Template Wizardry Explained - C++ Template Insight

Example

template <typename T> T max(T a, T b) { return a > b ? a : b; }

Scenario

Provides users with the foundational knowledge of templates, including their syntax and basic usage, to create functions like 'max' that work with any comparable type.

Example

template <> const char* max<const char*>(const char* a, const char* b) { return strcmp(a, b) > 0 ? a : b; }

Scenario

Explains how to specialize templates for specific types to handle unique cases, such as comparing C-style strings with 'strcmp' instead of the '>' operator.

Example

template <typename T, std::enable_if_t<std::is_arithmetic_v<T>, bool> = true> T divide(T a, T b) { return b != 0 ? a / b : throw std::invalid_argument("Division by zero"); }

Scenario

Delves into advanced techniques like SFINAE (Substitution Failure Is Not An Error) to create compile-time conditions, ensuring functions like 'divide' are only available for arithmetic types.

Example

template <typename T> void printContainer(const T& container) { for (const auto& elem : container) std::cout << elem << ' '; std::cout << '\n'; }

Scenario

Demonstrates the usage of templates with standard library containers, enabling functions like 'printContainer' to work with any container type that supports range-based for loops.

Example

template <typename T> void swap(T& a, T& b) { T temp = std::move(a); a = std::move(b); b = std::move(temp); }

Scenario

Focuses on optimizing template functions, such as 'swap', by leveraging move semantics to minimize unnecessary copies, crucial for performance-critical applications.