“LP: How do the Boost libraries contribute into
making C++ programming more elegant, robust, and productive?“Those are three good questions in one, and I’ll try to answer
them separately. First, the elegance comes from how the Boost
libraries allow you to focus your code on the problem you’re trying
to solve rather than create auxiliary lots of functionality. For
example, Boost.Lambda allows you to create function objects on the
fly, meaning that you are able to call STL algorithms and supply
the required function objects directly at the call site. Second,
the Boost libraries add robustness by providing proven
implementations of crucial components. For example, Boost.Smart_ptr
contains a range of smart pointer types that help you eliminate
memory leaks, which we know is an all too common problem in many
C++ programs. Third, the improved productivity simply comes from
reusing proven, well designed, C++ libraries; these properties are
true for all the peer-reviewed Boost libraries…”