🚀 go-pugleaf

>>>>> Regarding implicit type conversions considered harmful: X3j16 "contractions" WG; rfg@lupine.ncd.com (Ron Guilmette) adds:

rfg> Well guess what!  The C++ feature which allows user-defined type conversion
rfg> operators to be *implicitly* applied (in some contexts) is "the GOTO of
rfg> strong typing".

rfg> Need I say more?

rfg> P.S.  If we got rid of implicit applications of user-defined type
rfg> conversions (while still allowing for *explicit* applications of
rfg> user-defined type conversions) I estimate that the current (enormous)
rfg> complexity of the overload resolution rules would be cut in half.  That
rfg> would give the implementors more time to work on other little problems
rfg> (e.g. optimization).

I agree with this, and I don't even care how hard it is to implement the
overload resolution rules. I just want to write code that really does type
checking and only does the conversions where I say "I really meant that."

Right now in C++, if I define my own type conversion functions (because I
actually do need to use them sometimes), I can't get any error messages out
of the compiler, because it thinks it is OK to implicitly apply the
functions. (I suppose the compiler could be made to generate a warning
or caution in this case, but that would cause its own set of problems,
and most (all?) compilers don't generate such messages).

I can't get the benefit of strong type checking and also provide a way to
do the conversions naturally. (Yes, I know I can get around it other ways,
like defining lots of silly generator functions or something like that).
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