9. Looking Ahead

You cannot bathe in the same river twice.

Heraclitus

Did C++ succeed at what it was designed for? — is C++ a coherent language? — what should have been different? — what should have been added? — what was the biggest mistake? — is C++ only a bridge? — what is C++ good for? — what will make C++ much more effective?

9.1 Introduction

This chapter is more speculative and relies more on personal opinions and generalizations than I like; I much prefer to present completed work and experience. However, this chapter answers common questions and presents issues that invariably come up when the design of C++ is discussed. The chapter consists of three related parts:

– A retrospective trying to assess where C++ currently is relative ...

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