
CppCon 2018: Simplicity: Not Just For Beginners [video] - pjmlp
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n0Ak6xtVXno
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teknico
Simplicity and C++? Like speaking of rope in the house of the hanged, as we
say in Italy... Congrats for the effort though.

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emsy
I still don't understand why people bother with template metaprogramming. And
I genuinely mean it. Other languages have much simpler and nicer constructs
and seem to work just fine. And even within C++ you can often solve the
problem with more verbose, but simpler code. Every time I read an article or
watch a talk on it I have the impression that people use it because they can,
not because there's some huge upside in using them. Did I miss the magic "aha"
moment?

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blt
They do it because C++ tempts you to strive for perfect expressive syntax and
perfect efficiency at the same time. Most languages have limited expressive
power (C, Fortran, Pascal) or limited efficiency (Haskell, ML, any JVM or
scripting language), so you accept their limitations and move on.

C++ makes programmers become Icarus. Once they escape from the prison of C
syntax, they try to fly higher, towards the goal of code that looks like
Python but runs like C. They learn that template metaprogramming can help
acieve this goal, so they use it. But template metaprogramming is actually the
sun, melting their code into a pile of wax and feathers, sending them crashing
back down into the ocean to drown.

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infinite8s
Or maybe they should just learn LISP, which gives you both.

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diegoperini
For some reason Youtube's recommendation algorithm has been pushing me this
whole day. Is this the same for you?

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oscii
That's because Kate Gregory is a terrific teacher! I like her talks and
teaching style a lot.

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pjmlp
She is one of the best speakers in the C++ community, really love her work.

