

Andrei Alexandrescu: Generic Programming Galore using D (video) - WalterBright
http://vimeo.com/68378925

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WalterBright
Abstract:

Generic programming holds great promise – ultimate reuse, unprecedented
flexibility, and never a need to reimplement an algorithm from scratch due to
abstraction penalties.

Unfortunately, the shiny city on the hill is difficult to reach. C++’s generic
power has effectively reached a plateau – anything but the simplest generic
constructs quickly turn an exponential complexity/benefit elbow. C++11 fails
to be a strong sequel in the generic programming arena, and many other
languages don’t seem to “get” genericity properly at all. The D programming
language is a definite exception from this trend.

D makes short work of the most formidable generic programming tasks achievable
with C++, and makes virtually impossible tasks readily doable. It also reduces
the relevance of “Modern C++ Design” to that of an introductory brochure (much
to the dismay of that book’s author).

This talk has a simple structure. It will pose a few generic programming tasks
that seem difficult or impossible with current language technology, and then
will show solutions in D that solve said problems.

