C++

Welcome to the modern C++ guide, covering everything from RAII fundamentals to C++26 features.

Keywords (C++20+)

• alignas, alignof
• and, and_eq, bitand, bitor
• asm, auto
• bool, break
• case, catch, class, concept, const, constexpr, consteval, constinit
• continue, co_await, co_return, co_yield
• decltype, default, delete, do
• dynamic_cast, else, enum, explicit, export
• extern, false, final, float, for, friend
• goto, if, import, inline
• int, long, mutable, namespace
• new, noexcept, not, not_eq
• nullptr, operator, or, or_eq
• override, private, protected, public
• reflexpr, register, reinterpret_cast, requires
• return, short, signed, sizeof
• static, static_assert, static_cast, struct
• switch, template, this, thread_local
• throw, true, try, typedef, typeid, typename
• union, unsigned, using
• virtual, void, volatile, wchar_t
• while, xor, xor_eq

Pillars of C++

• RAII: acquire resources in constructors, release in destructors.
• Zero-cost abstractions: templates, inline functions, constexpr evaluations.
• Generic programming: templates, concepts, ranges.
• Object-oriented design: classes, inheritance, polymorphism, virtual dispatch.
• Functional features: lambdas, `std::function`, ranges views, coroutines.

Standard Library Highlights

• Containers: vector, array, deque, list, forward_list, set, map, unordered_map, unordered_set.
• Algorithms: sort, stable_sort, transform, accumulate, reduce, for_each, ranges::views.
• Utilities: optional, variant, any, expected (P2505), tuple, pair.
• Strings: string, string_view, format, filesystem paths.
• Concurrency: thread, jthread, mutex, shared_mutex, async, future, promise, atomic.
• Memory: unique_ptr, shared_ptr, weak_ptr, allocator-aware containers.

Modern Features to Know

• auto type deduction and ranged-for loops.
• Structured bindings and decomposition declarations.
• constexpr algorithms and consteval immediate functions.
• Modules and header units for faster builds.
• Concepts for readable template constraints.
• Coroutines (`co_await`, `std::generator`) for async pipelines.
• Spaceship operator (`<=>`) for three-way comparison.
• Ranges library for lazy, composable iteration.

Operators

• Arithmetic: + - * / % ++ --
• Comparison: == != < > <= >= <=>
• Logical: && || !
• Bitwise: & | ^ ~ << >>
• Assignment: = += -= *= /= %= &= |= ^= <<= >>=
• Pointer/reference: * & [] -> :: . .* ->*
• Type traits: static_cast, const_cast, reinterpret_cast, dynamic_cast.

Sample Patterns

• Use `std::span` for non-owning views of contiguous data.
• Prefer `std::unique_ptr` and `std::make_unique` over `new` / `delete`.
• Attach invariants with `gsl::not_null`, `std::optional`, and contracts (when available).
• Leverage `fmt::format` or `std::format` for typesafe text.
• Profile builds with sanitizers: address, thread, undefined behavior, leak.

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