doc/tuple_advanced_interface.qbk

[/
 /  Copyright (c) 2001 Jaakko Järvi
 /
 / Distributed under the Boost Software License, Version 1.0. (See
 / accompanying file LICENSE_1_0.txt or copy at
 / http://www.boost.org/LICENSE_1_0.txt)
 /]

[article Tuple library advanced features
  [quickbook 1.6]
  [id tuple_advanced_interface]
  [copyright 2001 Jaakko J\u00E4rvi]
  [license Distributed under the
    [@http://boost.org/LICENSE_1_0.txt Boost Software License,
      Version 1.0].
  ]
]

[template simplesect[title]
[block '''<simplesect><title>'''[title]'''</title>''']]

[template endsimplesect[]
[block '''</simplesect>''']]

The advanced features described in this document are all under namespace
`::boost::tuples`

[section Metafunctions for tuple types]

Suppose `T` is a tuple type, and `N` is a constant integral expression.

    element<N, T>::type

gives the type of the `N`-th element in the tuple type `T`. If `T` is `const`,
the resulting type is `const` qualified as well. Note that the constness of `T`
does not affect reference type elements.

    length<T>::value

gives the length of the tuple type `T`.

[endsect]

[section Cons lists]

Tuples are internally represented as /cons lists/. For example, the tuple

    tuple<A, B, C, D>

inherits from the type

    cons<A, cons<B, cons<C, cons<D, null_type> > > >

The tuple template provides the typedef inherited to access the cons list
representation. E.g.: `tuple<A>::inherited` is the type `cons<A, null_type>`.

[section Empty tuple]

The internal representation of the empty tuple `tuple<>` is `null_type`.

[endsect]

[section Head and tail]

Both tuple template and the cons templates provide the typedefs `head_type`
and `tail_type`. The `head_type` typedef gives the type of the first element
of the tuple (or the cons list). The `tail_type` typedef gives the remaining
cons list after removing the first element. The head element is stored in the
member variable `head` and the tail list in the member variable `tail`. Cons
lists provide the member function `get_head()` for getting a reference to the
head of a cons list, and `get_tail()` for getting a reference to the tail.
There are const and non-const versions of both functions.

Note that in a one element tuple, `tail_type` equals `null_type` and the
`get_tail()` function returns an object of type `null_type`.

The empty tuple (`null_type`) has no head or tail, hence the `get_head` and
`get_tail` functions are not provided.

Treating tuples as cons lists gives a convenient means to define generic
functions to manipulate tuples. For example, the following pair of function
templates assign `0` to each element of a tuple (obviously, the assignments
must be valid operations for the element types):

    inline void set_to_zero(const null_type&) {};

    template <class H, class T>
    inline void set_to_zero(cons<H, T>& x) { x.get_head() = 0; set_to_zero(x.get_tail()); }

[endsect]

[section Constructing cons lists]

A cons list can be default constructed provided that all its elements can be
default constructed.

A cons list can be constructed from its head and tail. The prototype of the
constructor is:

    cons(typename access_traits<head_type>::parameter_type h, const tail_type& t)

The traits template for the head parameter selects correct parameter types for
different kinds of element types (for reference elements the parameter type
equals the element type, for non-reference types the parameter type is a
reference to const non-volatile element type).

For a one-element cons list the tail argument (`null_type`) can be omitted.

[endsect]

[endsect]

[section Traits classes for tuple element types]

[section access_traits]

The template `access_traits` defines three type functions. Let `T` be a type
of an element in a tuple:

* `access_traits<T>::non_const_type` maps `T` to the return type of the no
  n-const access functions (nonmember and member `get` functions, and the
  `get_head` function).

* `access_traits<T>::const_type` maps `T` to the return type of the const
  access functions.

* `access_traits<T>::parameter_type` maps `T` to the parameter type of the
  tuple constructor.

[endsect]

[section make_tuple_traits]

The element types of the tuples that are created with the `make_tuple`
functions are computed with the type function `make_tuple_traits`. The type
function call `make_tuple_traits<T>::type` implements the following type
mapping:

* /any reference type/ -> /compile time error/

* /any array type/ -> /constant reference to the array type/

* `reference_wrapper<T>` -> `T&`

* `T` -> `T`

Objects of type `reference_wrapper` are created with the `ref` and `cref`
functions (see [link tuple.constructing_tuples.make_tuple The `make_tuple`
function]).

Reference wrappers were originally part of the tuple library, but they are now
a general utility of boost. The `reference_wrapper` template and the `ref` and
`cref` functions are defined in a separate file
[@boost:/libs/core/doc/html/core/ref.html `ref.hpp`] in the main boost include
directory; and directly in the `boost` namespace.

[endsect]

[endsect]