Plugging Those Leaks
It’s been 5 years since modern C++ arrived on the scene in the form of the C++11 standard. Prior to the arrival, C++ was notorious for memory leaks and segmentation faults due to the lack of standardized smart pointers (although third party library and home grown smart pointers have existed for decades). Dangerous, naked news and deletes could be found sprinkled across large code bases everywhere – hidden bombs waiting to explode at any moment during runtime.
I don’t know how many over-confident C++ programmers are still using the old new/delete pattern in new code bases, but if your team is one of them please consider hoisting this terrific poster on the walls of your office:
ISO WG-21 C++ committee convener Herb Sutter, a tireless and passionate C++ advocate for decades, presented this poster in his CppCon 2016 talk “Leak Freedom In C++: By Default“. Go watch it now.
I was in the room when he presented. It really is a magnificent presentation.
I wish I was there. 🙂 I don’t think Herb has ever given a bad presentation.