1. Error handling in C++ – What are the various ways to handle unexpected conditions in a C++ program? Are there superior error handling paradigms in other languages which should be modeled? What needs to be taken into account to choose between exceptions, error codes, bool try_xxx() with output arguments, noexcept, assert, program by contract, or something else? How can an error handling design be evaluated? How can that design be made robust to changes by future, and perhaps non-expert, developers?

Andrei’s response:
There’s new work on transactional error handling (borrowing from a language that shall remain unnamed) that I think is very worth sharing. That work is as of now platform-dependent, but there’s effort on standardizing it.

2. Unit testing and defect prevention – What are the current best practices in C++ unit testing? How do C++ features support unit testing? What is a unit test, and more importantly, what is not a unit test? What is the purpose of unit testing (e.g. speed development, provide a more robust code base, reduce maintenance costs)? How many unit tests should a module have? What is the proper interaction between unit testing, asserts, and runtime checking? How can C++ language features be used to prevent the introduction of defects so that unit tests need not be written?

Andrei’s response:
We at Facebook use Google’s unit testing mini-framework with great results, and I’m unclear how many actually do know about such.

3. When not to use C++ – What problems are best solved by a language (or tool) other than C++? What languages are those and why are they better than C++ for the specific problem? How should designs in those languages inform how C++ programs are written? How can C++ integrate with those other languages to put together a more complete system?

4. Robust systems – How can modules be designed and built to isolate failures and continue operation in the face of invalid input, hardware errors, logic errors, and upgrade regressions? Does this need to be designed in at the class level or at the application scale? How is robustness measured? What are examples of high availability C++ applications and projects and how was that achieved? How correct does code need to be and still be robust?

Andrei’s response:
3 & 4: These are interesting questions or even defining topics for a panel.

5. How to teach C++ – What are successful ways that a C code base and C developers can adapt to using C++? Is that conversion worth the cost? What are the most useful C++ features (i.e. which features should be promoted first)? How can an individual developer impact an organization in a significant way? What are the liabilities of C++ over against C and how can they be minimized? What are examples of large projects and companies who have made the switch? How can the tendency to write C code in a C++ code base be prevented?

Andrei’s response:
I’ll defer that to Herb, who could teach C++ to a Stegosaurus (as I’m sure you know, Stegosauri have a learning disability even by dinosaur standard).

6. C++ tools – What programs, applications, and libraries should be used to get the most out of C++ (e.g. editors, source control, code generators, debuggers, static analyzers, runtime instrumentation, compilers, libraries)? Specifically what about those tools enables more productive, higher quality, or easier to understand code (in the case that a specific tool cannot be used in some other development environment)?

Andrei’s response:
That’s a great idea as well, we were actually discussing it a couple of weeks ago.

You can view the entire blog post and comment exchange here: http://cppandbeyond.com/cb2013-schedule/

Do you have any topic suggestions, comments, or opinions? Please be sure to comment below, we’d love to hear them.

Also, we have begun posting some topics for the technical sessions, so be sure to check them out at http://cppandbeyond.com/cb2013-schedule/.

Do you have a topic you’d like to see covered? Don’t be a Bashful Boris! You can suggest a topic either through a blog comment or via email to me (C&B Coordinator).

Lisa Wells

By the time C++ and Beyond takes place in December, we expect that some of these features will have started to appear in compilers and standard libraries, so knowing about them will be eminently practical. But we have a second reason for offering this talk: it will permit us to assume that everybody’s up to speed on C++14 basics. That will allow us to use those basics in later talks at C&B. Given that C++ and Beyond takes place just a month before 2014 begins, demonstrating how to incorporate C++14 features in real code bases is only natural.

Andrei and Herb and I have agreed that this is a talk we’ll definitely give at C&B, but we haven’t yet decided who will give it. In fact, it may end up being a joint presentation by two or even all three of us.  We’ll figure that out later. For now, rest assured that if you attend C&B in December 2013, you’ll leave well prepared for C++ in 2014.

Scott

Why C++14? Two reasons: First, it really does “complete C++11″ with small but important consistency features like generic lambdas and make_unique that let us teach modern C++ style with fewer “except for” footnotes. Second, C++14 “is” C++ for the next several years and it’s real; as of last month it’s feature-complete, and I expect we will have at least two complete major commercial implementations available next year around the same time C++14 is formally published.

C++14 is a small but important improvement on C++11 that really does complete the language. What this means is that we’re going to have a complete and simpler set of idioms and styles to learn and use.

I’m planning to spend at least two hours in these highly interactive sessions. Be prepared to interact, challenge, and otherwise participate, and to discover new and useful information even if you’ve already been heavily using C++11.

If you’ve been procrastinating about getting authorization to attend or have been putting off the necessary paperwork, now would be a good time to tackle those tasks.  The early-bird period will not be extended, so you’ll want to get in under the June 9th deadline if you possibly can.

For those of you who have already registered, you can sit back and relax. Or lean forward and tense up, your choice.  In any case, please contact me if you have any questions about registration or need information to complete paperwork. I’m here to help!

Lisa Wells
C&B Coordinator

Concurrent Data Structures and Standard C++

Concurrent data structures permit multiple writers to simultaneously modify a single data structure. Used properly, they can avoid scalability bottlenecks in multithreaded systems. Used improperly, they can decrease program performance.

There are no concurrent data structures in the C++98 standard library. The C++11 standard library is similarly bare, and C++14 is unlikely to change that.  Nevertheless, concurrent data structures for C++ developers are widely available from sources such as Microsoft’s PPL, Intel’s TBB, and Boost. In this talk, I’ll examine the motivation and use cases for concurrent data structures, discuss their limitations, survey offerings common to PPL and TBB, and contrast concurrent APIs with those of seemingly similar serial counterparts (e.g., concurrent_vector vs. std::vector). I’ll also explain why writing your own concurrent data structure is much more complicated and error-prone than most people initially imagine.  (If you’re not familiar with the ABA problem, this presentation will explain why you should be.)

Scott

PS – I still don’t know what I’ll talk about at the other conference :-)

I hope to see you at Snowqualmie falls in December!

Lisa

We’ve made an announcement to this blog each time we’ve published a new video, and we’ll continue to do that for future video releases. Instead of searching back blog posts to find out what’s been put out, however, you can now simply visit the C&B Video Gallery.

Enjoy!

Scott

Attendance will be limited to 64 people.  (That’s the capacity of the ballroom.) Given that C&B has attracted about 100 people each year, it’s essentially certain that we’ll sell out.  As a result, I encourage you to sign up as soon as you can. Once we sell out, we’ll start a waiting list, but past experience suggests that we won’t be able to offer spots to more than a handful of people on that list.

Early bird registration runs through June 9 and features a 10% discount off the standard registration fee.

Click here to register.

Detailed information about C++ and Beyond is available at its web site:

• A summary of the event and an overview of the thinking behind it.
• The (always evolving) schedule for C&B 2013.
• Venue information, including how to make your hotel reservation (which is separate from registering for C&B itself).
• The C&B FAQ.
• Videos of past C&B presentations.

Andrei and Herb and I hope to see you at C&B 2013 in December!

Scott

The inital C&B in 2010 was held at the Salish Lodge and Spa in Snoqualmie, Washington, USA.  In 2011, we had a larger group in a larger venue, and last year we bumped up the numbers again.   Growth was ours, it seemed, but we sensed that C&B was looking more like a conventional conference and less like the unique event we had originally envisioned. For 2013, we decided to return to our roots, both geographically and organizationally.

For scale, note Salish Lodge in the upper left and the people in middle of the photo.

C&B 2013 will return to the Salish Lodge and Spa in Snoqualmie, Washington (not far from Seattle). Enrollment will again be limited to the capacity of the ballroom (~64 attendees). Scott will again lead lunchtime walks. Evenings will again feature free-form “hang out with the speakers” sessions. Hotel guestrooms will again boast fireplaces, whirlpool tubs for two, and one whopping big waterfall just steps from the front door. If you were part of C&B 2010, you know what I’m talking about. If you weren’t, ask around: you’ll wish you had been.

We’ll announce more details when they’ve been finalized, including when registration for C&B 2013 will begin. In the meantime, reserve December 9-12 for C++ and Beyond 2013 in Snoqualmie, Washington, USA.

Scott