From: ········@bayou.uh.edu
Subject: Re: C++ briar patch (Was: Object IDs are bad)
Date:
Message-ID: <5ln4gt$bbm$1@Masala.CC.UH.EDU>
Fergus Henderson (···@mundook.cs.mu.OZ.AU) wrote:
: ········@Bayou.UH.EDU (········@bayou.uh.edu) writes:
[About how pointers are unnecessary for OO...]
: >Of course if there is something that I'm missing that makes this
: >low level construct a necessity for a high level concept (OO) then
: >I would appreciate it if you would enlighten me.
: As has been discussed in detail in this thread, the high-level concept
: that pointers are useful for modelling is object identity.
You don't need pointers for object identity -- that much has been
established in detail in this thread. Look at Smalltalk, you have
object identity without resorting to pointers, and others have
listed other examples (Lisp).
: Pointers are also useful for representing cyclic data structures.
Again you can represent cyclic data structures without pointers.
Look at Common Lisp -- it uses "tags" to allow you to create
cyclic data structures much more easily, readably, and safely than
pointers.
So again I ask you, why do you need pointers?
: --
: Fergus Henderson <···@cs.mu.oz.au> | "I have always known that the pursuit
: WWW: <http://www.cs.mu.oz.au/~fjh> | of excellence is a lethal habit"
: PGP: finger ···@128.250.37.3 | -- the last words of T. S. Garp.
--
Cya,
Ahmed