STL Overview: Why?
The STL addresses several problems with previous C++ container libraries in a new
and innovative way. The basic tenents of STL are:
- Flexibility
- The use of generic algorithms allows algorithms to be applied to many
different structures.
- STL’s generic algorithms work on native C++ data structures such as
strings and vectors.
- Efficiency
- STL containers are very close to the efficiency of hand-coded, type-specific
containers.
- Easy-to-learn structure
- The library is quite small owing to the high degree of genericity.
- Theoretical foundation
- The library bases its theoretical foundation a "semi-formal"
specification of the library components.