Beyond the C++ Standard Library: An Introduction to Boost

Library 4. Operators

How Does the Operators Library Improve Your Programs?

• Provides a complete set of comparison operators

• Provides a complete set of arithmetic operators

• Provides a complete set of operators for iterators

Among the operators defined in C++, there are a number of related sets. When you encounter a class with one operator from one of these sets, you typically expect to find the others, too. For instance, when a class provides operator==, you expect to find operator!= and probably operator<, operator<=, operator>, and operator>=. Sometimes, a class only provides operator< in order to define an ordering so objects of that class can be used in associative containers, but that often leaves class users wanting more. Likewise, ...