In article 4845@us.dg.com, allen@euniice.canada.dg.com (Allen B. Taylor) writes:
>SPEMG1@cf.ac.uk (Mehrdad) writes:
>: Is there anyway I could lay my hands on a draft C++ standard? I do
>: have the annotated C++ book, but I guess things have moved a bit
>: further since I bought the book.
>
>Another fellow netter (bkline@smtp.csof.com) gave me this address for ordering
>the current C++ Working Papers.  The WP are dated Jan 1994.  The person I spoke
>with didn't seem to think there was going to be another revision of the WP
>before the acutual draft is published (targetted for this Sept.).

Too bad someone more knowledgable was not answering the phone. The current
draft is dated 26 May 1994, and there is a new draft every four months.
I don't know what might have been meant by "actual draft", as that is not
a standard term. We expect to register with ISO a "Committee Draft", but
that won't be stable either. Some time next year (we hope) a Draft Standard
will be released for public comment. From that point we would expect
changes to be fairly minor (... he said, whistling in the dark).

I don't recommend buying the Jan 1994 draft at all, and don't buy the
May draft either unless you are particularly eager to see a document
which will undergo further extensive revisions.

---
Steve Clamage, stephen.clamage@eng.sun.com

In article 4845@us.dg.com, allen@euniice.canada.dg.com (Allen B. Taylor) writes:
>SPEMG1@cf.ac.uk (Mehrdad) writes:
>: Is there anyway I could lay my hands on a draft C++ standard? I do
>: have the annotated C++ book, but I guess things have moved a bit
>: further since I bought the book.
>
>Another fellow netter (bkline@smtp.csof.com) gave me this address for ordering
>the current C++ Working Papers.  The WP are dated Jan 1994.  The person I spoke
>with didn't seem to think there was going to be another revision of the WP
>before the acutual draft is published (targetted for this Sept.) . . . .

My understanding is that the WP is undergoing almost constant revision.
The C++ committee meets once every four months, and each meeting occasions
a fresh revision of the WP.  So, Jan. '94 may be the latest version
that CBEMA is *selling*, but surely is not the latest version in the
absolute sense.

I have not seen the Jan 1994 document, but I suspect that significant
changes have already occurred, and are still likely to occur, particularly
concerning the standard libraries.  So, unless your need is urgent (or $55
is no object to you), I might respectfully suggest waiting until September
(or whenever it is), when a considerably more stable version is likely to
be available.

The original poster is correct that "things have moved a bit" since the
ARM was published, but there is no uniform standard as yet.  Different
compiler vendors have implemented different features sets.  So, for the
foreseeable future, the only dependable source will be the documentation
that comes with the particular compiler you are using.

I might also suggest Stroustrup's "Design and Evolution of C++"--which
not only explains many of the ANSI/ISO decisions, but also the reasoning
behind them.  If all you need is a summary of what has changed, ftp to
ftp.std.com, directory AW/stroustrup2e.  There, you'll find a file called
iso.ps, which contains a summary of the major changes.  The file is the
text of an appendix chapter found in recent printings of the ARM and of
Stroustrup's "The C++ Programming Language."

---
Marc Shepherd
Salomon Brothers Inc
mshepherd@mhfl.sbi.com  The opinions I express are no one's but mine!