Item 6. Containers, Pointers, and Containers That Aren t

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Item 6. Containers, Pointers, and Containers That Aren't

Difficulty: 5

Oil and water just don't mix. Do pointers and standard containers mix any better?

1. Consider the following code:

    vector<char> v; // ... populate v ... char* p = &v[0]; // ... do something with *p ... 

   Is this code valid? Whether it's valid or not, how could it be improved?

2. Now consider the following code:

    template<typename T> void f( T& t ) {   typename T::value_type* p1 = &t[0];   typename T::value_type* p2 = &*t.begin();   // ... do something with *p1 and *p2 ... } 

   Is this code valid? Discuss.

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