How has C++ changed in the past decade? [closed]

Question

I've barely/rarely used C++ in the past decade, and now it looks like I'll be doing something in it again. I'm looking forward to it, but have to wonder how it's changed since I last used it.

Are there any good / brief web pages, blog posts, or even books on how C++ has changed in the past decade?

Please note this question is regarding the language as well as tools or any additional information about working in C++. Specifically I'm working in Windows, using VC++2008.

Answer 1

While the official standard hasn't changed much over the past decade or so, there are several things of importance that have happened:

• while it's not an official standard yet, an upcoming new standard (commonly called C++0x) is 'around the corner'. GCC and MSVC 2010 have incorporated significant parts of that new standard, but I'm not sure how much is in common use.
• the Boost library has become a major player in providing additional support for the language - to the point that it was a significant influence on the new standard
• 'template-based' programming techniques have become much more prevalent, probably overtaking the older 'inheritence-based' techniques of code reuse (this might have been well underway when you last looked at C++ depending on the practives your shop may have been using at the time).
• compilers (and in particular Microsoft's) have come a long way in standards compliance

Answer 2

The biggest change is that C++ standard actually works in all major compilers now. Things like member templates used to be iffy.