Reassignable reference in C++

Question

I have a class that has a reference field that needs to be reassigned. But unlike pointer, it can't be null.

Requirements:

Is it possible to model model this concept in C++?

References are bound at initialization time and cannot be reseated. — Jesper Juhl, Mar 22 '18 at 17:32
You haven't said why you think you need to do this - sounds like an XY problem. — , Mar 22 '18 at 17:32
@Ron I know this for sure. But is it possible to write smart template that works like reference? — random, Mar 22 '18 at 17:33
I'm sure you could wrap up a pointer in a class to _look_ a bit like a reference. But why would you want to?? — GrahamS, Mar 22 '18 at 17:34

score 4 · Answer 1 · answered Mar 22 '18 at 17:33

4

Yes. Use a std::reference_wrapper<T> instead of a raw reference.

answered Mar 22 '18 at 17:33

Peter Ruderman

Thanks. Did now known about it! Unfortunately it' not possible to call a method without a .get() – random Mar 22 '18 at 17:39
Looks like it's not possible : https://stackoverflow.com/questions/520035/why-cant-you-overload-the-operator-in-c – random Mar 22 '18 at 17:41
Yep. If `get()` is a deal breaker, then you're out-of-luck. Mind you, `reference_wrapper` is implicitly convertible to the associated reference type, so you can often avoid the `get()` in practice. – Peter Ruderman Mar 22 '18 at 18:54
Seem to be a well known problem in C++ : https://isocpp.org/blog/2016/02/a-bit-of-background-for-the-operator-dot-proposal-bjarne-stroustrup – random Mar 22 '18 at 18:57

1 Answers1