On Sep 3, 2007, at 4:47 AM, Andrew Sutton wrote:
Hmm, I wouldn't consider renaming a function a simple transformation, really. Consider overloading. You have to do full overload resolution (one of the most complex things in C++) in order to figure out whether a name in a given function call needs to be changed or not.
Renaming the function is simple. Ensuring that you're avoiding name conflicts can be more difficult. Propagating the change requires a lot more work. It's also requires knowledge beyond what a compiler can give you since changes may be required in multiple translation units.
The standard definitions of Refactoring typically does include verifying and ensuring that renames a) properly obey scope and other language rules and b) don't conflict with other names in any other scope. Refactoring does require processing multiple translation units in most cases, I'm not sure why you'd assume it doesn't. Note specifically that 'sed' does not qualify as a refactoring tool - you have to do a lot more semantic analysis of the program to do refactoring safely. -Chris