At 01:52 PM 1/4/2005, christopher diggins wrote:
In general I am curious about how other boosters feel about boost library
sizes and inter-library couplings. For me this is a big obstacle to using
boost in many circumstances. It doesn't seem to be a concern at all for the boost community, but I wonder if other programmers have similar sentiments and find themselves often seeking out simpler alternatives.
Boost has an unusual characteristic when it comes to coupling. Because a number of Boost libraries that have proven widely useful have been accepted as part of the C++ Standard Library (via TR1), coupling involving these libraries will change from Boost coupling (which could be seen as negative) to standard library coupling (which is usually seen as far less negative). The C++ committee is starting work on a second library technical report. I assume that more Boost libraries will be proposed for TR2. So the reduction of coupling between Boost libraries will probably continue. Secondly, when Boost developers use someone else's Boost library, they have a long history of identifying problems and suggesting improvements. This is part the reason that Boost libraries are of relatively high quality. I don't think we want to do anything to discourage that. Boost libraries should continue to use other Boost libraries where useful, IMO. Excess coupling only becomes "excess" when it serves little useful purpose. --Beman