Re: compilation error with const_reverse_iterator

From:
Kai-Uwe Bux <jkherciueh@gmx.net>
Newsgroups:
comp.lang.c++
Date:
Wed, 03 Oct 2007 23:40:01 -0700
Message-ID:
<fe21su$sqs$1@murdoch.acc.Virginia.EDU>
subramanian100in@yahoo.com, India wrote:

Consider the following program:

#include <iostream>
#include <map>
#include <string>
#include <utility>
#include <algorithm>

using namespace std;

int main()
{
map<string, int> si;

string word;

while (cin >> word)
    ++si[word];

multimap<int, string> is;


Note that this is a non-const object.

for (map<string, int>::const_iterator i = si.begin(); i != si.end(); +
+i)
    is.insert(make_pair(i->second, i->first));

for (multimap<int, string>::const_reverse_iterator r = is.rbegin(); r !
= is.rend(); ++r)


Note that is.rend() returns reverse_iterator and not const_reverse_iterator
since "is" is a non-const object. Thus, you compare

  const_reverse_iterate != reverse_iterator

    cout << r->second << " " << r->first << endl;

return 0;
}

Under g++, I get compilation error for the line

for (multimap<int, string>::const_reverse_iterator r = is.rbegin(); r !
= is.rend(); ++r)

The actual error message is

error: no match for 'operator!=' in 'r != std::multimap<_Key, _Tp,
_Compare, _Alloc>::rend() [with _Key = int, _Tp = std::string,
_Compare = std::less<int>, _Alloc = std::allocator<std::pair<const
int, std::string> >]()'


Yup. That's what you get.

However this program compiles fine under VC++ 2005 Express Edition.

I use the following compilation command under g++.

g++ -std=c++98 -pedantic -Wall -Wextra word_count.cpp


It's a matter which STL implementation you use.
 

Kindly explain why I am getting error for the above mentioned line
under g++ only.


You hit upon a defect in the language.

std::map<>::reverse_iterator is defined to be

  std::reverse_iterator< std::map<>::iterator >

and std::map<>::const_reverse_iterator is defined to be

  std::reverse_iterator< std::map<>::const_iterator >

The standard only requires that std::reverse_iterator supports comparison
for reverse_iterators with identical underlying iterator types. Thus, g++
is formally correct.

HOWEVER, this has been fixed in the draft for the next revision of the C++
standard. It also has been fixed in g++. Your code compiles fine with
g++-4.1.1.

Best

Kai-Uwe Bux

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