Re: nullptr reference legal?

From:
"Bo Persson" <bop@gmb.dk>
Newsgroups:
comp.lang.c++
Date:
Sat, 23 Oct 2010 10:50:02 +0200
Message-ID:
<8ifltpFloqU1@mid.individual.net>
Jim Langston wrote:

"Jim Langston" <tazmaster@rocketmail.com> wrote in message
news:i9u4fj$35s$1@four.albasani.net...

I wound up creating a null reference on accident using
polymorphism and wondered if this snippet is legal code, as it
compiles and works as I would expect it to work.

void jglRenderModel( jglModel& model ) {
  if ( &model == nullptr ) {
     return;
  }
  /* ... */
}

  // Following line may produce a nullptr reference
  jglRenderModel(
*dynamic_cast<jmlGL::jglModel*>((world.objects.find( L"Cube"
  ))->second) ); // Following line will produce a nullptr reference
  jglRenderModel( *reinterpret_cast<jmlGL::jglModel*>( nullptr ) );


Hmm.. this is dereferencing a nullptr isn't it? So I guess it's
illegal. So I have to wrap the null reference around something just
to do what I can already do. *sigh*


Right!

We don't know of any way to create a "null reference" without first
invoking undefined behavior.

A rule of thumb is to make the parameter a pointer if you accept null
values. Reference parameters are for when there must always be a valid
object.

Bo Persson

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