Re: should "using namespace std" be used?

"Daniel T." <daniel_t@earthlink.net> wrote:


Of course! It does other useful things, too, all of which have to do with
*adding* warts. It certainly does nothing to remove warts. Consider:

Old way:

#include <iostream.h>
cout << 44;

My way:

#include <iostream>
std::cout << 44; // now we have warts

Your way:

#include <iosteam>
using namespace std;
cout << 44; // same warts (none) as old way

So the net effect of namespaces is to introduce new warts although the
using
clause gives us a way to sort of break even with some extra effort.

In spite of the unattractive name, I think warts are useful for avoiding
name conflicts as the code evolves.