/cpp-pro

C++ Implementation Playbook

Date: March 23, 2026
Author: champbreed

1. RAII & Resource Management

Always wrap raw resources in manager objects to ensure cleanup on scope exit.

// Good: Scope-bound cleanup
void process() {
    auto data = std::make_unique<uint8_t[]>(1024);
    // memory is freed automatically
}

2. Smart Pointer Ownership

• unique_ptr: Use for exclusive ownership.
• shared_ptr: Use for shared ownership across components.
• weak_ptr: Use to break circular reference cycles.

3. Concurrency Safety

Always use RAII-style locks like std::lock_guard or std::unique_lock.

void update() {
    std::lock_guard<std::mutex> lock(mutex_); // Released automatically
    // thread-safe logic
}

4. Move Semantics & Efficiency

Avoid expensive copies by utilizing move constructors and std::move.

void processData(std::vector<std::string>&& data) {
    auto internalData = std::move(data); // Transfers ownership, no copy
}

5. Modern STL Algorithms

Prefer algorithms over manual loops for readability and optimization.

void sortData(std::vector<int>& myVector) {
    // Use std::ranges (C++20) for cleaner, safer iteration
    std::ranges::sort(myVector);
}