16.5 Further Reading

A number of books have been published which are devoted to the topic of C++ portability. Unfortunately, the problem with printed publications that discuss the state of C++ is that they date quickly. These publications may also fail to cover inadequacies of your particular compiler, since portability know-how is something that can only be acquired by collective experience.

Instead, online guides such as the Mozilla C++ Portability Guide (37) tend to be a more useful resource. An online guide such as this can accumulate the knowledge of a wider developer community and can be readily updated as new facts are discovered. Interestingly, the Mozilla guide is aggressive in its recommendations for achieving true C++ portability: item 3, for instance, states `Don't use exceptions'. While you may not choose to follow each recommendation, there is certainly a lot of useful experience captured in this document.