Question: So, in reading this site, it seems that the shop in which I work does a lot of things wrong and some things right. How can I improve the code that I work with from my colleagues? The only thing I can think of is to lead by example - start using Boost, etc. Any other thoughts?

Answer: 
* Reading good programming books
* Learning from other's code - Open source projects are the best place to start
* Read good blogs and forums regularly - Sutter mill, Coding Horror, Martin fowler etc
* Code reviews
* Unit tests
* Using good libraries like Boost, STL. Also understanding their implementation
Just asking the question is a good start. 

Specifically you can:

* Admit that your code sucks
* Start asking others, preferably others with more experience, to review your code
* Implement a continuous build server - you have to be the one who uses this first
* Have courage because this can be difficult
* Be humble
* Read Code Complete
* Use a software development methodology that encourages team work. Some of the agile methodologies are really good at this
* Read development blogs
* Get involved in a user group

Change is hard and you have to be the one who changes first.

If you are working in an environment where others are happy the way it is you are going to have rough going. Be persistent about wanting to improve code quality.