Pointer Free Programming and the Future of Nim
I’m not a huge fan of the modern C++ style that obsessively avoids null pointers and instead uses object references that are created in an invalid&#x2F;empty state. With a pointer there is a single way to represent “nothing”, regardless of what the object represents. With a reference I have to go read the API to understand the “nothingness” states.<p>Also, when you’re thinking in pointers, it’s easy to add levels of indirection with the same mental tools (pointers to pointers, etc.) Personally I find it’s easier to solve problems with a limited orthogonal toolset than a sprawling array of marginally differently balanced optimizations, which is what most of C++ has become.