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Comment by chrisjj | Hacker News Reader

> Debugging the C++ standard library on macOS

Some mistake. The article contains nothing on this subject.

What part of this isn't about debugging the C++ stdlib on macOS? It talks about the special version of clang in Xcode. It has macOS-specific options. It gets into the details of doing this with Mach-O files. Almost no parts of this post isn't about the c++ stdlib and essentially all of it is specific to macOS.

I guess what chrisjj might have meant is that "debugging" usually starts with a bug, a or symptom. So in case of debugging the standard library, it usually is a problem in your own code that you cannot explain and try to blame on an error of the subsystem. In those cases, having access to a source-level debugger can be useful but in my experience this the subsystem is usually not where you'll find the error; more often it's in your own code.

So in case of this article, ask: what is the symptom of an alleged bug in the standard library that the author is trying to uncover?

This article is more about using the online debugger to explore parts of the standard library. Which is interesting, but as others have pointed out probably not the best way to familiarize yourself with a language or library.

> but in my experience this the subsystem is usually not where you'll find the error; more often it's in your own code

More often perhaps, but compilers and their standard libraries are complex pieces of software written by human beings - and it's not that uncommon to encounter them, especially if you go a bit off the beaten path or are an early adopter.

Sure, that happens too. And it would be interesting to read an article about that; but that is not what this article is about despite its title :-)

> Almost no parts of this post isn't about the c++ stdlib and essentially all of it is specific to macOS.

True. But notice the word Debugging is missing there.

What is it about, then?

I know Hacker News guidelines say you're not supposed to ask if someone's read the article but... did you even read the article? What part of the article is not about C++ and macOS?

> did you even read the article?

Yup. No offence taken.

> What part of the article is not about C++ and macOS?

None of it.

But what part /is/ about debugging that?

None of it.

> Finally, we can break on insert_or_assign as expected and start exploring areas of interest within the standard library

Did you miss this part?

Nope.

Debugging - the process of identifying and removing errors from computer hardware or software.

If you insist on being so pedantic, what makes you so sure the breakpoint isn't an error?

Nothing. But that's immaterial, given the issue is the content of the article not the content of the code.

But what do think /is/ the meaning of "debugging" here, if not the common-usage one seen in the dictionary?

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