I'll get to the point and explain below.
What, if any, are the benefits of...
template<class T>
class myStack : public myList<T>...// my stack
over
template<class T, Container = deque<T> >
class stack...// C++ stack
Recently I was writing some code and was faced with an inheritance issue where I was exposing aspects of the base class that I would rather not. The specific example isn't important so I'll relate it to few semesters ago when I took a data structures class where we implemented our own list, stack, queue and others.
In this class we were to design a stack which was to inherit from a list. The problem with this was I was exposing public methods of the base that could potentially damage the stack's integrity. It may be that I'm a bit of a purist but having the insert() and remove() lying around in the stack was bothersome for me. I didn't have time to investigate it then but this time I thought I would consult the C++ standard to see how the stack was defined there. Low and behold I found the code above; it was an obvious solution that I overlooked.
Here's my view...
The C++ implementation is "better" because it allows the user the freedom to choose the underlying structure if desired and maintains a more pure stack in that it is clear only stack functionality available to the user and can be more guarded from unintended corruption. Are there more substantial, non-subjective reasoning behind the design choice, or inherit flaws in it?
The obvious benefit of mine is code re-use which is par for the course, I don't see that as an additional benefit the way I personally see the benefit of the freedom with the C++ implementation. I do see the over exposure (my words) of the base class as a con though. Are there more substantial, non-subjective reasoning behind the design choice, or inherit flaws in it?
Again, I'm not concerned with languages, I'm more concerned with weighing the pros/cons for my own designs.