Why Templates?

[Hasan Aljudy]

Derek Parnell wrote:
> I'm sure its because I'm not from a C++ background, but I just don't 
> get  templates. What is the problem that Templates solve?
> 
>  From my limited experience they just seem to be a shorthand for a way 
> of  avoiding coding identical algorithms that only vary in the datatypes 
> that  are passed to them. Is that it or am I missing some fundamental 
> elements?
> 
> And is that why people are clamoring for implicit template instantation 
> -  to further reduce the amount of typing to do (and remembering to  
> instantiate the only the required renditions of the algorithm).
> 

I feel the same.
I do come from C++ background, but I just hate templates! (Now I hate 
C++ itself :)
I think templates were introduced in C++ to solve the "no-base-class" 
problem. In other words, it's a hack that solves a misfeature in C++.

D's templates are not really templates any more, they're more like a 
meta-programming facility. Or so I think, anyway. I don't really 
understand templates anyway, not to mention meta programming