Inside the C⁺⁺ object model
by Stanley B. Lippman · first published 1996
70% recommend20% neutral10% critical
Why HN recommends it
Explains how compilers implement C++ under the hood, covering object layout, virtual methods, and return value optimization; readers credit it with making the language click for working programmers.
Summarised by Claude from recommending comments
Inside the C++ Object Model focuses on the underlying mechanisms that support object-oriented programming within C++: constructor semantics, temporary generation, support for encapsulation, inheritance and "the virtuals" - virtual functions and virtual inheritance. This book shows how your understanding the underlying implementation models can help you code more efficiently and with greater confidence. Lippman dispells the misinformation and myths about the overhead and complexity associated with C++, while pointing out areas in which costs and trade-offs, sometimes hidden, do exist. He then
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Much of C++ made more sense to me when I read Inside the C++ Object Model by Stanley Lippman[1]. It helped me internalize the fact that C++ was originally implemented as a preprocessor transformation into C (Stroustrup's Cfront). Thus many C++ mechanisms can be understood as…
on “Instance Model Programming in C” ↗…Elements of Programming. Stroustrup's The Design and Evolution of C++ is another great "why" book, and I hope that Bjarne will decide to update it for C++11 or 14. It's older, but reading Lippman's Inside the C++ Object Model is what finally made the language click for me.
on “The C++ and programming books I recommend” ↗It's very old and I have no idea how accurate it still is, but I found Inside the C++ Object Model by Stanley Lippman (http://www.amazon.com/Inside-Object-Model-Stanley-Lippman/dp...) to be tremendously useful in the mid-'90s for understanding what was going on under the hood. Stroustrup's The Design…
on “Learning C++ in 2010” ↗…Lippman, Josee Lajoie, Barbara Moo. Don't bother with any other book until you have made a full pass over this. You can later update yourself to C++20/C++23/etc. from the books by Stroustrup/Others. 2) Inside the C++ Object Model by Stanley Lippman. An old classic to understand the "C++ Abstract Machine" built on top of the "C Abstract Machine". PS: The Definitive C++ Book Guide and List - https://stackoverflow.com/questions/388242/the-definitive-c-...
on “Ask HN: How to Learn C++ in 2026?” ↗…titled C++: Under the Hood which explained class layouts/vtables/etc. It is still a excellent read today. Pdf at https://www.google.com/goto?url=CAESewHuR6pNy2XLp9fzgwckhWpg... Finally of course you have Inside the C++ Object Model by Stanley Lippman explaining everything in detail.
on “Thoroughly Understanding C++ ABI” ↗…also want to get the 1st ed. which is based on 32-bit x86. These books cover the HW/SW interface and thus includes almost all the topics under "Systems Programming". - The C Companion by Allen Holub. - Inside the C++ object model by Stan Lippman. Tools/Toolchain: Knowledge of the GCC toolchain is a must. - The Definitive guide to GCC by Hagen - ELF: A Programmer's perspective; paper by H.J.Liu - C++ Under the hood; MSDN article…
on “Ask HN: What should a systems/low-level software engineer know?” ↗…constructed to give the result. You can test out the NVRO yourself by putting a printf in an object's constructor, and have the object returned from a function on to an object of the same type. Stan Lipmann's Inside the C++ Object Model explained it best for me. NVRO applies to the vector object. The difference here is that Stroustrup is talking about the elements of the vector, not the vector itself, and how the move semantics remove…
on “Bjarne Stroustrup Discusses C++” ↗…more bookkeeping by the compiler of appropriate offsets, but structurally it doesn't change very much. It's not surprising: C++ was famously originally implemented as a preprocess transformation into C. Inside the C++ Object Model[1] is a fascinating deep dive on how C++ semantics map to C constructs. [1] https://www.oreilly.com/library/view/inside-the-c/0201834545...
on “Inheritance in C using structure composition” ↗First, go read "Inside the C++ Object Model" so that you can have a firm grip on how the compiler implements everything under the hood. But, you are looking for dark corners full of gold... Here's where to look: Policy-based design using templates…
on “Ask HN: They say no one knows all C++ so what parts do Game Devs need to know?” ↗+1 for Inside the C++ Object Model. Understanding the mechanics of abstractions like virtual methods (along with stack/heap, pointers, but those are less C++-specific) makes you much more confident in what your code is doing (and why you…
on “The C++ and programming books I recommend” ↗I don't remember his death being noted at the time, which is sad. His books are all well worth reading, particularly "Inside the C++ Object Model", which is still relevant.
on “Stan Lippman, early contributor to C++, died (2022)” ↗…#11 Hacker's Delight - Henry S. Warren #12 Nos camarades Français - Elida Maria Szarota (actually The C++ Programming Language by Stroustrup) #13 Compilers - Alfred V. Aho, Ravi Sethi #14 Inside the C++ Object Model #15 Code - Charles Petzold #16 Hacking, 2nd Edition - Jon Erickson #17 C Plus Plus Primer - Stanley B. Lippman, Josée Lajoie, Barbara E. Moo #18 C Interfaces and Implementations - David…
on “The most mentioned books on Stack Overflow” ↗I will struggle my way through this, having mostly given up on "Inside the C++ Object Model" by Stan Lippman. I have heard it said that Lippman's book is very out of date and a lot of it doesn't apply to modern compilers. Link seems to be down, although some of it is cached by google. Is there…
on “C++ object model and other internals explained with simple C code” ↗…- https://github.com/QuantumLeaps/OOP-in-C - C++ Concurrency in Action - C++ Templates the Complete Guide 2e The first is particularly geared towards C programmers, and I prefer the second one to "Inside the C++ Object Model". (There's also another popular book by a German author who covers OOP in C.) For the time being, I will be an "opportunist" who is waiting for the right time to switch to another language - Rust: "To…
on “Ask HN: What are relevant books as of C++20?” ↗