C++ Standard Template Library (STL) Tutorial

Containers

STL provides several container types:

• Sequence Containers: vector, deque, list.
• Associative Containers: set, map, multiset, multimap.
• Derived Containers: stack, queue, priority_queue.

#include <vector>
#include <iostream>
using namespace std;

int main() {
    vector<int> numbers = {1, 2, 3, 4, 5};
    for (int n : numbers) {
        cout << n << " ";
    }
    return 0;
}
                

Iterators

Iterators are used to traverse through STL containers:

#include <vector>
#include <iostream>
using namespace std;

int main() {
    vector<int> numbers = {1, 2, 3};
    for (vector<int>::iterator it = numbers.begin(); it != numbers.end(); ++it) {
        cout << *it << " ";
    }
    return 0;
}
                

Algorithms

STL includes built-in algorithms for sorting, searching, and more:

#include <algorithm>
#include <vector>
#include <iostream>
using namespace std;

int main() {
    vector<int> numbers = {5, 3, 1, 4, 2};
    sort(numbers.begin(), numbers.end());

    for (int n : numbers) {
        cout << n << " ";
    }
    return 0;
}
                

Advantages of STL

• Reduces development time by providing pre-built data structures and algorithms.
• Increases code efficiency and safety.
• Improves portability across different platforms.