Everything About ___
Live briefing

Everything about Header-only

C/C++ library offered in pure header files

In the context of the C or C++ programming languages, a library is called header-only if the full definitions of all macros, functions and classes comprising the library are visible to the compiler in a header file form, with no separate implementation files or precompiled binaries. Header-only libraries do not need to be separately compiled, packaged and installed in order to be used. All that is required is to point the compiler at the location of the headers, and then #include the header files into the application source. Another advantage is that the compiler's optimizer can do a much better job when all the library's source code is available. Because the compiler has direct access to the implementation, it can inline more code, which can make the compiled executable faster. Wikipedia →

🧭 Start here: a 6-step reading path

  1. Read the overview: Header-onlyA 5-minute orientation
  2. Skim a recent paper: Hypercomplex: abstract & fast header-only C++ template library for lattice-based cryptosystems in high-dimensional algebrasInfluential work since 2022
  3. Pick up a classic book: CellThe most-reprinted book on the subject
  4. Read the landmark paper: mlpack 4: a fast, header-only C++ machine learning libraryCited 32 times
  5. Go sideways: Single compilation unitA closely related topic
  6. Go sideways: Modules (C++)A closely related topic

📖 Definitions

No dictionary entry for this exact phrase.

🗂️ The subject at a glance

No outline available.

🏆 Landmark papers (most cited)

🆕 Influential since 2022

📚 Books worth reading

Ranked by number of editions on Open Library, a rough measure of how lasting a book is.

🔗 Related topics