C++Now 2018

Using another language inside your C++ program never comes easily, even if its a scripting language. Specifically, the Lua language's C API is very explicit and fast but stack management and API quirks often make scaling up a problem without significant man-hours, and often result in suboptimal wrappers written to serve the current needs and deadlines without thought to clean interface or later optimization.

sol2 is a new approach to wrapping the Lua C API. We consider first how to create a pleasant experience similar to the Lua language itself, creating airtight abstractions around core concepts to maximize initial intuitive understanding of our wrapper. We then introduce library-specific concepts with tutorials and documentation to allow the user to make progress quickly. Finally, we provide several facilities for overriding the default wrapper behavior to allow for custom handling, letting the user scale the wrapper alongside their needs.

In this session, we will discuss API extension points, C API wrapping techniques, Lua C API (ab)use, runtime performance characteristics, and compile-time reduction strategies. Friendly discussion throughout the demo and presentation is encouraged!