Maps: Generic Associative Containers

The Maps Library offers nine genuine generic container classes. Just as TStringList lets you keep lists of objects indexed by a string value, Maps let you keep lists of just about any type, object or atomic, indexed by whatever type you like. The nine different kinds of map have different performance characteristics allowing you to …

FirstAid

Every so often the Delphi IDE (from D2 until at least D7) seems to get confused about its line numbers: errors are reported in places there is no code; the debugger jumps about with no apparent relation to the code that is being executed. The Delphi newsgroups propose many diagnoses but, in my experience, the …

Ash Wednesday

Lent never starts at the right time. It always comes as an interruption—an unwanted interruption. When did you last hear someone saying, “I can’t wait for Lent”? Or think to yourself, “I wish Ash Wednesday were here!” No, we are just getting used to ordinary time and a rhythm of life when the whistle blows …