GCC 16 considering changing default to C++20

Re:GCC 16 considering changing default to C++20 by ajross on Monday November 17, 2025 @11:43AM (#45955299)

No? The "corresponding compiler flag" is a new feature. I mean, who told folks at Bell Labs in 1978 how the GCC --std= arguments would work in the coming decades? Legacy code is legacy, it doesn't know it needs to use the correct flags. When it was a greenfield project, it was the default!

Like, think about it: if you think the defaults should be good for greenfield projects, then greenfield projects won't be using the correct flags (because if they are, then the whole argument is specious anyway). And when C++34 shows up, they're going to be broken and we'll have this argument again.

Compatibility is hard. But IMHO C++ and gcc are doing this wrong and C is doing it much better.

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Re:GCC 16 considering changing default to C++20 by plorkyeran on Monday November 17, 2025 @01:58PM (#45956739)

GCC's default has already changed once (to C++11). It did not cause any significant problems, and any software which is relying on the current value was created long after the flags to pick a standard version were added.

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