CMap Class

A dictionary collection class that maps unique keys to values.

template< class KEY, class ARG_KEY, class VALUE, class ARG_VALUE >class CMap : public CObject

Parameters

  • KEY
    Class of the object used as the key to the map.

  • ARG*_*KEY
    Data type used for KEY arguments; usually a reference to KEY.

  • VALUE
    Class of the object stored in the map.

  • ARG*_*VALUE
    Data type used for VALUE arguments; usually a reference to VALUE.

Remarks

Once you have inserted a key-value pair (element) into the map, you can efficiently retrieve or delete the pair using the key to access it. You can also iterate over all the elements in the map.

A variable of type POSITION is used for alternate access to entries. You can use a POSITION to "remember" an entry and to iterate through the map. You might think that this iteration is sequential by key value; it is not. The sequence of retrieved elements is indeterminate.

Certain member functions of this class call global helper functions that must be customized for most uses of the CMap class. See Collection Class Helpers in the Macros and Globals section of the MFCReference.

CMap overrides CObject::Serialize to support serialization and dumping of its elements. If a map is stored to an archive using Serialize, each map element is serialized in turn. The default implementation of the SerializeElements helper function does a bitwise write. For information about serialization of pointer collection items derived from CObject or other user defined types, see How to: Make a Type-Safe Collection.

If you need a diagnostic dump of the individual elements in the map (the keys and values), you must set the depth of the dump context to 1 or greater.

When a CMap object is deleted, or when its elements are removed, the keys and values both are removed.

Map class derivation is similar to list derivation. See the article Collections for an illustration of the derivation of a special-purpose list class.

Requirements

Header: afxtempl.h

See Also

Tasks

COLLECT Sample: Illustrates MFC Collection Classes

Reference

CObject Class

Hierarchy Chart

Other Resources

CMap Members