Question

In the following code, the main function uses normal function instead of Template function.

#include <iostream>

using namespace std;

template <class T>
void num(T t){cout<<"T : "<<t;}

void num(int a){cout<<"wT : "<<a;}


int main()
{
    num(5);
    return 0;
}

What is the possible reason behind this?

Answer 1

To call the template method in this case, you need to invoke the method explicitly with num<int>(5) instead of num(5). Although the compiler can infer, non-generic method is preferred to a generic one. You can take a look at this behavior here http://ideone.com/ccDJP.