How can I make the map::find operation case insensitive?
It does not by default. You will have to provide a custom comparator as a third argument. Following snippet will help you...
/************************************************************************/
/* Comparator for case-insensitive comparison in STL assos. containers */
/************************************************************************/
struct ci_less : std::binary_function<std::string, std::string, bool>
{
// case-independent (ci) compare_less binary function
struct nocase_compare : public std::binary_function<unsigned char,unsigned char,bool>
{
bool operator() (const unsigned char& c1, const unsigned char& c2) const {
return tolower (c1) < tolower (c2);
}
};
bool operator() (const std::string & s1, const std::string & s2) const {
return std::lexicographical_compare
(s1.begin (), s1.end (), // source range
s2.begin (), s2.end (), // dest range
nocase_compare ()); // comparison
}
};
Use it like std::map< std::string, std::vector<std::string>, ci_less > myMap;
NOTE: std::lexicographical_compare has some nitty-gritty details. String comparison isn't always straightforward if you consider locales. See this thread on c.l.c++ if interested.
UPDATE: With C++11 std::binary_function
is deprecated and is unnecessary as the types are deduced automatically.
struct ci_less
{
// case-independent (ci) compare_less binary function
struct nocase_compare
{
bool operator() (const unsigned char& c1, const unsigned char& c2) const {
return tolower (c1) < tolower (c2);
}
};
bool operator() (const std::string & s1, const std::string & s2) const {
return std::lexicographical_compare
(s1.begin (), s1.end (), // source range
s2.begin (), s2.end (), // dest range
nocase_compare ()); // comparison
}
};
Here are some other alternatives, including one which performs significantly faster.
#include <map>
#include <string>
#include <cstring>
#include <iostream>
#include <boost/algorithm/string.hpp>
using std::string;
using std::map;
using std::cout;
using std::endl;
using namespace boost::algorithm;
// recommended in Meyers, Effective STL when internationalization and embedded
// NULLs aren't an issue. Much faster than the STL or Boost lex versions.
struct ciLessLibC : public std::binary_function<string, string, bool> {
bool operator()(const string &lhs, const string &rhs) const {
return strcasecmp(lhs.c_str(), rhs.c_str()) < 0 ;
}
};
// Modification of Manuel's answer
struct ciLessBoost : std::binary_function<std::string, std::string, bool>
{
bool operator() (const std::string & s1, const std::string & s2) const {
return lexicographical_compare(s1, s2, is_iless());
}
};
typedef map< string, int, ciLessLibC> mapLibc_t;
typedef map< string, int, ciLessBoost> mapBoost_t;
int main(void) {
mapBoost_t cisMap; // change to test other comparitor
cisMap["foo"] = 1;
cisMap["FOO"] = 2;
cisMap["bar"] = 3;
cisMap["BAR"] = 4;
cisMap["baz"] = 5;
cisMap["BAZ"] = 6;
cout << "foo == " << cisMap["foo"] << endl;
cout << "bar == " << cisMap["bar"] << endl;
cout << "baz == " << cisMap["baz"] << endl;
return 0;
}
You can instantiate std::map
with three parameters: type of keys, type of values, and comparison function -- a strict weak ordering (essentially, a function or functor behaving like operator<
in terms of transitivity and anti-reflexivity) of your liking. Just define the third parameter to do "case-insensitive less-than" (e.g. by a <
on the lowercased strings it's comparing) and you'll have the "case-insensitive map" you desire!