19 — Quick Checklist

Use this as a fast self-assessment.

Modern C++ Core

• I understand stack vs heap lifetime.
• I can explain RAII.
• I avoid manual new and delete in normal code.
• I know when to use unique_ptr.
• I know when not to use shared_ptr.
• I understand raw pointers as non-owning views.
• I understand references vs pointers.
• I can explain const correctness.

Move and Value Semantics

• I know what std::move actually does.
• I know what a moved-from object means.
• I understand copy constructor and copy assignment.
• I understand move constructor and move assignment.
• I know Rule of 0, Rule of 3, Rule of 5.
• I prefer value semantics when possible.

STL

• I use std::vector as the default sequence container.
• I know map vs unordered_map.
• I know set vs unordered_set.
• I understand iterator invalidation.
• I can use sort, find, count, transform, remove_if.
• I can write lambdas for algorithms.

Modern Syntax

• I use auto appropriately.
• I use range-based for.
• I use lambdas.
• I use nullptr.
• I use enum class.
• I understand constexpr basics.
• I can read structured bindings.

Modern Library Types

• I know when to use optional.
• I know when to use variant.
• I understand string_view lifetime risks.
• I understand span as a non-owning view.
• I can use filesystem.
• I can use chrono durations.

Templates

• I can write a function template.
• I can write a simple class template.
• I understand template instantiation.
• I can read basic concept-constrained templates.

Error Handling

• I understand exceptions.
• I understand exception safety basics.
• I know why destructors should not throw.
• I know when optional is not enough.
• I know some domains avoid exceptions.

Concurrency

• I can create and join a thread.
• I know what a data race is.
• I can use mutex and lock_guard.
• I understand condition variables at a basic level.
• I understand atomics at a basic level.
• I know what deadlock is.

Safety and Performance

• I know common undefined behavior cases.
• I use sanitizers.
• I understand cache locality basics.
• I know why heap allocation can be expensive.
• I profile before optimizing.
• I understand reserve.

Tooling

• I can build with CMake.
• I can debug with gdb/lldb.
• I can enable AddressSanitizer and UBSan.
• I can format code with clang-format.
• I can run basic tests with Catch2 or GoogleTest.

Portfolio

• I have one serious C++ project.
• It has a README.
• It has tests.
• It uses CMake.
• It has sanitizer instructions.
• It demonstrates a domain, not just syntax.