Just call clone (or alias)
NB. This page is part of the series “Ergonomic RC”.Click here to see all posts.Continuing my series on ergonomic ref-counting, I want to explore another idea, one that I’m calling “just call clone (or alias)”. This proposal specializes the clone and alias methods so that, in a new edition, the compiler will (1) remove redundant or unnecessary calls (with a lint); and (2) automatically capture clones or aliases in move closures where needed.The goal of this proposal is to simplify the user’s mental model: whenever you see an error like “use of moved value”, the fix is always the same: just call clone (or alias, if applicable). This model is aiming for the balance of “low-level enough for a Kernel, usable enough for a GUI” that I described earlier. It’s also making a…
