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What's the idea behind "templates"?
A template is a cookie-cutter that specifies how to cut cookies that all
look pretty much the same (although the cookies can be made of various kinds
of dough, they'll all have the same basic shape). In the same way, a class
template is a cookie cutter to description of how to build a family of
classes thatall look basically the same, and a function template describes how
to build a family of similar looking functions.
Class templates are often used to build type safe containers (although
this only scratches the surface for how they can be used).