Interesting article, but I find it hard to believe that STL code would use virtual methods. Certainly it makes sense to use a custom algorithm when only a count is required, but was the claim about vtables actually tested?
Also, if speed is so important, why use qsort? It requires an indirect function call for every comparison; C++ sort or any inline implementation is faster.
The presence of the "generic C++ hater" type comment about vtables, when talking about STL algorithms, was a huge red flag making me doubt the guy's argument, for the reasons you gave.
Also, if speed is so important, why use qsort? It requires an indirect function call for every comparison; C++ sort or any inline implementation is faster.