A comprehensive introduction and guide to the STL, pitched at the level of readers already familiar with C++. It presents a thorough overview of the capabilities of the STL, detailed discussions of the use of containers, descriptions of the algorithms and how they may be used, and how the STL may be extended. An appendix provides an alphabetical reference to the entire STL, making this an extremely useful hands-on text for programmers of C++ and students coming to the STL for the first time.