Strings, Ids, Hash Codes, and Text Buffers

The ${\tt m^3}$ String class, § C.2.1, provides constant character sequences, as opposed to the C++ standard library component of the same name, which allows a wide variety of imperative operations. The Buffer class, § C.2.3, is the much simpler, and so more limited ${\tt m^3}$ alternative to imperative standard strings. As elsewhere in the ${\tt m^3}$ library, the primary reason for avoiding the standard library components is the need to provide pool-based memory allocation via parameterized rather than static state. In this case, the freedom to expose to clients the results of hash code computation, § C.2.2, is an additional advantage.