what's the point of std::unique_ptr::get
Doesn't std::unique_ptr::get defeat the purpose of having a unique_ptr in the first place?
I would have expected this function to change its state so it holds no more pointer.
Is there an actual useful use of std::unique_ptr::get?
Answer
std::unique_ptr provides unique ownership semantics safely. However that doesn't rule out the need for non-owning pointers. std::shared_ptr has a non-owning counterpart, std::weak_ptr. Raw pointers operate as std::unique_ptr's non-owning counterpart.