One advantage of static factory methods is that, unlike constructors, they have names.
Effective JavaSitting in my favorite coffeehouse with a new notebook and a hot cup of java is my idea of Heaven.
Libba BrayC++ and Java, say, are presumably growing faster than plain C, but I bet C will still be around.
Dennis RitchieI'm just an observer of Java, and where Microsoft wants to go with C# is too early to tell.
Dennis Ritchie