Rollup merge of #47547 - varkor:infinite-iterators-warning-doc, r=frewsxcv

Document the behaviour of infinite iterators on potentially-computable methods

It’s not entirely clear from the current documentation what behaviour
calling a method such as `min` on an infinite iterator like `RangeFrom`
is. One might expect this to terminate, but in fact, for infinite
iterators, `min` is always nonterminating (at least in the standard
library). This adds a quick note about this behaviour for clarification.
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kennytm 2018-02-11 03:39:53 +08:00
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@ -1431,6 +1431,10 @@ pub trait Iterator {
/// Folding is useful whenever you have a collection of something, and want
/// to produce a single value from it.
///
/// Note: `fold()`, and similar methods that traverse the entire iterator,
/// may not terminate for infinite iterators, even on traits for which a
/// result is determinable in finite time.
///
/// # Examples
///
/// Basic usage:

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@ -298,7 +298,21 @@
//!
//! This will print the numbers `0` through `4`, each on their own line.
//!
//! Bear in mind that methods on infinite iterators, even those for which a
//! result can be determined mathematically in finite time, may not terminate.
//! Specifically, methods such as [`min`], which in the general case require
//! traversing every element in the iterator, are likely not to return
//! successfully for any infinite iterators.
//!
//! ```no_run
//! let ones = std::iter::repeat(1);
//! let least = ones.min().unwrap(); // Oh no! An infinite loop!
//! // `ones.min()` causes an infinite loop, so we won't reach this point!
//! println!("The smallest number one is {}.", least);
//! ```
//!
//! [`take`]: trait.Iterator.html#method.take
//! [`min`]: trait.Iterator.html#method.min
#![stable(feature = "rust1", since = "1.0.0")]