diff --git a/application/argumentparser.cpp b/application/argumentparser.cpp
index b3b36ce..26ea765 100644
--- a/application/argumentparser.cpp
+++ b/application/argumentparser.cpp
@@ -67,35 +67,6 @@ Argument::Argument(const char *name, const char *abbreviation, const char *descr
 Argument::~Argument()
 {}
 
-///*!
-// * \brief Checks whether the argument is ambigious.
-// * \returns Returns zero if the argument is not ambigious. Returns 1 if the name
-// *          is ambiguous and 2 if the abbreviation is ambiguous.
-// */
-//unsigned char Argument::isAmbiguous(const ArgumentParser &parser) const
-//{
-//    function<unsigned char (const ArgumentVector &args, const Argument *toCheck)> check;
-//    check = [&check] (const ArgumentVector &args, const Argument *toCheck) -> unsigned char {
-//        for(const auto *arg : args) {
-//            if(arg != toCheck) {
-//                if(!toCheck->name().empty() && arg->name() == toCheck->name()) {
-//                    return 1;
-//                } else if(!toCheck->abbreviation().empty() && arg->abbreviation() == toCheck->abbreviation()) {
-//                    return 2;
-//                }
-//            }
-//            if(auto res = check(arg->parents(), toCheck)) {
-//                return res;
-//            }
-//        }
-//        return 0;
-//    };
-//    if(auto res = check(parser.mainArguments(), this)) {
-//        return res;
-//    }
-//    return check(parents(), this);
-//}
-
 /*!
  * \brief Appends the name, the abbreviation and the description of the Argument to the give ostream.
  */
@@ -142,7 +113,7 @@ void Argument::printInfo(ostream &os, unsigned char indentionLevel) const
         os << endl << "Usage: " << example();
     }
     os << endl;
-    for(const auto *arg : secondaryArguments()) {
+    for(const auto *arg : subArguments()) {
         arg->printInfo(os, indentionLevel + 1);
     }
 }
@@ -176,17 +147,17 @@ Argument *firstPresentUncombinableArg(const ArgumentVector &args, const Argument
  * \sa addSecondaryArgument()
  * \sa hasSecondaryArguments()
  */
-void Argument::setSecondaryArguments(const ArgumentInitializerList &secondaryArguments)
+void Argument::setSubArguments(const ArgumentInitializerList &secondaryArguments)
 {
     // remove this argument from the parents list of the previous secondary arguments
-    for(Argument *arg : m_secondaryArgs) {
+    for(Argument *arg : m_subArgs) {
         arg->m_parents.erase(remove(arg->m_parents.begin(), arg->m_parents.end(), this), arg->m_parents.end());
     }
     // assign secondary arguments
-    m_secondaryArgs.assign(secondaryArguments);
+    m_subArgs.assign(secondaryArguments);
     // add this argument to the parents list of the assigned secondary arguments
     // and set the parser
-    for(Argument *arg : m_secondaryArgs) {
+    for(Argument *arg : m_subArgs) {
         if(find(arg->m_parents.cbegin(), arg->m_parents.cend(), this) == arg->m_parents.cend()) {
             arg->m_parents.push_back(this);
         }
@@ -200,10 +171,10 @@ void Argument::setSecondaryArguments(const ArgumentInitializerList &secondaryArg
  * \sa setSecondaryArguments()
  * \sa hasSecondaryArguments()
  */
-void Argument::addSecondaryArgument(Argument *arg)
+void Argument::addSubArgument(Argument *arg)
 {
-    if(find(m_secondaryArgs.cbegin(), m_secondaryArgs.cend(), arg) == m_secondaryArgs.cend()) {
-        m_secondaryArgs.push_back(arg);
+    if(find(m_subArgs.cbegin(), m_subArgs.cend(), arg) == m_subArgs.cend()) {
+        m_subArgs.push_back(arg);
         if(find(arg->m_parents.cbegin(), arg->m_parents.cend(), this) == arg->m_parents.cend()) {
             arg->m_parents.push_back(this);
         }
@@ -253,7 +224,7 @@ Argument *Argument::conflictsWithArgument() const
 {
     if(!isCombinable() && isPresent()) {
         for(Argument *parent : m_parents) {
-            for(Argument *sibling : parent->secondaryArguments()) {
+            for(Argument *sibling : parent->subArguments()) {
                 if(sibling != this && sibling->isPresent() && !sibling->isCombinable()) {
                     return sibling;
                 }
@@ -360,7 +331,7 @@ Argument *ArgumentParser::findArg(const ArgumentVector &arguments, const Argumen
     for(Argument *arg : arguments) {
         if(predicate(arg)) {
             return arg; // argument matches
-        } else if(Argument *subarg = findArg(arg->secondaryArguments(), predicate)) {
+        } else if(Argument *subarg = findArg(arg->subArguments(), predicate)) {
             return subarg; // a secondary argument matches
         }
     }
@@ -418,7 +389,7 @@ void ArgumentParser::verifySetup() const
                 names.push_back(arg->name());
             }
             verifiedArgs.push_back(arg);
-            checkArguments(arg->secondaryArguments());
+            checkArguments(arg->subArguments());
         }
     };
     checkArguments(m_mainArgs);
@@ -456,7 +427,7 @@ void ArgumentParser::parseArgs(int argc, char *argv[])
     foreachArg = [&foreachArg] (Argument *parent, const ArgumentVector &args, const function<void (Argument *, Argument *)> &proc) {
         for(Argument *arg : args) {
             proc(parent, arg);
-            foreachArg(arg, arg->secondaryArguments(), proc);
+            foreachArg(arg, arg->subArguments(), proc);
         }
     };
     // parse given arguments
@@ -591,7 +562,7 @@ void ArgumentParser::parseArgs(int argc, char *argv[])
             // the argument might be flagged as present if its a default argument
             if(arg->isDefault() && (arg->isMainArgument() || (parent && parent->isPresent()))) {
                 arg->m_present = true;
-                if(firstPresentUncombinableArg(arg->isMainArgument() ? m_mainArgs : parent->secondaryArguments(), arg)) {
+                if(firstPresentUncombinableArg(arg->isMainArgument() ? m_mainArgs : parent->subArguments(), arg)) {
                     arg->m_present = false;
                 }
             }
@@ -645,7 +616,8 @@ void ArgumentParser::parseArgs(int argc, char *argv[])
                 // only invoke if its a main argument or the parent is present
                 if(arg->isPresent()) {
                     if(arg->isDefault() && !arg->values().size()) {
-                        arg->m_callbackFunction(arg->defaultValues());
+                        vector<string> defaultValues(arg->defaultValues().cbegin(), arg->defaultValues().cend());
+                        arg->m_callbackFunction(defaultValues);
                     } else {
                         arg->m_callbackFunction(arg->values());
                     }
@@ -667,7 +639,7 @@ void ArgumentParser::parseArgs(int argc, char *argv[])
 HelpArgument::HelpArgument(ArgumentParser &parser) :
     Argument("help", "h", "shows this information")
 {
-    setCallback([&parser] (const StringVector &) {
+    setCallback([&parser] (const std::vector<std::string> &) {
         CMD_UTILS_START_CONSOLE;
         parser.printHelp(cout);
     });
diff --git a/application/argumentparser.h b/application/argumentparser.h
index 88ac508..250e2b6 100644
--- a/application/argumentparser.h
+++ b/application/argumentparser.h
@@ -28,8 +28,6 @@ class ArgumentParser;
 
 typedef std::initializer_list<Argument *> ArgumentInitializerList;
 typedef std::vector<Argument *> ArgumentVector;
-typedef std::vector<std::string> StringVector;
-typedef std::list<std::string> StringList;
 typedef std::function<bool (Argument *)> ArgumentPredicate;
 
 Argument LIB_EXPORT *firstPresentUncombinableArg(const ArgumentVector &args, const Argument *except);
@@ -39,7 +37,7 @@ class LIB_EXPORT Argument
     friend class ArgumentParser;
 
 public:
-    typedef std::function <void (const StringVector &)> CallbackFunction;
+    typedef std::function <void (const std::vector<std::string> &)> CallbackFunction;
 
     Argument(const char *name, const char *abbreviation = nullptr, const char *description = nullptr, const char *example = nullptr);
     ~Argument();
@@ -48,25 +46,23 @@ public:
     void setName(const char *name);
     const char *abbreviation() const;
     void setAbbreviation(const char *abbreviation);
-    //unsigned char isAmbiguous(const ArgumentParser &parser) const;
     const char *description() const;
     void setDescription(const char *description);
     const char *example() const;
     void setExample(const char *example);
-    const StringVector &values() const;
-    const std::string &value(StringVector::size_type index) const;
-    StringVector::size_type valueCount() const;
+    const std::vector<std::string> &values() const;
+    const std::string &value(std::size_t index) const;
+    std::size_t valueCount() const;
     int requiredValueCount() const;
     void setRequiredValueCount(int requiredValueCount);
-    const StringList &valueNames() const;
-    void setValueNames(std::initializer_list<std::string> valueNames);
+    const std::list<const char *> &valueNames() const;
+    void setValueNames(std::initializer_list<const char *> valueNames);
     void appendValueName(const char *valueName);
-    void appendValueName(const std::string &valueName);
     bool allRequiredValuesPresent() const;
     bool isDefault() const;
     void setDefault(bool value);
-    const StringVector &defaultValues() const;
-    void setDefaultValues(const StringVector &defaultValues);
+    const std::list<const char *> &defaultValues() const;
+    void setDefaultValues(const std::list<const char *> &defaultValues);
     bool isPresent() const;
     bool isRequired() const;
     void setRequired(bool value);
@@ -78,10 +74,10 @@ public:
     void setDenotesOperation(bool denotesOperation);
     void setCallback(CallbackFunction callback);
     void printInfo(std::ostream &os, unsigned char indentionLevel = 0) const;
-    const ArgumentVector &secondaryArguments() const;
-    void setSecondaryArguments(const ArgumentInitializerList &secondaryArguments);
-    void addSecondaryArgument(Argument *arg);
-    bool hasSecondaryArguments() const;
+    const ArgumentVector &subArguments() const;
+    void setSubArguments(const ArgumentInitializerList &subArguments);
+    void addSubArgument(Argument *arg);
+    bool hasSubArguments() const;
     const ArgumentVector parents() const;
     bool isMainArgument() const;
     std::string parentNames() const;
@@ -98,12 +94,12 @@ private:
     bool m_implicit;
     bool m_denotesOperation;
     int m_requiredValueCount;
-    StringList m_valueNames;
+    std::list<const char *> m_valueNames;
     bool m_default;
-    StringVector m_defaultValues;
+    std::list<const char *> m_defaultValues;
     bool m_present;
-    StringVector m_values;
-    ArgumentVector m_secondaryArgs;
+    std::vector<std::string> m_values;
+    ArgumentVector m_subArgs;
     CallbackFunction m_callbackFunction;
     ArgumentVector m_parents;
     bool m_isMainArg;
@@ -227,7 +223,7 @@ inline void Argument::setExample(const char *example)
  *
  * These values set by the parser when parsing the command line arguments.
  */
-inline const StringVector &Argument::values() const
+inline const std::vector<std::string> &Argument::values() const
 {
     return m_values;
 }
@@ -237,7 +233,7 @@ inline const StringVector &Argument::values() const
  *
  * These values set by the parser when parsing the command line arguments.
  */
-inline const std::string &Argument::value(StringVector::size_type index) const
+inline const std::string &Argument::value(std::size_t index) const
 {
     return m_values[index];
 }
@@ -246,7 +242,7 @@ inline const std::string &Argument::value(StringVector::size_type index) const
  * Returns the number of values which could be found when parsing
  * the command line arguments.
  */
-inline StringVector::size_type Argument::valueCount() const
+inline std::size_t Argument::valueCount() const
 {
     return m_values.size();
 }
@@ -293,7 +289,7 @@ inline void Argument::setRequiredValueCount(int requiredValueCount)
  * \sa setValueNames()
  * \sa appendValueNames()
  */
-inline const StringList &Argument::valueNames() const
+inline const std::list<const char *> &Argument::valueNames() const
 {
     return m_valueNames;
 }
@@ -311,7 +307,7 @@ inline const StringList &Argument::valueNames() const
  * \sa valueNames()
  * \sa requiredValueCount()
  */
-inline void Argument::setValueNames(std::initializer_list<std::string> valueNames)
+inline void Argument::setValueNames(std::initializer_list<const char *> valueNames)
 {
     m_valueNames.assign(valueNames);
 }
@@ -319,24 +315,14 @@ inline void Argument::setValueNames(std::initializer_list<std::string> valueName
 /*!
  * \brief Appends a value name. The value names names will be shown
  *        when printing information about the argument.
+ * \sa setValueNames()
+ * \sa valueNames()
  */
 inline void Argument::appendValueName(const char *valueName)
 {
     m_valueNames.emplace_back(valueName);
 }
 
-/*!
- * \brief Appends a value name. The value names names will be shown
- *        when printing information about the argument.
- *
- * \sa setValueNames()
- * \sa valueNames()
- */
-inline void Argument::appendValueName(const std::string &valueName)
-{
-    m_valueNames.push_back(valueName);
-}
-
 /*!
  * \brief Returns an indication whether all required values are present.
  */
@@ -384,7 +370,7 @@ inline void Argument::setDefault(bool value)
  * \sa setDefault()
  * \sa setDefaultValues()
  */
-inline const StringVector &Argument::defaultValues() const
+inline const std::list<const char *> &Argument::defaultValues() const
 {
     return m_defaultValues;
 }
@@ -399,7 +385,7 @@ inline const StringVector &Argument::defaultValues() const
  * \sa setDefault()
  * \sa defaultValues()
  */
-inline void Argument::setDefaultValues(const StringVector &defaultValues)
+inline void Argument::setDefaultValues(const std::list<const char *> &defaultValues)
 {
     m_defaultValues = defaultValues;
 }
@@ -528,9 +514,9 @@ inline void Argument::setCallback(Argument::CallbackFunction callback)
  * \sa setSecondaryArguments()
  * \sa hasSecondaryArguments()
  */
-inline const ArgumentVector &Argument::secondaryArguments() const
+inline const ArgumentVector &Argument::subArguments() const
 {
-    return m_secondaryArgs;
+    return m_subArgs;
 }
 
 /*!
@@ -539,9 +525,9 @@ inline const ArgumentVector &Argument::secondaryArguments() const
  * \sa secondaryArguments()
  * \sa setSecondaryArguments()
  */
-inline bool Argument::hasSecondaryArguments() const
+inline bool Argument::hasSubArguments() const
 {
-    return !m_secondaryArgs.empty();
+    return !m_subArgs.empty();
 }
 
 /*!
diff --git a/tests/testutils.h b/tests/testutils.h
index a26b819..fe2f0c4 100644
--- a/tests/testutils.h
+++ b/tests/testutils.h
@@ -18,7 +18,7 @@ public:
 #ifdef PLATFORM_UNIX
     std::string workingCopyPath(const std::string &name) const;
 #endif
-    const ApplicationUtilities::StringVector &units() const;
+    const std::vector<std::string> &units() const;
     static const TestApplication *instance();
 
 private:
@@ -56,7 +56,7 @@ inline const TestApplication *TestApplication::instance()
 /*!
  * \brief Returns the specified test units.
  */
-inline const ApplicationUtilities::StringVector &TestApplication::units() const
+inline const std::vector<std::string> &TestApplication::units() const
 {
     return m_unitsArg.values();
 }