Chapter 16. File InputOutput

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Chapter 16. File Input/Output

I am the heir of all the ages, in the foremost files of time.

”Tennyson

A file is a collection of related data. C++ treats a file as a series of bytes. Many files reside on disk; however, devices such as printers, magnetic tapes, and communication lines are also considered files.

This chapter discusses three different I/O packages. The first is the C++ I/O stream classes. This is the most commonly used I/O system and the one we've been using up to now. Next, we examine the raw I/O routines that give us direct access to the low-level I/O. Finally we look at the C I/O system. Although it is somewhat outdated , C I/O calls still appear in old code. Also, in some cases, the C-style I/O routines are superior to the ones provided with C++.

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