stdbasicostreamchar

Std::basic_ostream<char> is a class template in the C++ standard library that provides the interface for output streams carrying character data of type char. It forms the foundation for text-oriented output streams and is defined in the <ostream> header. When instantiated with the default character type, it is typically used through the alias std::ostream, which corresponds to std::basic_ostream<char> with the standard traits.

It inherits from std::basic_ios<char> and uses a stream buffer to perform actual character output. The specialization for char is the basis for standard output streams such as std::cout, std::cerr, and std::clog. The class provides a rich set of insertion operators (operator<<) for built-in types and for types with defined stream insertion operators, along with manipulators (for example, std::endl and std::setw) to control formatting.

Formatting state is managed via member functions that control width, precision, fill character, and formatting flags. The stream also supports rdbuf for exchanging the underlying stream buffer. Users typically interact with std::ostream through these operators and manipulators to build textual output, relying on the underlying stream buffer to handle device or file I/O.

Std::basic_ostream<char> is part of the standard library across C++ standards, with std::ostream serving as the common alias for programmers. It underpins common output patterns in C++, forming the core interface used by widely adopted streams such as std::cout, std::cerr, and std::clog.