stdskipws

Std::skipws is a standard C++ IO manipulator that sets the skipws format flag on an input stream. When this flag is set, input operations performed through formatted extraction (operator>>) skip leading whitespace characters before reading data. The flag is part of the C++ standard library’s iostream system and is defined in the <ios> header.

In practice, you can apply it to a stream with an expression like std::cin >> std::skipws;. This tells the stream to treat whitespace as skippable for subsequent formatted input operations, such as reading integers, floating-point numbers, or strings with operator>>. The effect lasts until the flag is cleared or the stream is closed. The complementary manipulator std::noskipws clears the skipws flag, disabling automatic whitespace skipping for future formatted input.

It is important to note that std::skipws affects only formatted input. Unformatted input operations (such as read, readsome, or get without a format) are not influenced by the skipws flag. The behavior also interacts with the stream’s locale, so which characters count as whitespace depends on the stream’s locale settings.

Relation to other tools: std::skipws is often used to ensure whitespace is skipped in a controlled way, especially in code that temporarily requires different input behavior. It provides a portable mechanism to alter a stream’s handling of leading whitespace without changing the underlying input logic.

In summary, std::skipws is a core mechanism for controlling whitespace handling in formatted input on C++ streams, complementing std::noskipws and other input manipulators.