Streams and readers/writers

In Java, streams and readers/writers are classes and interfaces that provide convenient abstractions for reading and writing data from/to different sources. They are part of the Java I/O (Input/Output) API and are widely used for handling input/output operations in Java programs.

1. Streams:
   • Streams are a sequence of data elements that can be read or written sequentially.
   • The core classes for handling streams are InputStream for reading binary data and OutputStream for writing binary data.
   • Streams are used for low-level input/output operations, such as reading/writing bytes, interacting with files, network sockets, or other input/output sources.
   • Examples of commonly used stream classes include FileInputStream, FileOutputStream, ByteArrayInputStream, and ByteArrayOutputStream.
2. Readers/Writers:
   • Readers and writers are higher-level abstractions built on top of streams, specifically designed for handling character-based input/output.
   • Readers are used for reading characters from a source, whereas writers are used for writing characters to a destination.
   • The core classes for handling readers and writers are Reader and Writer, respectively.
   • Readers and writers provide character encoding and decoding capabilities, making them suitable for handling text-based data.
   • Examples of commonly used reader and writer classes include FileReader, FileWriter, BufferedReader, and BufferedWriter.

The Java I/O API provides a rich set of classes and interfaces for handling different types of input/output operations, including file I/O, network I/O, and standard I/O. It also offers various utility classes and methods for efficient and convenient data handling. It’s important to properly handle exceptions that may occur during I/O operations by using try-catch blocks or throwing them to higher-level code for appropriate handling.