Should you format operator<< for classes?

Question

As in, should the operator>> match the operator<< ?

Database Example:

If the operator>> reads in something of the following format:

2
Joe 500 20 1
Bob 250 30 0

should the operator<< output that? Or something like this:

Record: 1/2
Name: Joe
Balance: 500
Transactions: 20
Premium Account: Yes

And then have a separate writeFile() function?

I know either would work, but what is the "accepted standard"?

Answer 1

This kind of operator overloading is IMO a big misuse and misconception. Use overloading where it really makes some sense.

For debug purposes, have toString() and override << to call it. Do not override >> at all.

>> and << generally serve for sending serialized data to streams, not for communication with user.

My 2 eurocents.

Answer 2

If you have an istream operator>> overload for a type that reads data in a particular format, then if you implement an ostream operator<< overload for the same type, it should output in the same format (otherwise, it could get quite confusing).

Answer 3

Both or independent of each other, according to your will you can overload them.