16 Library introduction [library]

16.3 Method of description [description]

16.3.3 Other conventions [conventions]

16.3.3.3 Type descriptions [type.descriptions]

16.3.3.3.5 Character sequences [character.seq]

16.3.3.3.5.2 Byte strings [byte.strings]

A null-terminated byte string, or ntbs, is a character sequence whose highest-addressed element with defined content has the value zero (the terminating null character); no other element in the sequence has the value zero.164
The length of an ntbs is the number of elements that precede the terminating null character.
An empty ntbs has a length of zero.
The value of an ntbs is the sequence of values of the elements up to and including the terminating null character.
A static ntbs is an ntbs with static storage duration.165
Many of the objects manipulated by function signatures declared in <cstring> are character sequences or ntbss.
The size of some of these character sequences is limited by a length value, maintained separately from the character sequence.
 
A string-literal, such as "abc", is a static ntbs.