1. Identify all classes that need to be serialized. Include all abstract base and concrete classes. (See Serialization Requirements.)

2. Declare the streaming operators by putting macros in the header file for each class. (See Declaring the Streaming Operators.)

3. Define the streamContents() function by putting macros in the source file for each class. (See Defining the streamContents() Function.)

4. Write your object to an object stream and read it back. (See Streaming the Serialized Object.)