Output filename where serialized content will be written

The full annotation sequence is a parameter to allow for the location where this annotation will be serialized to be a function of other annotations, e.g., if the location where information is written is controlled by a separate file location annotation.

A buffered version of getBytes for more efficient serialization

If you only need to serialize an Iterable[String], you can use the String.getBytes method. It's also helpful to create a view which will do the .map lazily instead of eagerly, improving GC performance.

def getBytesBuffered: Iterable[Array[Byte]] = myListString.view.map(_.getBytes)

Optional suffix of the output file

Method that returns the filename where this annotation will be serialized.

A method that can convert this annotation to bytes that will be written to a file.

If you only need to serialize a string, you can use the getBytes method:

def getBytes: Iterable[Byte] = myString.getBytes

Optionally, a sequence of annotations that will replace this annotation in the output annotation file.

A non-empty implementation of this method is a mechanism for telling a downstream Stage how to deserialize the information that was serialized to a separate file. For example, if a FIRRTL circuit is serialized to a separate file, this method could include an input file annotation that a later stage can use to read the serialized FIRRTL circuit back in.