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Re: Formatless files

• From: Michael Kay <mike@saxonica.com>
• To: Roger L Costello <costello@mitre.org>
• Date: Wed, 10 Aug 2022 08:53:28 +0100

> 
> 
> A file has no inherent format.

Not true. Every file has an inherent format.
> 
> The format of a file is determined by the programs that use it. 

The operating systems that have become popular, Windows and Unix, both of which are 40+ years old, have file systems that treat the content of a file as a sequence of bytes. There are (or were) other operating systems that had much more detailed knowledge of file formats. It's an example of a common phenomenon in the history of computing: simplicity and low cost wins over technical sophistication. Something which is now causing the industry huge costs because the popular operating systems are so insecure.
> 
> 
> How do those excerpts apply to XML? Why are there so many file formats - the XML file format, the JSON file format, the CSV file format, and so on? Isn't that contrary to the idea of formatless files?
> 

There's no such thing as a formatless file. You're talking about files that have a format, but whose format is unknown at a certain level of the system.

Michael Kay
Saxonica

• References:
  • Formatless files
    • From: Roger L Costello <costello@mitre.org>