(INItialization file) A Windows configuration file used to store settings for the operating system or application. In the days of Windows 3.x, the WIN.INI and SYSTEM.INI system files were required by the OS, and applications commonly used the INI format to store settings. Starting with Windows 95, operating system settings were moved to the Registry, and software vendors were encouaged to move their settings to the Registry as well. However, all subsequent versions of Windows continued support for the creation and use of INI files, and they are still widely used by applications.
Headers and Key-Value Pairs
INI contents are structured with headers enclosed in braces ([]) that define a section containing one or more key-value pairs (data=value). The following example are lines excerpted from the CDE.INI file created by the Windows version of this Encyclopedia. The file holds user preferences such as colors, fonts, lookup history and bookmarks. See key-value pair, configuration file, WIN.INI and SYSTEM.INI.
Headers and Key-Value Pairs
INI contents are structured with headers enclosed in braces ([]) that define a section containing one or more key-value pairs (data=value). The following example are lines excerpted from the CDE.INI file created by the Windows version of this Encyclopedia. The file holds user preferences such as colors, fonts, lookup history and bookmarks. See key-value pair, configuration file, WIN.INI and SYSTEM.INI.
[CDE] Version=8.00.00 ExeVersion=8.4.0.19 PictPath=C:194PICTURES LessonPath=C:194lessons TextPath=C:194 Pictures=1 AltPictEna=0 ClickPixToPrint=1 Position=325,954,1,992,0 ToolBar=1 TitleColor=14215660 TextColor=16777215 ExternalVideo=1 ExternalFlash=0 AnimationWarning=1 PixCacheOpt=0 DisplayUpdateDialog=0 DisplayTooSlow=1 Splash=0 [Fonts.Body] Name=Arial Color=0 Height=-13 Family=32 CharSet=0 [Fonts.Index] Name=Arial Color=0 Height=-13 Weight=700 Italic=0 Family=32 CharSet=0 [History] HCount=10 HCurr=9 HDate=-39632630 Hist00=-1,dual-band headset Hist01=-1,cellular automata Hist02=-1,executable code Hist03=-1,infranet Hist04=-1,infranet Hist05=-1,ITXC Hist06=-1,IPP Hist07=-1,LPD Hist08=-1,compact tape Hist09=-1,ALM [Bookmarks] Quickmark1=-1,-1 QuickMark2=-1,-1 BCount=1 Book00=-38,14,LUN BPos00=-1,SCSI adapter
 | Reproduced with permission from Computer Desktop Encyclopedia. Copyright (c) 1981-2008 The Computer Language Company Inc. All rights reserved. |
Additional Resources
- iPhone vs. Android development: Day 5
- Today is the last day of a 5-day course on iPhone programming class led by Joe Conway from Big Nerd Ranch. During the course I've been taking notes on how development for the iPhone compares to development for Android. By the way, BNR also offers Android courses if you're interested....
- Blog posts 2008-11-21
- iPhone update kills 12 security bugs
- Apple has released iPhone OS 2.2 with patches for 12 documented security flaws, some very serious. The vulnerabilities covered by the patch which also affect iPod Touch could allow remote code execution, information theft, software crashes and weakened encryption settings. The skinny on this...
- Blog posts 2008-11-21
- Video Is Not The Future of the Internet. It's the Present.
- Auto companies may be going out of business. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is shrinking dramatically, by the day. Consumer confidence is at a post-war low. But Internet traffic is unabated. Notably, it's led by consumers. And video. "We are living in unprecedented times,''...
- Blog posts 2008-11-20
- Internet stars come out for RIAA trial
- In RIAA lawsuit news, the Tennenbaum case – in which uber-lawyer Charles Nesson now represents the defendant – is taking an Internet star turn. Ray Beckerman reports that in a pretrial memo PDF, Nesson discloses that he intends to call some of the biggest legal names in digital rights. ...
- Blog posts 2008-11-19
- iPhone vs. Android development: Day 3
- This is the 3rd in a series of 5 posts about an iPhone programming course I'm taking this week. The course is presented by Joe Conway from Big Nerd Ranch. To make things more interesting I'm writing about how iPhone development differs from Android development, a subject with which I'm...
- Blog posts 2008-11-19
- Malware found in Lenovo software package
- Computer maker Lenovo is shipping a malware-infected software package to Windows XP users, according to warning from anti-virus researchers at Microsoft. The malicious file was identified by Microsoft as Win32/Meredrop, a Trojan dropper that is used to install and execute multiple malicious executables on an infected computer....
- Blog posts 2008-11-19
- Take back control of Vista's default programs and the Open With list
- Ever had one application establish itself as the default for a certain file type against your wishes? In Microsoft Windows Vista, with some specialized knowledge and some tweaking, you can regain control over your default applications, especially when it comes to the Open With menu. In this edition of the...
- Download resources 2008-11-19
- Peer to Peer File Sharing Policy
- As an addendum to the company's Acceptable Use Policy—which details the utilization of the company network, the Internet, e-mail, and employees' personal computers—this policy prohibits the use of Peer-to-Peer (P2P) file-sharing applications on company equipment. Use this policy as-is or customize it to meet your...
- Download resources 2008-11-19
- Commercial vendor of spyware under legal fire
- Just like every decent marketer out there, vendors of commercial malware tools are very good at positioning their tools. However, their pitches often contradict with themselves in a way that what's promoted as a Remote Administration Tool, has in fact built-in antivirus software evading capabilities, rootkit functionality and tutorials on...
- Blog posts 2008-11-18
- iPhone vs. Android development: Day 2
- Welcome to day 2 of a 5-day course on iPhone programming presented by Joe Conway from Big Nerd Ranch. During the course I'll be blogging about the differences between Android and iPhone development. [Read: Day 1, Day 2, Day 3, Day 4, Day 5] ...
- Blog posts 2008-11-18
- iPhone vs. Android development: Day 1
- As I mentioned last week I've started learning more about developing for the Apple iPhone. This week I'll be sharing my experiences during a 5-day course on iPhone programming presented by Joe Conway from Big Nerd Ranch. In particular, I'll be pointing out differences between Android and iPhone development. ...
- Blog posts 2008-11-17
- Asus launches 'world's fastest' smartphone
- Yes, you read correctly: Asus has unveiled its latest smartphone, which, it claims is the "fastest business PDA phone in the world." Them's big words coming from a mobile underdog. That's because the juice behind the shell of the Asus P565 is an 800MHz...
- Blog posts 2008-11-17
- OLPC is dead...What Kindlenomics taught us
- Fellow ZDNet blogger, Jason Perlow, wrote a neat piece suggesting that, if electronic versions of most college textbooks existed, it wouldn't take many semesters for the average undergraduate to pay for the Kindle on which to read them. In fact, with a fair amount of arm-waving, it wasn't too...
- Blog posts 2008-11-16
- BearingPoint's Q3 earnings call - part 1
- To BE or not BE Several news groups and Wall Street firms covered BearingPoint's BE Q3 results this week but one point was not well covered, if at all. Look at this bullet point that is at the bottom of a list of points BE...
- Blog posts 2008-11-14
- Sun plugs holes in StarOffice
- Two weeks after the OpenOffice.org team shipped patches for code execution flaws in office suite, Sun Micrososystems has followed up with a high-priority update for StarOffice, which is based on the open-source code. Sun's patch, available for Windows, Linux and Solaris, address highly-critical vulnerabilities that could expose...
- Blog posts 2008-11-14
- Adventures in CA Support Day 2
- As I pointed out in the post Adventures in CA support, I received a routine message from CA telling me that my subscription to their CA Internet Security Suite was coming to an end and I needed to purchase an update. When I did and installed the updated software, problems...
- Blog posts 2008-11-14
- Adventures in CA support
- I received an Email notice this morning that my support agreement with CA for their Internet Security Suite was ending and that I should pay for an update. Since I'm well aware of how long a Windows XP system will survive on the network without a security breach, I dutifully...
- Blog posts 2008-11-13
- Qualcomm's Kayak "PC alternative" pictured
- Here's a picture of Kayak, the "PC alternative" for emerging markets that Qualcomm announced yesterday. It looks pretty much the way the company described it: sort of a cross between the Apple Mac Mini--bring your own monitor, keyboard and mouse--and the OLPC's XO laptop with its...
- Blog posts 2008-11-13
- Google Chrome vulnerable to data theft flaw
- Google has seeded a new version of its Chrome browser to developers with fixes for a pair of security issues that could expose users to data theft. The issue, rated as a "moderate" risk could allow hackers to use HTML files to steal arbitrary files from a...
- Blog posts 2008-11-13
- Getting started with iPhone development
- I've been doing Android development for some time, and before that I experimented with Palm and Blackberry, so I figured it was time for some hands-on iPhone programming as well. In this article I'd like to share a few of my initial experiences. Apple released the first...
- Blog posts 2008-11-13
Neighboring Terms
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