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§23.11. Files
Once an Inform project is released, it is playable as a "story file", which is in effect a computer program for a specially IF-adapted design of computer. Story files run in what in computing is sometimes called a "sandbox", a kind of safe play area where it can be guaranteed that they cannot do any harm. This is good, because it means a story file can't be infected with viruses or other malware. If the project's Settings panel has the story file format set to the Z-machine, the story file is so thoroughly boxed in that it cannot even see the bigger computer beyond: it lives in a world of its own. But the Glulx format opens the door a crack, allowing the story file to read and write a small number of data files, which live in a single folder on the bigger computer's hard drive.
Why might we want this? Among the reasons are -
- to remember what has happened in previous attempts by the player;
- to store the player's preferences;
- in a two-part story, where each part is an independently released story file, to allow Part I to save some information about its ending which Part II could then pick up and make use of;
- to communicate with some external program, such as an Internet service.
