<operating system, storage> A single file containing flat
ASCII representing or encoding some structure, e.g. of a
database, tree, or network. Flat files can be processed
with general purpose tools (e.g. awk or Perl) and text
editors but are often less efficient than some kind of
binary file if they must be parsed repeatedly by a
program. Flat files are more portable between different
operating systems and application programs than binary
files, and are more easily transmitted in electronic mail.
