Files are named storage locations on strorage devices (hard drives, USB drives, etc.) that persistently store data. We use the term persistent in this context to mean that the data remains intact even after the program that created, opened, or updated that file has finished executing. Files can be classified into two categories based on their content: text files and binary files. Text files contain data that is human-readable as plain text, including programming code, configuration settings, and textual data. Common text file extensions include .txt, .py (for Python scripts), and .csv (for comma-separated values). Binary files, on the other hand, contain data in a format that is not intended to be human-readable. Examples of binary files include images (.jpg, .png), audio files (.mp3), executables, and database files. Files in programming provide a mechanism to store and retrieve data outside the immediate runtime environment, allowing data persistence and more expansive data manipulation. Understanding file operations is fundamental to many programming tasks, from simple data logging to intricate data analysis and processing.
