## Preference files

- What do preference files do?
- Content of preference files
- Reference to preference files in output files

### What do preference files do?

CorpusSearch sets its own default values for certain variables and commands (as described separately for the items in question). In some cases, you might prefer to use a non-default value, and preference files allow you to do that. In other words, the values you specify in a preference file override the CorpusSearch default values. In turn, any values you specify in a query file override those in a preference file.

For instance, CorpusSearch sets the line comment delimiter to "//", your preference file might set it to "/!/", and you might run a query file that sets it to "/>". It is the last value that CorpusSearch uses when running the query file in question. When running another query file that doesn't explicitly set the line comment delimiter, the value that CorpusSearch would use in that case is the one in your preference file.

You do not need a preference file to run CorpusSearch. But if a preference file does exist in the same directory as the query file you are running, CorpusSearch will automatically read the preference file.

Preference files have the extension .prf and must be stored in the same directory as the query file.

### Content of preference files

The content of preference files consists of various CorpusSearch commands along with the values that you wish to associate with them, including a default definition file.

>     // sample preference file for a Korean corpus
>     corpus_comment_begin: <
>     corpus_comment_end: >
>     corpus_line_comment: ;;
>     define: korean.def
>     node: S

### Reference to preference files in output files

The output from a search that calls a preference file will include a line in the preface like the following:

>     preference file:  korean.prf

This is what the line would look like in context.

>     /*
>     PREFACE:
>     CorpusSearch copyright Beth Randall 2000.
>     Date:  Mon Feb 26 09:28:55 EST 2001

>     command file:     search.q
>     preference file:  korean.prf

>     input file:       file001.psd
>     output file:      file001.psd.out

>     query:  ([1]NNC iPrecedes [2]NNC)
>     */

If you intended to use a preference file, but you don't see a "preference file" line in your output file, check that the following requirements are met:

- The preference file must be stored in the same directory as the query file.
- The extension must be ".prf" (rather than, say, ".pref").