Format information files are XML files that contain the position and attribute information for an ASCII dataset being imported into HIPS. The file extension for format information files can be either XML or INFO.
These files are used to map the text in an ASCII file to attribute values for the surface being created. For example, the first three attributes defined in the format information file generally reference the latitude, longitude and Z values for each point in the dataset.
The information provided in a format information file varies greatly depending on the task at hand and the data available. Some files may simply provide the positional attributes, while others may define additional attributes available in the source dataset, such as Uncertainty or Temperature.