Files are the most primitive, but also the most used format to store and interchange data. PDI has the ability to read data from all kinds of files and different formats. It also allows you to write back to files in different formats as well.
Reading and writing simple files is a very straightforward task. There are several steps under the input and output categories of steps that allow you to do it. You pick the step, configure it quickly, and you are done. However, when the files you have to read or create are not simple—and that happens most of the time—the task of reading or writing can become a tedious exercise, if you don't know the tricks. In this chapter, you will learn not only the basics for reading and writing files, but also all the how-tos for dealing with them.
Note
This chapter covers plain files (.txt, .csv, and fixed width) and Excel files. For recipes on reading and writing XML files, refer to Chapter 4, Manipulating XML Structures.