Now that we have an understanding of how MEL and Maya interact with files on disk, a whole world of possibilities is open to us. Although many programmers turn to the API to develop import and export plug-ins, it is possible to create much of the same functionality using MEL. By using custom file formats, we can trade Maya scene information independent of a Maya file itself. We have also learned how, by leveraging our understanding of MEL with the use of Maya ASCII files, we can aid productions by retrieving data, debugging scenes, or quickly making changes using a text editor.