where does the term flat-file come from?

Question

I was wondering if anyone knows. Is 'flat' the opposite of hierarchal? Does it come from a phrase like, "this is a flat-out regular file"?

Answer 1

Looking at the wikipedia article (and one of its references), the 'flat' in flat file is as opposed to structured file, where the structure can be heirarchical, relational, or a few other formats.