A preference is any value or defined behavior that can be set (presumably, one setting is preferable to another). Preference changes via user interface usually take effect immediately, and are automatically saved to a file in your EAS user home directory. On computers running under Windows, your EAS user home directory has the name "Evaluator" and is a subdirectory of "Documents and Settings".

Please note that each EAS application has its own preferences file, which provides machine-readable information about its user's personal preferences. Multiple users may participate in the acquisition process, and each EAS application might be used by a different person. User preferences remain persistent between application sessions.

It is a good idea to define your personal preferences and settings in the Preferences dialog when you use an EAS application for the first time.