# MIME Applications Associations

This specification allows users, system administrators, application vendors, and distributions, to control which application should open a file by default, and which applications should be shown as supporting a given MIME type (possibly overriding what the .desktop file for the application lists).

### Mailinglist

Discussion of this specification should occur on [[xdg|http://lists.freedesktop.org/mailman/listinfo/xdg]]. 

### git

This specification is hosted in git, see [[mime-apps-spec|http://cgit.freedesktop.org/xdg/xdg-specs/]]. 

### Spec

 * [[Latest version|http://standards.freedesktop.org/mime-apps-spec/latest/]]
 * Version 1.0.1 - [[html (one page)|http://standards.freedesktop.org/mime-apps-spec/mime-apps-spec-1.0.1.html]] - [[html (multiple pages)|http://standards.freedesktop.org/mime-apps-spec/1.0.1/]] - [[xml|http://standards.freedesktop.org/mime-apps-spec/mime-apps-spec-1.0.1.xml]]
 * Version 1.0 - [[html (one page)|http://standards.freedesktop.org/mime-apps-spec/mime-apps-spec-1.0.html]] - [[html (multiple pages)|http://standards.freedesktop.org/mime-apps-spec/1.0/]] - [[xml|http://standards.freedesktop.org/mime-apps-spec/mime-apps-spec-1.0.xml]]

## References (predating the spec)

 * [[Shared mimetypes + activation thread|http://thread.gmane.org/gmane.linux.xdg.devel/2925]]
 * [[Associating programs with file types thread|http://thread.gmane.org/gmane.linux.xdg.devel/2524]]
 * [[MIME activation discussion thread|http://thread.gmane.org/gmane.linux.xdg.devel/554]]
 * [[Default Program / File Association thread|http://thread.gmane.org/gmane.linux.xdg.devel/2228]] ([[part II|http://thread.gmane.org/gmane.linux.xdg.devel/2239]])
 * [[More recent Default Program / File Association thread, where mimeapps.list was introduced|http://thread.gmane.org/gmane.comp.freedesktop.xdg/9828]]
 * [[Have a way to dynamically change software associations at distribution level|http://thread.gmane.org/gmane.comp.freedesktop.xdg/11520]]