user settings release

Registry is not good for storing data any more. Too much applications are installed and each would like to store lots of data. That makes registry inefficient.

Regarding user settings, I don't like the fact that it is far away from programmer's control. If you change GUID, for instance, new application will not be able to find previous settings and it will create new file with all settings gone. For that reason, I prefer creating my own file with settings, and to store it in Application Data directory myself. Do not try to store the file in application start-up directory because it will probably be read-only (especially if located under Program Files). Always use user's profile directory for temporary data, or ask user to point to specific read-write directory if you have to store permanent data.

Conclusion is that I'm using .NET Framework support for application settings in professional use, and custom settings in pet projects and in projects with security issues. Using .NET support for settings gives results quickly, but using custom settings gives high quality.

You don't have to include XML config file because those data are not stored in it. Settings are saved in a file created in local user's profile, under "%userprofile%\Local Settings\Application Data" directory.