Some of the INI data is still used, but only for global settings such as game options etc.
As Jon said, the main bulk of the XML based data (including all object definitions) is contained in the .cdata binaries. Without the XML schemas from EA we cannot hope to do much with them yet, even if we get inside the .cdata binaries.
Think of the new XML scheme as a logical progression from Generals and BFME coding - all information relating to art and coding characteristics of an object was self contained into one entry in the relevant object INI file - this was a logical progression from having seperate art and rules files - it's the same kind of progression here with the bonuses that it speeds up loading times, takes less memory and processor cycles to deal with, improves speed and capability of debugging and allows you to make changes on the fly in one central place without having to recompile code or rebuild a model. In short, its potentially a modders dream.
Saying all that, I can't help but think that the demo has been put together like this intentionally to prevent prying/copying/decompiling/reverse engineering before release, which would explain a fair amount of leftovers from BFME. Either EA have put the final together much simpler for us or they are going to have to release a significant suite of modding tools in the form of an SDK - if, of course, they hold true to their promises of continued modding support.
Oh and BTW yes I've been keeping an eye on C&C3 for quite a while!
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