What are the benifits of .dif objects

If I was to make a floating base. . . .place it high enough that it shouldn't be relit (like in space or in high atmosphere) What are some reasons I sould use .dif over a .dts file . . . .MY idea was to make a base that has a rotating part, that I could animate. Aside from haveing event driven lighting I can't see a reason for doing it in world craft. BTW can Max file do that kind of lighting?