Format Summary

Table 1-1 lists each of the graphics file formats that we describe in this book, along with an indication of what type of format it is (bitmap, vector, metafile, scene description, animation, multimedia, or other [for "other" formats, refer to the appropriate article]).

In some cases, a format may be known by a number of different names. Please check the index if your format is not listed below; chances are good that it is included, but simply under a different name.

Graphics files on most platforms use a fairly consistent file extension convention. Of the three platforms with the largest installed base (MS-DOS, Macintosh, and UNIX), all use a similar name.extension filenaming convention. The other platforms that are popular for computer graphics (Amiga, Atari, and VMS) use a roughly similar naming convention. VMS, for example, uses the convention name1.name2:version, where version is an integer indicating the number of the file revision.

Table 1-1: Graphics File Formats Described in This Book

Format	Type
Adobe Illustrator	Metafile
Adobe Photoshop	Bitmap
Atari ST Graphics Formats	Bitmap and Animation
AutoCAD DXF	Vector
Autodesk 3D Studio	Scene Description
BDF	Bitmap
BRL-CAD	Other
BUFR	Other
CALS Raster	Bitmap
CGM	Metafile
CMU Formats	Multimedia
DKB	Scene Description
Dore Raster File Format	Bitmap
DPX	Bitmap
Dr. Halo	Bitmap
DVM Movie	Animation
Encapsulated PostScript	Metafile (page description language)
FaceSaver	Bitmap
FAX Formats	Bitmap
FITS	Other
FLI	Animation
GEM Raster	Bitmap
GEM VDI	Metafile
GIF	Bitmap
GRASP	Animation
GRIB	Other
Harvard Graphics	Metafile
Hierarchical Data Format	Metafile
IFF	Bitmap
IGES	Other
Inset PIX	Bitmap
Intel DVI	Multimedia
JPEG File Interchange Format	Bitmap
Kodak Photo CD	Bitmap
Kodak YCC	Bitmap
Lotus DIF	Vector
Lotus PIC	Vector
Lumena Paint	Bitmap
Macintosh Paint	Bitmap
Macintosh PICT	Metafile
Microsoft Paint	Bitmap
Microsoft RIFF	Multimedia
Microsoft RTF	Metafile
Microsoft SYLK	Vector
Microsoft Windows Bitmap	Bitmap
Microsoft Windows Metafile	Metafile
MIFF	Bitmap
MPEG	Other
MTV	Scene Description
NAPLPS	Metafile
NFF	Scene Description
OFF	Scene Description
OS/2 Bitmap	Bitmap
P3D	Scene Description
PBM, PGM, PNM, and PPM	Bitmap
PCX	Bitmap
PDS	Other
Pictor PC Paint	Bitmap
Pixar RIB	Scene Description
Plot-10	Vector
PNG	Bitmap
POV	Vector
Presentation Manager Metafile	Metafile
PRT	Scene Description
QRT	Scene Description
QuickTime	Other
Radiance	Scene Description
Rayshade	Scene Description
RIX	Bitmap
RTrace	Scene Description
SAF	Bitmap and other
Sense8 NFF	Scene Description
SGI Image File Format	Bitmap
SGI Inventor	Scene Description
SGI YAODL	Scene Description
SGO	Vector
SPIFF	Bitmap
Sun Icon	Bitmap
Sun Raster	Bitmap
TDDD	Vector and Animation
TGA	Bitmap
TIFF	Bitmap
TTDDD	Vector and Animation
uRay	Scene Description
Utah RLE	Bitmap
VICAR2	Bitmap
VIFF	Bitmap
VIS-5D	Vector
Vivid and Bob	Scene Description
Wavefront OBJ	Vector
Wavefront RLA	Bitmap
WordPerfect Graphics Metafile	Metafile
XBM	Bitmap
XPM	Bitmap
XWD	Bitmap
ZBR	Metafile

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