graphics formats
There is a wide variety of graphics formats in use today. The following list contains most of them. The formats are in order by extension name under bitmapped or vector category. Some formats appear in both categories because they can hold both raster and vector images. See
graphics conversion and
extension.
MOST POPULAR
Common Bitmapped Formats
BMP Windows & OS/2
GIF CompuServe
JPG JPEG
PNG Portable Network Graphics
TIF TIFF
Common Vector Formats
AI Adobe Illustrator
DXF AutoCAD
PS PostScript
WMF Windows Metafile
ALL BITMAPPED FORMATS (RASTER GRAPHICS)
AG4 Access G4 document imaging
ATT AT&T Group IV
BMP Windows & OS/2
BRK Brooktrout fax
CAL CALS Group IV
CIT Intergraph scanned images
CLP Windows Clipboard
CMP Photomatrix G3/G4 scanner format
CMP LEAD Technologies
CPR Knowledge Access
CT Scitex Continuous Tone
CUT Dr. Halo
DBX DATABEAM
DCM DICOM medical image
DCX Intel fax
DX Autotrol document imaging
ED5 EDMICS (U.S. DOD)
ED6 EDMICS (U.S. DOD)
EPS Encapsulated PostScript
FAX Fax
FMV FrameMaker
FPX FlashPix
GED Arts & Letters
GDF IBM GDDM format
GIF CompuServe
GP4 CALS Group IV - ITU Group IV
GX1 Show Partner
GX2 Show Partner
ICA IBM IOCA (see MO:DCA)
ICO Windows icon
IFF Amiga ILBM
IGF Inset Systems (HiJaak)
IMG GEM Paint
JFF JPEG (JFIF)
JPG JPEG
KFX Kofax Group IV
LV LaserView Group IV
MAC MacPaint
MIL Same as GP4 extension
MSP Microsoft Paint
NIF Navy Image File
PBM Portable bitmap
PCD PhotoCD
PCX PC Paintbrush
PIX Inset Systems (HiJaak)
PNG Portable Network Graphics
PNM Unix portable bitmap
PPM Unix portable bitmap
PSD Photoshop native format
RAS Sun
RGB SGI
RIA Alpharel Group IV document imaging
RLC Image Systems
RLE Various RLE-compressed formats
RNL GTX Runlength
SBP IBM StoryBoard
SGI Silicon Graphics RGB
SUN Sun
TGA Targa
TIF TIFF
WPG WordPerfect image
XBM X Window bitmap
XPM X Window pixelmap
XWD X Window dump
ALL VECTOR GRAPHICS FORMATS
3DS 3D Studio
906 Calcomp plotter
AI Adobe Illustrator
CAL CALS subset of CGM
CDR CorelDRAW
CGM Computer Graphics Metafile
CH3 Harvard Graphics chart
CLP Windows clipboard
CMX Corel Metafile Exchange
DG Autotrol
DGN Intergraph drawing format
DRW Micrografx Designer 2.x, 3.x
DS4 Micrografx Designer 4.x
DSF Micrografx Designer 6.x
DXF AutoCAD
DWG AutoCAD
EMF Enhanced Windows Metafile
EPS Encapsulated PostScript
ESI Esri plot file (GIS mapping)
FMV FrameMaker
GCA IBM GOCA
GEM GEM proprietary
G4 GTX RasterCAD - scanned images into vectors
for AutoCAD
HPGL HP graphics language
IGF Inset Systems (HiJaak)
IGS IGES
MCS MathCAD
MET OS/2 metafile
MRK Informative Graphics markup file
P10 Tektronix plotter (PLOT10)
PCL HP LaserJet
PCT Macintosh PICT drawings
PDW HiJaak
PGL HP plotter
PIC Variety of picture formats
PIX Inset Systems (HiJaak)
PLT HPGL Plot File (HPGL2 has raster format)
PS PostScript Level 2
RIS AUCOTEC CAD format
RLC Image Systems "CAD Overlay ESP" vector files
overlaid onto raster images
SSK SmartSketch
SVG Scalable vector graphics (XML)
WMF Windows Metafile
WPG WordPerfect graphics
WRL VRML
Graphics Conversions Are Problematic
It takes years to perfect graphics conversion algorithms, especially when switching between vector and raster formats. Just because an application imports or exports a particular format does not mean it does so 100% correctly. If exact replication is required, be sure to test the application's import/export filters.
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| Original Vector Image to JPEG Equivalent |
|---|
| The vector image (top) did not convert properly to the JPEG image (bottom) using the export filter of a certain drawing program. (Original image courtesy of Cedar Waxwing Design.) |
