Web File Formats on FileFormat.com

Posted on February 9, 2019 by Kashif Iqbal

Surfing internet has become part of lives of all those who use internet one way or the other. The web pages, we browse, are developed in several different languages and are hosted on web servers. These web files include static and dynamic webpages that are generated by web development software.

FileFormat.com is your one stop for guidance about Web file formats. Its unique combination of file format wiki, news and support forums gives you the opportunity to get knowledge about file types and engage in fruitful discussions with file format community.

Web File Formats

The Web file format category on FileFormat.com includes file formats that are commonly used for storing such files. Let us have a look at some of these file formats.

HTML

HTML (Hyper Text Markup Language) is the extension for web pages created for display in browsers. Known as language of the web, HTML has evolved with requirements of new information requirements to be displayed as part of web pages. The latest variant is known as HTML 5 that gives a lot of flexibility for working with the language. HTML pages are either received from server, where these are hosted, or can be loaded from local system as well. Each HTML page is made up of HTML elements such as forms, text, images, animations, links, etc. These elements are represented by tags such as <img>, <a>, <p> and several others where each tag has start and end. It can also embed applications written in scripting languages such as JavaScript and Style Sheets (CSS) for overall layout representation.

ASP

ASP stands for Active Server Pages which is a development framework for creating web pages. It enables computer code to be executed by an internal server to serve the web requests. When a request is generated for an ASP file by web browser, the server reads the the file and executes any code/script inside it to generate the HTML result which is returned to the browser for display. Unlike HTML pages, which are static pages served by the server, ASP files generate dynamic contents at runtime that may involve requests to data from a database. ASP pages typically use the .asp extension rather .html. Since code/script inside an ASP file is executed on the server side, requesting browser can’t see the code used to build the served page. All modern browsers are capable of displaying pages generated as result. Being built on Microsoft technology, pages built with ASP are hosted on Microsoft Internet Information Services (IIS) servers.

MHTML

Files with MHTML extension represent a web page archive format that can be created by a number of different applications. The format is known as archive format because it saves the web HTML code and associated resources in a single file. These resources include anything linked to the webpage such as images, applets, animations, audio files and so on. MHTML files can be opened in a variety of applications such as Internet Explorer and Microsoft Word. Microsoft Windows uses MHTML file format for recording scenarios of problems observed during the usage of any application on Windows that raises issues. The MHTML file format encodes the page contents similar to specifications defined in message/rfc822 which is plain text email related specifications. The actual specifications of the format are as detailed by RFC 2557.

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Page Description Languages File Formats at FileFormat.com

Posted on February 3, 2019 by Kashif Iqbal

A Page Description Language (PDL) is a computer language that describes the appearance of a printed page in a higher level than actual output bitmap. Some examples of PDL include Postscript (PS), PDF, and CGM. Files based on page description languages can be in textual as well as binary file format. There are countless applications that support PDL file formats including Adobe Acrobat as one of the most widely used application.

FileFormat.com is your one stop for guidance about PDL file formats. Its unique combination of file format wiki, news and support forums gives you the opportunity to get knowledge about file types and engage in fruitful discussions with file format community.

Page Description Language File Formats

The Page Description Language file format category on FileFormat.com includes file formats that are commonly used for storing such files. Let us have a look at some of these file formats.

PDF

Portable Document Format (PDF) is a type of document created by Adobe back in 1990s. The purpose of this file format was to introduce a standard for representation of documents and other reference material in a format that is independent of application software, hardware as well as Operating System. PDF files can be opened in Adobe Acrobat Reader/Writer as well in most modern browsers like Chrome, Safari, Firefox via extensions/plug-ins. Most of the commercially available software suites also offer conversion of their documents to PDF file format without the requirement of any additional software component. Thus, PDF file format has full capability to contain information like text, images, hyperlinks, form-fields, rich media, digital signatures, attachments, metadata, Geospatial features and 3D objects in it that can become as part of source document.

PS

PostScript (PS) is a general-purpose page description language used in the business of desktop and electronic publishing. The main focus of PostScript (PS) is to facilitate the two-dimensional graphic design. Most languages require a distinct compilation stage before the code execution while Post Script (PS) format support a runtime straight forward interpretation. Its early version defines the graphical shapes, different text appearances and modelled imageries on printed pages or displayed pages, following the rules of Adobe imaging model. A program of PS is able to intercommunicate a document description between a composition and printing system keeping the device independent and high-level. Moreover this program is also capable of governing the appearance of text and graphics on a display.

SVG

SVG files are Scalable Vector Graphics Files that use XML based text format for describing the appearance of image. The word Scalable refers to the fact that the SVG can be scaled to different sizes without losing any quality. Text based description of such files make them independent of resolution. SVG is one of the mostly used format for building website and print graphics in order to achieve scalability. The format can only be used for two-dimensional graphics though. SVG files can be viewed/opened in almost all modern browsers including Chrome, Internet Explorer, Firefox, and Safari.

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News, Updates and Information about File Formats – FileFormat Newsletter February 2019

Posted on February 1, 2019 by Usman Sarfraz

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Monthly Newsletter

February 2019

When should we use JPG or PNG? What is the difference between raster and vector image file formats? It is important for one to choose the right type of image keeping in view the requirements. The Image file format category at fileformat.com discusses popular image types along with their specifications through its unique combination of wiki, news and support forums. This unique combination also lets you engage in fruitful discussions with the file format community for issues you are facing relative to image file formats.

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3D file formats guide by fileformat.com

The 3D file format category includes 3DS, 3MF, FBX, GLB, GLTF, JT, OBJ and PLY file formats that can be processed by 3D applications like 3D Studio Max, Blender, Maya and others. Explore fileformat.com news and wiki sections to receive all the latest updates and technical information related to 3D file formats. Have any queries? Feel free to post in support forums and get assistance by experts. Read more details here.

Email file formats guide by fileformat.com

The email file format category includes popular email and message archiving file formats: EML, EMLX, ICS, MBOX, MSG, OFT, OST, PST and TNEF that can be processed by mailing applications like Microsoft Outlook, Mozilla Thunderbird, Apple Mail and others. Explore fileformat.com news and wiki sections to receive all the latest updates and technical information related to email file formats. Have any queries? Feel free to post in support forums and get assistance by experts. Read more details here.

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Project Management File Formats at FileFormat.com

Posted on January 28, 2019 by Kashif Iqbal

Project Management is the application of knowledge, skills, tools and techniques to project activities to meet the project requirements. There are several applications available that provide the facility to keep track of all the activities, which are part of a project, and monitor them for successful completion of the project. Microsoft Project is one such application that saves the project in popular project file formats for manipulation. Primavera is another tool that is extensively used for this purpose.

Project Management applications save project related data in specific file formats. Some popular file formats include MPP, XER, XML and others. FileFormat.com is your one stop for guidance about such project management file formats. Its unique combination of file format wiki, news and support forums gives you the opportunity to get knowledge about file types and engage in fruitful discussions with file format community.

Project Management File Formats

The Project Management file format category on FileFormat.com includes file formats that are commonly used for storing project related data. Let us have a look at some of these file formats.

MPP

A file with MPP extension is Microsoft Project data file that stores information related to project management in an integrated manner. It is proprietary file format developed by Microsoft as file format for Microsoft Project (MSP) which is a project management application software. Besides MPP, MSP supports other file formats as well like project XML schema. Several APIs and applications provide the facility to convert MPP file format to others. Microsoft now has online Project Server where project management files can be uploaded for collaboration by multiple users.

MPX

MPX, Microsoft Exchange File Format, is an ASCII file format for transferring of project information between Microsoft Project (MSP) and other applications that support the MPX file format such as Primavera Project Planner, Sciforma and Timerline Precision Estimating. The MPX file format allows you to transfer project information that cannot appear in a table, such as detailed resource assignment information, calendar information, or information in the Project Info dialog box.

The initial version of Microsoft Project 4.0 started the support for creating and reading MPX file formats that continued till Microsoft Project 98. However, support for creating MPX files was discontinued with the release of Microsoft Project 2000 and the versions till Microsoft Project 2010 support only MPX reading. Versions later than MSP 2010 do not support reading of MPX file format.

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Compression File Formats at FileFormat.com

Posted on January 21, 2019 by Kashif Iqbal

Compression is a process of reducing the size of a data file through different encoding techniques. This results in reducing data size for efficient data transmission and storage. Compression techniques have evolved over the passage of time and different file formats have been introduced for storing and manipulating compressed file formats.

FileFormat.com is your one stop for guidance about such compression file formats. Its unique combination of file format wiki, news and support forums gives you the opportunity to get knowledge about file types and engage in fruitful discussions with file format community.

Compression File Formats

The Compression file format category on FileFormat.com includes file formats that are commonly used for compressing files. Let us have a look at some of these file formats.

ZIP

ZIP file extension represents archives that can hold one or more files or directories. The archive can have compression applied to the included files in order to reduce the ZIP file size. ZIP file format was made public back in February 1989 by Phil Katz for achieving archiving of files and folders. The format was made part of PKZIP utility, created by PKWARE, Inc. Right after the availability of available specifications, many companies made ZIP file format part of their software utilities including Microsoft (since Windows 7), Apple (Mac OS X ) and many others.

RAR

Files with RAR extension represent archive files that are created for storing information in compressed or normal form. RAR, Roshal Archive file format, is a proprietary file format created by Eugene Roshal in 1995 who was a Russian software engineer. The format is used to archive files with different methods including various compression techniques. There are several application software available for Windows, Linux and MacOS for extraction of RAR files. WinRAR software, by RARLab, is the shareware file archiving utility (free for 40 days) for Microsoft Windows platform; the software was ported to Linux (only as extractor) by the same Author, Eugene Roshal.

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GIS File Formats at FileFormat.com

Posted on January 18, 2019 by Kashif Iqbal

Geographic Information Systems (GIS) find their applications in countless areas relevant to our daily life. These include application areas such as planning, surveying, agriculture, land usage, community development, and countless others. GIS applications save geospatial data in well-defined formats for understanding and usage by other applications. Such a file format is a standard of encoding geographical information into a computer file.

GIS File Formats

The GIS file format category on FileFormat.com includes information about geospatial file formats which are common in use by GIS applications. The information in this section gives brief overview of each file format and its specifications. Let us have a look at some of these file format.

SHP

SHP is the file extension for one of the primary file types used for representation of ESRI Shapefile. It represents Geospatial information in the form of vector data to be used by Geographic Information Systems (GIS) applications. The format has been developed as open specifications in order to facilitate interoperability between ESRI and other software products.

KML

KML, Keyhole Markup Language) contains geospatial information in XML notation. Files saved as KML can be opened in Geographic Information System (GIS) applications provided they support it. Many applications have started providing support for KML file format after it has been adopted as international standard. KML uses a tag-based structure with nested elements and attributes. All the tags are case-sensitive and the order of these tags, as per KML Reference, is important to follow.

KMZ

KMZ (KML Zipped) file is a representation of zipped KML file that contains geospatial information viewable in GIS applications like Google Earth. Information about placemarks is represented in the file as latitude and longitude along with a custom name. The single packaged KMZ file can be shared with other users easily. KMZ files can include 3D model data as well for geo-representation of the model. A KMZ file can be opened in Google Maps by saving the file to an online location and then typing the URL in the Google Maps Search box.

GML

Files with GPX extension represent GPS Exchange format for interchange of GPS data between applications and web services on the internet. It is a light-weight XML file format that contains GPS data i.e. waypoints, routes and tracks to be imported and red by multiple programs. GPX file format is open and is supported by variety of applications and GPS devices. GPS data from such files can be loaded for display on mapping applications for geo-spatial purposes.

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Image File Formats at FileFormat.com

Posted on January 9, 2019 by Kashif Iqbal

You must have heard the famous English language-idiom which says “A picture is worth a thousand words”. These pictures in computer world are represented by image file formats that are standardized means of organizing and storing digital images. Such images can be stored in various formats that are defined by characteristics such as compression, quality, color and others. The image quality and size is subject to the file format in which it is saved.
FileFormat.com is your one stop for guidance about such image and other file formats. Its unique combination of file format wiki, news and support forums gives you the opportunity to get knowledge about file types and engage in fruitful discussions with file format community.

Image File Formats

The Image file format category on FileFormat.com includes information about image types which are common in use while storing images. The information in the section gives brief overview of each file format and its specifications. Let us have a look at some of these file formats.

BMP

Files having BMP extension represent Image files that are used to store bitmap digital images. These images are independent of graphics adapter and that is why BMP is also known as device independent bitmap (DIB) file format. This independency serves the purpose of opening the file on multiple platforms such as Microsoft Windows and Mac. The BMP file format can store data as two-dimensional digital images in both monochrome as well as color format with various color depths.

PNG

PNG, Portable Network Graphics, refers to a type of raster image file format that uses lossless compression. This file format was created as a replacement of Graphics Interchange Format (GIF) and has no copyright limitations. However, PNG file format does not support animations. PNG file format supports lossless image compression that makes it popular among its users. With the passage of time, PNG has evolved as one of the mostly used image file format. Almost all Operating Systems have support for opening PNG files. For example, Microsoft Windows viewer has the capability to open PNG files as the OS provides support for PNG file format as part of installation.

GIF

A GIF or Graphical Interchange Format is a type of highly compressed image. Owned by Unisys, GIF uses the LZW compression algorithm that does not degrade the image quality. For each image, GIF typically allows up to 8 bits per pixel and up to 256 colors are allowed across the image in contrast to a JPEG image, which can display up to 16 million colors and fairly touches the limits of the human eye. An animated GIF combines numerous images or frames into a single file and displays them in a sequence to generate an animated clip or a short video. The color limitations are up to 256 for each frame and are likely to be the least suitable for reproducing other images and photographs with color gradient.

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CAD File Formats at FileFormat.com

Posted on January 4, 2019 by Kashif Iqbal

Computer-aided design (CAD) applications are used by professionals like architects, engineers, drafters, artists and others to create precision drawings or technical illustrations. CAD software can be used to create two-dimensional (2-D) drawings or three-dimensional (3-D) models. These models are represented by a number of CAD file formats for storage and display on computer systems. FileFormat.com is your one stop for guidance about such file formats. Its unique combination of file format wiki, news and support forums gives you the opportunity to get knowledge about file types and engage in fruitful discussions with file format community.

CAD File Formats

The CAD file format category on FileFormat.com includes file formats that can be processed by popular CAD software applications such as AutoCAD. Let us have a look at some of these file formats.

DWF

Design Web Format (DWF) represents 2D/3D drawing in compressed format for viewing, reviewing or printing design files. It contains graphics and text as part of design data and reduce the size of the file due to its compressed format. The reduced file size makes the distribution and communication of rich design data efficient. DWF doesn’t require the recipient to know about the usage of CAD software that created the original drawing. The contents of DWF file format can be simple and include just a single sheet or complex enough to have fonts, color, and images.

DWG

Files with DWG extension represent proprietary binary files used for containing 2D and 3D design data. Like DXF, which are ASCII files, DWG represent the binary file format for CAD (Computer Aided Design) drawings. It contains vector image and metadata for representation of contents of CAD files. There are free viewers available for viewing DWG files on Windows Operating System such as the Autodesk’s free DWG TrueView. There are other third party applications as well that support reaching DWG files. DWG files contain user created information and includes:

Designs
Geometric data
Maps and photos

This format is widely used by architects, engineers, and designers for various designing purposes.

STL

STL, abbreviation for stereolithrography, is an interchangeable file format that represents 3-dimensional surface geometry. The file format finds its usage in several fields such as rapid prototyping, 3D printing and computer-aided manufacturing. It represents a surface as a series of small triangles, known as facets, where each facet is described by a perpendicular direction and three points representing the vertices of the triangle. Resultant data is used by applications to determine the cross section of the 3D shape to be built by the fabber. There is no information available in the STL file format for representation of colour, texture or other common CAD model attributes.

IFC

Files with IFC extension refer to Industry Foundation Classes (IFC) file format that establishes international standards to import and export building objects and their properties. This file format provides interoperability between different software applications. Specifications for this file format are developed and maintained by buildingSMART International as its Data Standard. The ultimate objective of IFC file format is to improve communication, productivity, delivery time and quality throughout the life cycle of a building. Due to the established standards for common objects in the building industry, it reduces the loss of information during transmission from one application to another. IFC can hold data for geometry, calculation, quantities, facility management, pricing etc. for many different professions (architect, electrical, HVAC, structural, terrain etc.).

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News, Updates and Information about File Formats – FileFormat Newsletter January 2019

Posted on January 4, 2019 by Usman Sarfraz

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Monthly Newsletter

January 2019

Your File Formats Information Resource
Find all information and news on file formats that businesses need today

FileFormat.com is your definitive knowledge resource for learning about file formats. Receive all the latest news and updates about most common file formats in daily use. You can also join valuable discussions at FileFormat forums or discuss your file format queries for receiving professional advice from our team of file format experts and online community. This sharing of knowledge and experience can save your time and efforts for getting solutions related to your file format problems.

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Word Processing File Formats Guide by FileFormat.com

The Word Processing category includes DOC, DOCX, DOCM, DOT, DOTX, DOTM, ODT, OTT, RTF and TXT file formats that can be processed by word processor applications like Microsoft Word, OpenOffice Writer and others. Explore FileFormat news and wiki sections to receive all the latest updates and technical information related to these word processing file formats. Have any queries? Feel free to post in support forums and get assistance by experts Read more details here.

Spreadsheet File Formats Guide by FileFormat.com

The Spreadsheet File Formats category includes XLS, XLSX, XLSB, XLTM, XLTM, XLM, TSV, ODS and CSV file formats that can be processed by spreadsheet applications like Microsoft Excel, OpenOffice Writer and others. Explore FileFormat news and wiki sections to receive all the latest updates and technical information related to these spreadsheet file formats. Have any queries? Feel free to post in support forums and get assistance by experts. Read more details here.

Presentation File Formats Guide by FileFormat.com

The Presentation File Formats category includes PPT, PPTX, PPTM, ODP, POT, POTM, POTX, PPS, PPSM and PPSX file formats that can be processed by slides and presentation applications like Microsoft PowerPoint, OpenOffice, Google Drive and others. Explore FileFormat news and wiki sections to receive all the latest updates and technical information related to these presentation file formats. Have any queries? Feel free to post in support forums and get assistance by experts. Read more details here.

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Email File Formats at FileFormat.com

Posted on December 28, 2018 by Kashif Iqbal

FileFormat.com is your one stop for guidance about file formats. Its unique combination of file format wiki, news and support forums give you the opportunity to get knowledge about file types and engage in fruitful discussions with file format community.

Email File Formats

The Email file format category includes file formats that can be processed by mailing applications like Microsoft Outlook, Mozilla Thunderbird, Apple Mail and others. Let us have a look at some of these file formats.

MSG

MSG is a file format used by Microsoft Outlook and Exchange to store email messages, contacts, appointments, or other tasks. Such messages may contain one or more email fields, with the sender, recipient, subject, date, and message body, or contact information, appointment particulars, and one or more task specifications. The properties that constitute the Message object, are also a part of the MSG file. MSG file has headers, main message body, and hyperlinks as plain ASCII text. MSG files are also suitable with the programs that need Microsoft’s Messaging Applications Programming Interface (MAPI).

PST

Files with PST extension represent Outlook Personal Storage Files (also called Personal Storage Table) that store a variety of user information. User information is stored in folders of different types which include emails, calendar items, notes, contacts, and several other file formats. PST files are used for archiving emailing data offline that can be later loaded and viewed in various applications.

ICS

The Internet Calendaring and Scheduling Core Object Specification (iCalendar) is an internet standard(RFC 2445) for exchanging and deploying the calendaring events and scheduling. The iCalendar format is interoperable, thereby ensuring the exchange of calendar information among the users having different email applications. iCalendar formats the input data as a Multipurpose Internet Mail Extensions (MIME) and facilitates the object exchanged via different transport protocols. These transport protocols can be SMTP, HTTP, point-to-point asynchronous communication, and physical media based-network transport. iCalendar allows users to share events, date/time dependent tasks, and free/busy information via emails to other users who can respond back. iCalendar files store using suffixes “.ics” “.icalendar” or “.ifb” with a MIME type of “text/calendar”. iCalendar is kept to be self-reliant without any transport protocol dependency. Web servers (with HTTP protocol) can transport iCalendar information and web pages can contain iCalendar data in embedded form using hCalendar.

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Web File Formats

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Page Description Language File Formats

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PS

SVG

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3D file formats guide by fileformat.com

Email file formats guide by fileformat.com

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Project Management File Formats

MPP

MPX

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Compression File Formats

ZIP

RAR

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GIS File Formats

SHP

KML

KMZ

GML

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Image File Formats

BMP

PNG

GIF

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CAD File Formats

DWF

DWG

STL

IFC

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Word Processing File Formats Guide by FileFormat.com

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