Guidelines for selecting the appropriate picture format in Office program

[Adamaris]

Hello friends,
I am having very less knowledge about the picture format because I never used it. Many times it happens that when I insert some image, the error message pops up stating that the format is not supported. At such scenarios, I don't know which format to use.!! I thought to take some help from you guys.!! Please provide me some useful guidelines for selecting the appropriate picture format in Office program. Thanks in Advance.!!

[NIcaBoy]

I would like to explain about the Bitmaps which are required frequently in Word programs. Windows bitmaps are an images that can store a single raster image at any color depth, black and white to color 24 bit. The bitmap file format is normally Windows compatible with other Microsoft Windows programs. It does not support file compression and is not suitable for Web pages. Overall, the disadvantages of bitmap file format Windows outweigh its benefits. For images of photographic quality, use a PNG file, a JPEG or TIFF file. BMP files are suitable for wallpaper in Windows.
Advantages :

• The BMP format supports a color depth of 1 bit to 24 bit.
• It is largely compatible with existing Windows programs, especially older ones.

Disadvantages :

• The BMP does not support compression, which results in very large file sizes.
• BMP files are not supported by web browsers.

[super soaker]

PC Paintbrush pictures, also called Z-Soft bitmaps, store a single raster image at any color depth. Paintbrush pictures are used more commonly in older Windows programs and MS-DOS. They are compatible with many subsequent programs. Images PCX support internal compression RLE (Run Length Encoded). The following are the Advantages :

• PCX is a standard format common to many Windows programs and MS-DOS.
• It supports internal compression.

The following is the disadvantage of it :

• The PCX format is not supported by web browsers.

[Bigga Lexx]

PNG (Portable Network Graphics) images store a single raster image at any color depth. PNG is a format independent of the platform. The following are the advantages and the disadvantages of the PNG while using it in Office programs.
Advantages :

• The PNG format supports compression level lossless.
• It supports alpha channel transparency.
• It supports gamma correction.
• It supports interlacing.
• It is supported by web browsers latest.

Disadvantages :

• Browsers and older programs may not support PNG files.
• As an Internet file format, PNG provides less compression than the lossy compression of JPEG.
• As an Internet file format, it offers no support for multi-image files or animated files. The GIF format supports multi-image files and animated files.

[Kirmiac]

I am discussing about the JPEG (Joint Photographic Experts Group) which is very useful and largely used in Office programs. JPEG images store a single raster image with a color depth of 24 bits. The JPEG format is independent of the platform and it supports the highest levels of compression, but the compression is lossy. Progressive JPEG files support interlacing. The level of JPEG compression can be increased or decreased. However, image quality is sacrificed at the expense of file size. The compression ratio up to 100:1. JPEG compression works well with photo-realistic graphics. However, for simpler artwork with fewer colors, contrast levels over sharp edges or large solid areas of color, JPEG compression does not provide superior results. Sometimes the compression ratio is only 5:1, with a high loss of image integrity. This loss occurs because the JPEG compression method compresses many similar shades. However, the JPEG compression method does not work as well with sharp differences in brightness or with areas of color.

[HellBoy21]

GIF images store raster image data or unique data from multiple raster image into 8-bit or 256 colors. GIF images support transparency, compression, interlacing, and multiple images (GIFs). The GIF is the abbreviated form of Graphics Interchange Format. GIF transparency is not an alpha channel transparency and can not take care of translucent effects. GIF compression is LZW compression at a ratio of about 3:1. Animated GIFs are supported in version GIF89a specification GIF file.