Microsoft release Windows Media Photo image format

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Category: Other Software

Microsoft release Windows Media Photo image format - The new format promises to deliver higher image quality from smaller file sizes.

Posted: 25th May 2006
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Microsoft release Windows Media Photo image format
Just like Microsoft's WMF format that competes directly with existing MP3 music encoding, the new Windows Media Photo (WDP) standard is designed to compete with the traditional JPEG and TIFF image formats.

Images can be compressed with either lossless or lossy compression which should deliver smaller file sizes, with better perceptive quality.

Monochrome, RGB, CMYK and indexed colour images can be saved in the format with colour depths up to 32bit, although 32bit images can only be saved using lossy compression.

An interesting feature of the format is the ability to reverse colour space changes that you may have applied to the file in either a lossless or lossy way. If ,for example, you chose to use the lossless method, you could use the same file to output to CMYK, and RGB instead of saving multiple versions. This would further reduce demands on disk space.

Full details of the new image format can be found on the Microsoft Website.

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Comments

peter shilton
26 May 2006 - 12:54 AM

Excellent, another format. Just what we needed.

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26 May 2006 - 2:42 AM

Marlin_owner
26 May 2006 - 2:42 AM

Microsoft trying to gain more market share then.

Surely jpg, tiff, raw & png are enough?

twojackstudio
26 May 2006 - 4:01 AM

Welcome to the dark side!
The empire will rule over everything digital!

JJGEE
7
4454 forum posts England16 Constructive Critique Points
26 May 2006 - 5:36 AM

Does this imply that only people with a Windows Operating System will be able to open the file ?

If so I cannot see it becoming an universal standard file format for images.

timiano
26 May 2006 - 5:57 AM

Interesting if you read the spec. No doubt there will be a rival, but they better get shifting to market.

Ian Hunter
Ian Hunter (e2 Member)
9
103 forum postsIan Hunter vcard United Kingdom
26 May 2006 - 7:54 AM

and any minute now there will be a google version that tracks your pixel habits..

Mike Otley
Mike Otley (e2 Member)
8
17002 forum postsMike Otley vcard Norway8 Constructive Critique Points
26 May 2006 - 8:23 AM


Quote: If so I cannot see it becoming an universal standard file format for images.

The problem Mr Gates faces is the world's entire population of Picture Editors - in all markets. They ain't gonna move without VERY good reason. High on the list has to be 'Does your new standard conform to IPTC standards Mr Gates? (Certainly for the Press Boy's an' Gals')

'-)

Big Bri
10
14597 forum posts England
26 May 2006 - 1:32 PM

Probably pushed into it by the law suit brought against them by Forgent, who claim they own the JPEG patent and are suing every company they can think of who hasn't caved in to their ridiculous demands for money.

deviant
28 May 2006 - 10:31 AM

But if MS's file isn't an open standard then they will put people in the same position as Forgent. Two wrongs doesn't make a right to quote the cliche...

redsnappa
29 May 2006 - 4:21 AM

this is probably why mirosoft want to replace JPG

redsnappa
29 May 2006 - 4:43 AM

this is probably why mirosoft want to replace JPG

perrism
29 May 2006 - 7:06 AM

I take it Bill G's been too distracted with his anti-dandruff treatment to notice Adobe DNG. Instead of developing a new proprietary graphics format, which the world needs in much the same way that fish need bicycles, can we ask why Microsoft's software designers and programmers aren't instead dedicated to the urgent task of debugging all of their employer's buggy, bloated, slow, unstable software?

Big Bri
10
14597 forum posts England
30 May 2006 - 3:04 PM

redsnappa - isn't that exactly what I said 2 posts up ?
Superceded by today's news that Forgent have lost their case ! Hurrah!

grunger
1 Jun 2006 - 6:42 AM

Does that mean they are going to be full of viruses like his operating system ?

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