QuickTime

Revision as of 00:58, 8 October 2014

QuickTime is a container format developed by Apple Computer, Inc. It is usually used to wrap video content, but can also be used to wrap sound and still image data.

The QuickTime format was used as the basis for the international standard MPEG-4 format.

Format

See boxes/atoms format. Starting in 2004, the QuickTime movie file specification has been based on ISO Base Media File Format, with a brand of "qt  ".

Quicktime VR

In the past, the Quicktime format has been used as a container for so called Virtual Reality (or rather, 360 degree panorama) data. Not clear how to identify. File extensions usually just .mov, but may be .qt or more specifically .qvr (possibly .qtvr?).

• Getting started with QuickTime VR - tutorial from February, 1996.]
  • Mentions "creator/file type of the downloaded movie to QuickTime VR’s 'vrod'/'MooV'", which may be the type?
  • ffprobe shows "Stream #0:1(eng): Data: none (pano / 0x6F6E6170), 0 kb/s", so I presume 'pano' is the ftyp/FourCC?
  • "The media type of the panorama track is 'pano'." from Quicktime file format specification, page 289.
• Example Quicktime VR files

Specifications

• QuickTime File Format Specification (classic, 2001)
• QuickTime File Format Specification (current, as of 2012)

Sample files

• Apple's sample QuickTime files in several encodings

References

• QuickTime : Wikipedia
• QuickTime File Format Summary, from the Encyclopedia of Graphics File Formats
• Even comic-strip people can have trouble getting those things to play...