PCX
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|mimetypes={{mimetype|image/x-pcx}} | |mimetypes={{mimetype|image/x-pcx}} | ||
|pronom={{PRONOM|fmt/90}}, others | |pronom={{PRONOM|fmt/90}}, others | ||
+ | |released=~1984 | ||
}} | }} | ||
− | '''PCX''' was the native format of a DOS-based program PC Paintbrush, and was for a time (especially the late 1980s) a very popular image format among users of IBM PC compatibles and the PC/MS-DOS operating system. Much clip art was distributed in this format. However, it was tied closely to platform-specific attributes such as the particular graphic modes available in early PCs, and later lost ground to more platform-independent graphic formats like [[GIF]], [[JPEG]], and [[PNG]]. | + | '''PCX''' was the native image format of a DOS-based program PC Paintbrush from ZSoft Corporation, and was for a time (especially the late 1980s) a very popular image format among users of IBM PC compatibles and the PC/MS-DOS operating system. Much clip art was distributed in this format. However, it was tied closely to platform-specific attributes such as the particular graphic modes available in early PCs, and later lost ground to more platform-independent graphic formats like [[GIF]], [[JPEG]], and [[PNG]]. |
+ | |||
+ | PC Paintbrush was licensed to Microsoft, and it evolved into the Paint/Paintbrush application included with Windows. The versions for Windows 3.0 through Windows 95 support PCX format. | ||
== Format == | == Format == | ||
PCX files have a 128-byte fixed header. | PCX files have a 128-byte fixed header. | ||
− | |||
− | |||
− | |||
== Identifiers == | == Identifiers == | ||
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* PCX v4: {{PRONOM|fmt/89}} | * PCX v4: {{PRONOM|fmt/89}} | ||
* PCX v5: {{PRONOM|fmt/90}} | * PCX v5: {{PRONOM|fmt/90}} | ||
+ | |||
+ | == Identification == | ||
+ | The first byte of a PCX file is <code>0x0a</code>. The second byte (the version number) is 0, 2, 3, 4, or 5. The third byte (the compression type) should always be 1, though it's possible that 0 is also allowed in some variants of PCX. | ||
== See also == | == See also == | ||
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* [[ImageMagick]] | * [[ImageMagick]] | ||
* [[Netpbm]]: ppmtopcx, pcxtoppm | * [[Netpbm]]: ppmtopcx, pcxtoppm | ||
+ | * [http://www.irfanview.com/ IrfanView] | ||
+ | * [[XnView]] | ||
== Sample files == | == Sample files == | ||
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== Resources == | == Resources == | ||
− | * [[Wikipedia:PCX|Wikipedia | + | * [[Wikipedia:PCX|Wikipedia: PCX]] |
+ | * [[Wikipedia:PC Paintbrush|Wikipedia: PC Paintbrush]] | ||
+ | * [[Wikipedia:Microsoft Paint|Wikipedia: Microsoft Paint]] | ||
* [http://www.shikadi.net/moddingwiki/PCX_Format PCX Format], from the DOS Game Modding Wiki | * [http://www.shikadi.net/moddingwiki/PCX_Format PCX Format], from the DOS Game Modding Wiki | ||
* {{EGFF|pcx|PCX File Format Summary}}, from the [[Encyclopedia of Graphics File Formats]] | * {{EGFF|pcx|PCX File Format Summary}}, from the [[Encyclopedia of Graphics File Formats]] | ||
* [http://www.textfiles.com/programming/FORMATS/pcx.txt PCX technical reference] | * [http://www.textfiles.com/programming/FORMATS/pcx.txt PCX technical reference] | ||
* [http://www.textfiles.com/programming/FORMATS/pix_fmt.txt Picture format docs (of a number of formats including PCX)] | * [http://www.textfiles.com/programming/FORMATS/pix_fmt.txt Picture format docs (of a number of formats including PCX)] | ||
+ | |||
+ | [[Category:Microsoft]] |
Revision as of 01:48, 23 December 2014
PCX was the native image format of a DOS-based program PC Paintbrush from ZSoft Corporation, and was for a time (especially the late 1980s) a very popular image format among users of IBM PC compatibles and the PC/MS-DOS operating system. Much clip art was distributed in this format. However, it was tied closely to platform-specific attributes such as the particular graphic modes available in early PCs, and later lost ground to more platform-independent graphic formats like GIF, JPEG, and PNG.
PC Paintbrush was licensed to Microsoft, and it evolved into the Paint/Paintbrush application included with Windows. The versions for Windows 3.0 through Windows 95 support PCX format.
Contents |
Format
PCX files have a 128-byte fixed header.
Identifiers
Identification
The first byte of a PCX file is 0x0a
. The second byte (the version number) is 0, 2, 3, 4, or 5. The third byte (the compression type) should always be 1, though it's possible that 0 is also allowed in some variants of PCX.
See also
Specifications
Software
- ImageMagick
- Netpbm: ppmtopcx, pcxtoppm
- IrfanView
- XnView