Related Directory Categories
- Picts (6)
Sources
Help build the largest human-edited directory on the web.
Submit a site - Become an editor
Wikipedia. Licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License.
Are you an expert in this subject? Join the discussion and share your knowledge at Wikipedia.org.
PICT
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| PICT | |
 |
|
| File extension: | .pict, .pct, .pic |
|---|---|
| MIME type: | image/x-pict |
| Type code: | PICT |
| Uniform Type Identifier: | com.apple.pict |
| Developed by: | Apple Computer |
| Type of format: | graphics |
PICT is a graphics file format introduced on the original Apple Macintosh computer as its standard metafile format. It allows the interchange of graphics (both bitmapped and vector), and some limited text support, between Mac applications, and was the native graphics format of the Quickdraw Manager.
The original version, PICT 1, was designed to be as compact as possible while describing vector graphics. To this end, it featured single byte opcodes, many of which embodied operations such as "do the previous operation again". As such it was quite memory efficient, but not very expandable. With the introduction of the Macintosh II and Colour Quickdraw, PICT was revised to version 2. This version featured 16-bit opcodes and numerous changes which enhanced its utility. PICT 1 opcodes were supported as a subset for backward compatibility.
Within a Mac application, any sequence of drawing operations could be simply recorded/encoded to the PICT format by opening a "Picture", then closing it after issuing the required commands. By saving the resulting byte stream as a resource, a PICT resource resulted, which could be loaded and played back at any time. The same stream could be saved to a data file on disk (with 512 bytes of unused header space added) as a PICT file.
With the change to Mac OS X, PICT was dropped in favour of Portable Document Format (PDF) as the native metafile format, though PICT support is retained by many applications as it is so widely supported on the Mac.
| Applications |
|---|
|
Apple File Security · Calculator · Chooser · Drive Setup · DVD Player · Finder · Graphing Calculator · Keychain Access · PictureViewer · PowerTalk - QuickTime Player · Network Browser · Scrapbook · Sherlock · Software Update · Stickies · Apple System Profiler · SimpleText |
| Developer |
| Technology |
|
Command (⌘) · Option (⌥) · JavaScript · Code Fragment Manager · WorldScript Control Strip · Creator code · Hierarchical File System · HFS Plus · Keychain · Apple Data Detectors - V-Twin / Apple Information Access Technology - Macintosh File System · PICT · QuickDraw · QuickTime · Resource fork · Type code · WorldScript |
| Related articles |
|
Manager · Toolbox · Memory Management · Old World ROM · New World ROM |