What is a PNG? What does that stand for? I think I saw this one a Graphiocs site mabey....I never saw the term before, What is it and how do you make it? :cloud:

Portable Network Graphic.
it is a type of image like GIF or JPG or BMP.
it is kinda like a GIF but a more powerful.

you can use any good image software to create it like Paintshop Pro or Photoshop.

I still dont quite understand......spo its like any other pic?? How is it more "powerful"?

yes, it is just like any other pic.
it is a type of image that can support "layers" and "transparency".

this topic should probably be moved (by a moderator) into the graphics forum for a much clearer explaination.

.PNG is possibly the best file format out there right now since it has the very useful ability of saving varying transparencies and layers. it's a file format the same as .jpg or .gif but it has more capabilities.

problem with .PNG: not fully supported by Internet Explorer, so the vast majority of your visitors will incorrectly see your images. until then, it's best to stick with .gif if you are using graphics with transparencies.

Honestly Im still confused but for the moment im going ot stick with the normal kinds of files for now.....thanks everyone:)

PNG IS supported by IE-I have IE 6 and can see PNG images perfectely.

I use Microsoft Picture It! Pro (lame, isn't it?) to make my images (which aren't half-bad...close to if I had my PSP back..) and it uses PNG format. I've found it has the best color properties because with GIF it can get all pixeled up and a little bit with JPG.

PNG IS supported by IE-I have IE 6 and can see PNG images perfectely.

i'm talking about full support. currently transparent layers saved in a .png file will not show correctly, and therefore are *not* supported by IE in any version. only limited support is available.

I use .PNG images almost always now. I've found that, they aren't as large file sizes as .BMP images (or am I mistaken about this?) and as said before - the images don't get distorted as they do when saved as .JPG or .GIF.

I also use Microsoft Picture It! Photo 2002 for the majority of my images, but to "defeat" the transparency problem, I select all the layers, etc. and copy/paste them into Windows Paint. Then as I save the file, after typing the file name you can change the file type - Paint supports saving PNG images, although once you do so you loose the ability to alter layers, transparency options, etc. By using .PNG format, you can save the layers and such - but using transparency makes it dark underneath the image instead of "lighter".

But, I'm not 100% positive that .PNG files save as smaller file-sizes than .BMP - could someone possibly clear that up for me? At first I thought that they did, but after uploading them to my site I realized that it took a longer time to upload. :confused:

I use .PNG images almost always now. I've found that, they aren't as large file sizes as .BMP images (or am I mistaken about this?) and as said before - the images don't get distorted as they do when saved as .JPG or .GIF.

I also use Microsoft Picture It! Photo 2002 for the majority of my images, but to "defeat" the transparency problem, I select all the layers, etc. and copy/paste them into Windows Paint. Then as I save the file, after typing the file name you can change the file type - Paint supports saving PNG images, although once you do so you loose the ability to alter layers, transparency options, etc. By using .PNG format, you can save the layers and such - but using transparency makes it dark underneath the image instead of "lighter".

But, I'm not 100% positive that .PNG files save as smaller file-sizes than .BMP - could someone possibly clear that up for me? At first I thought that they did, but after uploading them to my site I realized that it took a longer time to upload. :confused:

that's exactly right, though for those who are really picky about their graphics, .png still has it's problems with transparencies, even with workarounds for the problem of the image getting darker with Picture It. eventually when browsers support it correctly, .gif will be completely phased out and .png's should be used, especially since it is not limited to the 256 colors that .gif users (to get a clear example, .png supports 16 million colors!!).

as for your question with .bmp's it's a toss-up really. by default it is an uncompressed file, so for a larger image it will be *much* bigger than the automatically compressed .png. the great thing about .png is that it is a "lossless storage format". in other words, it looks for a more efficient way to show the image, but does not make any compromises in accuracy - no pixelation or distortion when saved at a lower quality.

png is kinda a lazy format as i see it :P you save it and it's a good saved graphic. However, you can get the same results with .jpg

for photoshop you can go to save for the web instead of save as and choose .jpg. Then choose quality as " maximum" and voila. You have a perfectly fine graphic.

Love,
Mirna

but the filesize for the .jpg will be outrageous. you get the same results with .png, but in a lossless compression format.

but it will be compatible with all versions of whatever browser :P
*feels such a w3c n00b now*

i'm just given an example of how it can be done too. Since you are sort of against .png because of the compatibility i would have thought you would absolutely love this idea :P but yeah... people can be wrong i guess ..

i'm for .png, but against browsers cause they don't support it yet.

i'm all for .jpg when used that the right time. .jpg's are great for archiving and the like, and at the moment, it's the best format available right now, since it's supported by all browsers. you are dead right on that.

another reason i'm for .png: no more .gif. which means programs like Adobe won't have to pay royalties to use .gif (ever notice the words Compuserv right next to the .gif selection when saving?) which means the price of photo editors may come down (hopefully!!).

I always use .pngs. The reason for this is that I don't really need that many graphics, so I just use Microsoft Paint to create the ones i do need. Because of this, when ever I save a graphic as a .gif or .jpg, the quality decreases and makes the image all fuzzy, so I just save them as .pngs.

Chris