File Formats
Computer Science: Cambridge International GCSE, topic 1.1.12
File Formats
Sound, pictures, video, and text are all binary data stored in different file formats on a computer.
File formats
- Data can be arranged and stored in files in many different file formats.
- The format of a particular file is indicated by the file extension, found at the end of the filename.
- An image file with filename "photo.jpg" has a file extension of ".jpg".
- We identify this image as having the JPEG format.
- Different programs have certain formats of files that they can open.
Open-source vs proprietary
- Proprietary files are files that can be opened only by specific software programs.
- For example, Adobe Photoshop files with the extension .PSD can only be opened by Adobe programs.
- Encoding methods for proprietary files types are often restricted through licences.
- Open format file types are published for free and can be used by everybody.
Examples of file formats
- Sound files: .aac, .mp3, .wav, .mid, .flac, .aiff
- Text files: .doc, .txt, .rtf
- Image files: .jpeg, .gif, .png, .bmp
- Video files: .mov, .mp4, .flv, .wmv
Test yourself on File Formats
What type of file has the extension ".doc"?