[comp.graphics] Looking for universal formats

rivero@dev8.mdcbbs.com (04/01/91)

There is a lot of traffic requesting info on this or that image format.
There have been some attempts to create cross system standards, such
as IFF TIF, etc. I would like to hear any ideas about creating
a Self-Defining Data-Standard (SDDS), i.e. one that is not only
compact, efficient, system independant, and flexible, but is
somehow structured to allow anyone to decode it from merely looking at
the file itself ( short of including a manual page with every frame).
The logical extension to this would be universal image handlers that
could determine the content of such files for themselves prior to
processing. If such an SDDS could be arrived at, it would greatly
simplify future image manipulation systems.

  Any ideas?