RFC 2083 (rfc2083) - Page 1 of 102

PNG (Portable Network Graphics) Specification Version 1

Alternative Format: Original Text Document
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Network Working Group                                T. Boutell, et. al.
Request for Comments: 2083                             Boutell.Com, Inc.
Category: Informational                                       March 1997


             PNG (Portable Network Graphics) Specification
                              Version 1.0

Status of this Memo

   This memo provides information for the Internet community.  This memo
   does not specify an Internet standard of any kind.  Distribution of
   this memo is unlimited.

IESG Note:

   The IESG takes no position on the validity of any Intellectual
   Property Rights statements contained in this document.

Abstract

   This document describes PNG (Portable Network Graphics), an
   extensible file format for the lossless, portable, well-compressed
   storage of raster images.  PNG provides a patent-free replacement for
   GIF and can also replace many common uses of TIFF.  Indexed-color,
   grayscale, and truecolor images are supported, plus an optional alpha
   channel.  Sample depths range from 1 to 16 bits.

   PNG is designed to work well in online viewing applications, such as
   the World Wide Web, so it is fully streamable with a progressive
   display option.  PNG is robust, providing both full file integrity
   checking and simple detection of common transmission errors.  Also,
   PNG can store gamma and chromaticity data for improved color matching
   on heterogeneous platforms.

   This specification defines the Internet Media Type image/png.

Table of Contents

   1. Introduction ..................................................  4
   2. Data Representation ...........................................  5
      2.1. Integers and byte order ..................................  5
      2.2. Color values .............................................  6
      2.3. Image layout .............................................  6
      2.4. Alpha channel ............................................  7
      2.5. Filtering ................................................  8
      2.6. Interlaced data order ....................................  8
      2.7. Gamma correction ......................................... 10



Boutell, et. al.             Informational
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