352 lines
18 KiB
Plaintext
352 lines
18 KiB
Plaintext
The Independent JPEG Group's JPEG software
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==========================================
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README for release 5a of 7-Dec-94
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=================================
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This distribution contains the fifth public release of the Independent JPEG
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Group's free JPEG software. You are welcome to redistribute this software and
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to use it for any purpose, subject to the conditions under LEGAL ISSUES, below.
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Serious users of this software (particularly those incorporating it into
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larger programs) should contact IJG at jpeg-info@uunet.uu.net to be added to
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our electronic mailing list. Mailing list members are notified of updates
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and have a chance to participate in technical discussions, etc.
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This software is the work of Tom Lane, Philip Gladstone, Luis Ortiz, Jim
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Boucher, Lee Crocker, George Phillips, Davide Rossi, Ge' Weijers, and other
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members of the Independent JPEG Group.
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IJG is not associated with the official ISO JPEG standards committee.
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DOCUMENTATION ROADMAP
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=====================
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This file contains the following sections:
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OVERVIEW General description of JPEG and the IJG software.
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LEGAL ISSUES Copyright, lack of warranty, terms of distribution.
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REFERENCES Where to learn more about JPEG.
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ARCHIVE LOCATIONS Where to find newer versions of this software.
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RELATED SOFTWARE Other stuff you should get.
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FILE FORMAT WARS Software *not* to get.
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TO DO Plans for future IJG releases.
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Other documentation files in the distribution are:
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User documentation:
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install.doc How to configure and install the IJG software.
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usage.doc Usage instructions for cjpeg, djpeg, rdjpgcom, wrjpgcom.
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*.1 Unix-style man pages for programs (same info as usage.doc).
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change.log Version-to-version change highlights.
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Programmer and internal documentation:
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libjpeg.doc How to use the JPEG library in your own programs.
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example.c Sample code for calling the JPEG library.
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structure.doc Overview of the JPEG library's internal structure.
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filelist.doc Road map of IJG files.
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coderules.doc Coding style rules --- please read if you contribute code.
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Please read at least the files install.doc and usage.doc. Useful information
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can also be found in the JPEG FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) article. See
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ARCHIVE LOCATIONS below to find out where to obtain the FAQ article.
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If you want to understand how the JPEG code works, we suggest reading one or
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more of the REFERENCES, then looking at the documentation files (in roughly
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the order listed) before diving into the code.
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OVERVIEW
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========
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This package contains C software to implement JPEG image compression and
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decompression. JPEG (pronounced "jay-peg") is a standardized compression
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method for full-color and gray-scale images. JPEG is intended for compressing
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"real-world" scenes; cartoons and other non-realistic images are not its
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strong suit. JPEG is lossy, meaning that the output image is not necessarily
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identical to the input image. Hence you must not use JPEG if you have to have
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identical output bits. However, on typical images of real-world scenes, very
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good compression levels can be obtained with no visible change, and amazingly
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high compression levels are possible if you can tolerate a low-quality image.
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For more details, see the references, or just experiment with various
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compression settings.
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We provide a set of library routines for reading and writing JPEG image files,
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plus two simple applications "cjpeg" and "djpeg", which use the library to
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perform conversion between JPEG and some other popular image file formats.
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The library is intended to be reused in other applications.
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This software implements JPEG baseline and extended-sequential compression
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processes. Provision is made for supporting all variants of these processes,
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although some uncommon parameter settings aren't implemented yet. For legal
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reasons, we are not distributing code for the arithmetic-coding process; see
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LEGAL ISSUES. At present we have made no provision for supporting the
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progressive, hierarchical, or lossless processes defined in the standard.
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(Support for progressive mode may be offered in a future release.)
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In order to support file conversion and viewing software, we have included
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considerable functionality beyond the bare JPEG coding/decoding capability;
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for example, the color quantization modules are not strictly part of JPEG
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decoding, but they are essential for output to colormapped file formats or
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colormapped displays. These extra functions can be compiled out of the
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library if not required for a particular application. We have also included
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two simple applications for inserting and extracting textual comments in
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JFIF files.
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The emphasis in designing this software has been on achieving portability and
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flexibility, while also making it fast enough to be useful. In particular,
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the software is not intended to be read as a tutorial on JPEG. (See the
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REFERENCES section for introductory material.) While we hope that the entire
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package will someday be industrial-strength code, much remains to be done in
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performance tuning and in improving the capabilities of individual modules.
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We welcome the use of this software as a component of commercial products.
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No royalty is required, but we do ask for an acknowledgement in product
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documentation, as described under LEGAL ISSUES.
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LEGAL ISSUES
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============
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In plain English:
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1. We don't promise that this software works. (But if you find any bugs,
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please let us know!)
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2. You can use this software for whatever you want. You don't have to pay us.
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3. You may not pretend that you wrote this software. If you use it in a
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program, you must acknowledge somewhere in your documentation that
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you've used the IJG code.
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In legalese:
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The authors make NO WARRANTY or representation, either express or implied,
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with respect to this software, its quality, accuracy, merchantability, or
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fitness for a particular purpose. This software is provided "AS IS", and you,
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its user, assume the entire risk as to its quality and accuracy.
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This software is copyright (C) 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, Thomas G. Lane.
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All Rights Reserved except as specified below.
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Permission is hereby granted to use, copy, modify, and distribute this
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software (or portions thereof) for any purpose, without fee, subject to these
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conditions:
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(1) If any part of the source code for this software is distributed, then this
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README file must be included, with this copyright and no-warranty notice
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unaltered; and any additions, deletions, or changes to the original files
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must be clearly indicated in accompanying documentation.
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(2) If only executable code is distributed, then the accompanying
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documentation must state that "this software is based in part on the work of
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the Independent JPEG Group".
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(3) Permission for use of this software is granted only if the user accepts
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full responsibility for any undesirable consequences; the authors accept
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NO LIABILITY for damages of any kind.
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These conditions apply to any software derived from or based on the IJG code,
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not just to the unmodified library. If you use our work, you ought to
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acknowledge us.
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Permission is NOT granted for the use of any IJG author's name or company name
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in advertising or publicity relating to this software or products derived from
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it. This software may be referred to only as "the Independent JPEG Group's
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software".
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We specifically permit and encourage the use of this software as the basis of
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commercial products, provided that all warranty or liability claims are
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assumed by the product vendor.
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ansi2knr.c is included in this distribution by permission of L. Peter Deutsch,
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sole proprietor of its copyright holder, Aladdin Enterprises of Menlo Park, CA.
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ansi2knr.c is NOT covered by the above copyright and conditions, but instead
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by the usual distribution terms of the Free Software Foundation; principally,
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that you must include source code if you redistribute it. (See the file
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ansi2knr.c for full details.) However, since ansi2knr.c is not needed as part
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of any program generated from the IJG code, this does not limit you more than
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the foregoing paragraphs do.
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The configuration script "configure" was produced with GNU Autoconf. It
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is copyright by the Free Software Foundation but is freely distributable.
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It appears that the arithmetic coding option of the JPEG spec is covered by
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patents owned by IBM, AT&T, and Mitsubishi. Hence arithmetic coding cannot
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legally be used without obtaining one or more licenses. For this reason,
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support for arithmetic coding has been removed from the free JPEG software.
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(Since arithmetic coding provides only a marginal gain over the unpatented
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Huffman mode, it is unlikely that very many implementations will support it.)
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So far as we are aware, there are no patent restrictions on the remaining
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code.
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We are required to state that
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"The Graphics Interchange Format(c) is the Copyright property of
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CompuServe Incorporated. GIF(sm) is a Service Mark property of
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CompuServe Incorporated."
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REFERENCES
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==========
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We highly recommend reading one or more of these references before trying to
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understand the innards of the JPEG software.
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The best short technical introduction to the JPEG compression algorithm is
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Wallace, Gregory K. "The JPEG Still Picture Compression Standard",
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Communications of the ACM, April 1991 (vol. 34 no. 4), pp. 30-44.
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(Adjacent articles in that issue discuss MPEG motion picture compression,
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applications of JPEG, and related topics.) If you don't have the CACM issue
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handy, a PostScript file containing a revised version of Wallace's article
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is available at ftp.uu.net, graphics/jpeg/wallace.ps.gz. The file (actually
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a preprint for an article that appeared in IEEE Trans. Consumer Electronics)
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omits the sample images that appeared in CACM, but it includes corrections
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and some added material. Note: the Wallace article is copyright ACM and
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IEEE, and it may not be used for commercial purposes.
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A somewhat less technical, more leisurely introduction to JPEG can be found in
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"The Data Compression Book" by Mark Nelson, published by M&T Books (Redwood
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City, CA), 1991, ISBN 1-55851-216-0. This book provides good explanations and
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example C code for a multitude of compression methods including JPEG. It is
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an excellent source if you are comfortable reading C code but don't know much
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about data compression in general. The book's JPEG sample code is far from
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industrial-strength, but when you are ready to look at a full implementation,
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you've got one here...
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The best full description of JPEG is the textbook "JPEG Still Image Data
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Compression Standard" by William B. Pennebaker and Joan L. Mitchell, published
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by Van Nostrand Reinhold, 1993, ISBN 0-442-01272-1. Price US$59.95, 638 pp.
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The book includes the complete text of the ISO JPEG standards (DIS 10918-1
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and draft DIS 10918-2). This is by far the most complete exposition of JPEG
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in existence, and we highly recommend it.
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The JPEG standard itself is not available electronically; you must order a
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paper copy through ISO. (Unless you feel a need to own a certified official
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copy, we recommend buying the Pennebaker and Mitchell book instead; it's much
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cheaper and includes a great deal of useful explanatory material.) In the US,
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copies of the standard may be ordered from ANSI Sales at (212) 642-4900, or
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from Global Engineering Documents at (800) 854-7179. (ANSI doesn't take
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credit card orders, but Global does.) It's not cheap: as of 1992, ANSI was
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charging $95 for Part 1 and $47 for Part 2, plus 7% shipping/handling. The
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standard is divided into two parts, Part 1 being the actual specification,
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while Part 2 covers compliance testing methods. Part 1 is titled "Digital
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Compression and Coding of Continuous-tone Still Images, Part 1: Requirements
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and guidelines" and has document number ISO/IEC IS 10918-1. As of mid-1994,
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Part 2 is still at Draft International Standard status. It is titled "Digital
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Compression and Coding of Continuous-tone Still Images, Part 2: Compliance
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testing" and has document number ISO/IEC DIS 10918-2. (The document number
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will change to IS 10918-2 when final approval is obtained.) A Part 3,
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covering extensions, is likely to appear in draft form in late 1994.
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The JPEG standard does not specify all details of an interchangeable file
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format. For the omitted details we follow the "JFIF" conventions, revision
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1.02. A copy of the JFIF spec is available from:
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Literature Department
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C-Cube Microsystems, Inc.
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1778 McCarthy Blvd.
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Milpitas, CA 95035
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phone (408) 944-6300, fax (408) 944-6314
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A PostScript version of this document is available at ftp.uu.net, file
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graphics/jpeg/jfif.ps.gz. It can also be obtained by e-mail from the C-Cube
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mail server, netlib@c3.pla.ca.us. Send the message "send jfif_ps from jpeg"
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to the server to obtain the JFIF document; send the message "help" if you have
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trouble.
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The TIFF 6.0 file format specification can be obtained by FTP from sgi.com
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(192.48.153.1), file graphics/tiff/TIFF6.ps.Z; or you can order a printed copy
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from Aldus Corp. at (206) 628-6593. It should be noted that the TIFF 6.0 spec
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of 3-June-92 has a number of serious problems in its JPEG features. A
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redesign effort is currently underway to correct these problems; it is
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expected to result in a new, incompatible, spec. IJG intends to support the
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corrected version of TIFF when the new spec is issued.
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ARCHIVE LOCATIONS
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=================
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The "official" archive site for this software is ftp.uu.net (Internet
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address 192.48.96.9). The most recent released version can always be found
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there in directory graphics/jpeg. This particular version will be archived
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as graphics/jpeg/jpegsrc.v5a.tar.gz. If you are on the Internet, you
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can retrieve files from ftp.uu.net by standard anonymous FTP. If you don't
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have FTP access, UUNET's archives are also available via UUCP; contact
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help@uunet.uu.net for information on retrieving files that way.
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Numerous Internet sites maintain copies of the UUNET files; in particular,
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you can probably find a copy at any site that archives comp.sources.misc
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submissions. However, only ftp.uu.net is guaranteed to have the latest
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official version.
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You can also obtain this software from CompuServe, in the GRAPHSUPPORT
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forum (GO GRAPHSUP), probably in library 15 (there are rumors of a pending
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reorganization there). Again, CompuServe is not guaranteed to have the
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very latest version.
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The JPEG FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) article is a useful source of
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general information about JPEG. It is updated constantly and therefore is
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not included in this distribution. The FAQ is posted every two weeks to
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Usenet newsgroups comp.graphics, news.answers, and other groups. You can
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always obtain the latest version from the news.answers archive at
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rtfm.mit.edu. By FTP, fetch /pub/usenet/news.answers/jpeg-faq/part1 and
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.../part2. If you don't have FTP, send e-mail to mail-server@rtfm.mit.edu
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with body
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send usenet/news.answers/jpeg-faq/part1
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send usenet/news.answers/jpeg-faq/part2
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RELATED SOFTWARE
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================
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Numerous viewing and image manipulation programs now support JPEG. (Quite a
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few of them use this library to do so.) The JPEG FAQ described above lists
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some of the more popular free and shareware viewers, and tells where to
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obtain them on Internet.
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If you are on a Unix machine, we highly recommend Jef Poskanzer's free
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PBMPLUS image software, which provides many useful operations on PPM-format
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image files. In particular, it can convert PPM images to and from a wide
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range of other formats. You can obtain this package by FTP from ftp.x.org
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(contrib/pbmplus*.tar.Z) or ftp.ee.lbl.gov (pbmplus*.tar.Z). There is also
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a newer update of this package called NETPBM, available from
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wuarchive.wustl.edu under directory /graphics/graphics/packages/NetPBM/.
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Unfortunately PBMPLUS/NETPBM is not nearly as portable as the IJG software
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is; you are likely to have difficulty making it work on any non-Unix machine.
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A different free JPEG implementation, written by the PVRG group at Stanford,
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is available from havefun.stanford.edu in directory pub/jpeg. This program
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is designed for research and experimentation rather than production use;
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it is slower, harder to use, and less portable than the IJG code, but it
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implements a larger subset of the JPEG standard. In particular, it supports
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lossless JPEG.
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FILE FORMAT WARS
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================
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Some JPEG programs produce files that are not compatible with our library.
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The root of the problem is that the ISO JPEG committee failed to specify a
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concrete file format. Some vendors "filled in the blanks" on their own,
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creating proprietary formats that no one else could read. (For example, none
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of the early commercial JPEG implementations for the Macintosh were able to
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exchange compressed files.)
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The file format we have adopted is called JFIF (see REFERENCES). This format
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has been agreed to by a number of major commercial JPEG vendors, and it has
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become the de facto standard. JFIF is a minimal or "low end" representation.
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Work is also going forward to incorporate JPEG compression into the TIFF
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standard, for use in "high end" applications that need to record a lot of
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additional data about an image. We intend to support TIFF in the future.
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We hope that these two formats will be sufficient and that other,
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incompatible JPEG file formats will not proliferate.
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Indeed, part of the reason for developing and releasing this free software is
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to help force rapid convergence to de facto standards for JPEG file formats.
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SUPPORT STANDARD, NON-PROPRIETARY FORMATS: demand JFIF or TIFF/JPEG!
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TO DO
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=====
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In future versions, we are considering supporting progressive JPEG
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compression, the upcoming JPEG Part 3 extensions, and other improvements.
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As always, speeding things up is high on our priority list.
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Please send bug reports, offers of help, etc. to jpeg-info@uunet.uu.net.
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