[CREATE] Re: Open File Format for Raster/Bitmaps Graphics

[Jon A. Cruz]

On Mar 21, 2006, at 9:48 AM, Larry Ewing wrote:

> Making generic container formats quickly runs into a couple of  
> problems.
> One is that parts of the file will quickly get out sync with other  
> parts
> (especially metadata) try to be very explicit about what to do with
> metadata that the program doesn't understand.

[SNIP]

> In my view is is better for a spec to be very strict well defined and
> easy to comply with than it is to try handle every imaginable  
> case.  The
> bar you are setting for someone to implement this format from  
> scratch is
> pretty high when you consider all the list above zip, xml, ICC etc.
> and here are already a lot of raster formats that act as containers  
> out
> there.  Many of them aren't in wide use because they are too broad or
> poorly defined.  Don't compound the problem by trying to be too
> flexible.

Keep in mind that what Larry is warning of here is probably the  
source of the largest problems with the TIFF format.