Image Processing Software

    This is a simple highly specialized image converter developed for one purpose only: converting images in EMF/WMF (Windows Metafile) format to EPS (Encapsulated PostScript) format. Actual converting of the image is being done using the PostScript driver installed on the user’s PC. Without the PostScript driver the converting of the image format by this application is impossible. The structure of the program is pretty simple.     The Main menu contains four options: File, Edit, Convert and Help. The Pop-up menu File has two options: Open (for selecting and opening EMF/WMF images for converting) and Save As (allowing to save selected pictures under another name). The pop-up menu Edit has standard options for working with a selection list (Cut, Copy, Paste and Delete) and the option Preferences. Actually, the options Cut and Delete perform the same task - they delete selected file from the list for conversion. The option Preferences serves for selecting the PostScript printer (which should be installed earlier, of course). You can also set the resolution of the output image with this option (taking into account capabilities of the installed PostScript driver). The option Convert serves to convert image format of the whole list of image files or the selection of files within that list. During the process of converting the PostScript driver is called; the converted image is shown in the left lower corner of the Preview window of the printer driver. Actually, the destination of the output of the converted image is saving to EPS file, not the printing on paper. The option Help of the Main menu actually contains no help at all - only a pop-up About.
    The distribution package of the application is available at link http://www.projectory.de/emftoeps/emftoeps.zip or through a link in http://www.projectory.de/emftoeps/index.html.
    As a matter of fact there are no installation process, however. The distribution package is a .zip archive containing a ready-for-work copy of the application directory; the executable is EMFToEPS.exe. It’s interesting that the author of the application graciously supplies source files of the program, too. They are contained in the sub-directory ‘source‘.
    The author of the application - Dirk Struve warns that there are some bugs in his applet:

• Some WMF images can’t be loaded correctly, because the WMF format is not well defined and I don’t now all different versions. Solution: Always save images as EMF.
• Some WMF images are not converted correctly. (This seems to be a PostScript driver problem) Solution: Try saving images as EMF or WMF images with True Type fonts as curves.
• Preview of File Dialog sometimes wrong (Bug in Delphi libraries).
• On some Windows systems, images are not displayed correctly or dieappear.

But he writes he probably won’t continue work on it.

    Easy Graphic Converter is a powerful and easy-to-use graphic converter, image converter and thumbnails maker utility that can covert image files and make thumbnails. It a 32-bit software program that runs on Microsoft Windows 95, Windows 98, Windows NT 4.0, Windows XP, Windows 2000 and Windows ME Operating Systems.
    The version 1.2.0 of the product is free for use and available for download at the link http://www.etrusoft.com/graphic-converter/graphic-converter.exe. The size of the executable for installation is 813K.
    The basic features of the product are:

• Easy Graphic Converter can both import and export images in the following formats:
  • Windows Bitmap (*.bmp, *.dib)
  • GIF (*.gif)
  • JPEG (*.jpg, *.jpeg)
  • Portable Graphics PNG (*.png)
  • ZSoft PCX (*.pcx)
  • Adobe PSD (*.psd)
  • Targa (*.tga)
  • TIFF (*.tif, *.tiff)
  • Windows Metafile (*.wmf)
  • Windows Enhanced Metafile (*.emf)
• Easy Graphic Converter can make thumbnails in two ways:
  • Best Fit
  • Exact Size of specified width and height
  • Or simply export images the same size as the original ones.
• Easy Graphic Converter is a batch converting tool. You can convert batches of different formats images to one type of image in one time. It supports auto name.

    The Help of the application is in an separate .htm file and contains a list of basic features of the program, a simple FAQ section and the link to the site of the creator. At present, there is no on-line help section in the application.
    The Main menu of the application has the following options: Add (for adding individual files or whole directories of files for converting), Remove (for removing files or directories from the list for converting added earlier), Clear (clears the whole list), Settings (for setting converting options) and Exit (for closing application). In the Settings window you can define an output image format, bits per pixel, options of resizing of the initial image, the directory for saving output images and some other characteristics. Selected output settings for converting images are displayed in the Main window of the application.
    The process of actual converting selected images starts when you press the button Start in the application window.

    There are a lot of image formats and hundreds of software programmes capable of converting image formats from one to another. Sometimes individual graphic (image) format is native for some graphic application and may be as an export option in another graphic application (or may be not). In that case may arise a need to convert specific image into native format of that graphic application. Here is a list of some graphic applications and their native image formats:

• CDR - CorelDRAW
• CPP - Corel Photo-Paint
• PSD - Adobe Photoshop
• PDD - Adobe PhotoDeluxe
• AI - Adobe Illustrator
• UFO - Ulead PhotoImpact
• PSP - Paint Shop Pro
• MIX - Microsoft PictureIt and PhotoDraw

    Besides, there are a number of image formats that are considered as standard. A standard image format is one that is cross-platform compatible and supported by the majority of graphics applications.

    The most common standard bitmap-based image formats are TIFF (Tagged Image File Format), JPG (Joint Photographic [Experts] Group), GIF (Graphics Interchange Format), and PNG (Portable Network Graphics). On the Windows platform BMP (Bit Mapped Pictures) is a standard format and PICT is a standard bitmap format on the Macintosh. Photoshop’s PSD format is supported to some degree by most graphics applications, but you should take into account that transferring PSD between non-Adobe applications may give unexpected results.

    The most common standard vector-based formats are EPS (Encapsulated PostScript) and AI. On the Windows platform, most vector-based software also supports WMF (Windows Metafile Format) and EMF (Microsoft Enhanced Metafile Format) formats.

    While sending files over the Internet or transporting them between graphics applications, it is recommended to use one of these standard formats, or the results may be unexpected. When sending graphic images via email and the Web, it is best to use JPEG or GIF format, which can be displayed by any Web browser on any computer. If in doubt, ask the recipient of your files which image formats they can accept.

Sources: http://graphicssoft.about.com/od/aboutgraphics/a/convertgraphics.htm, http://graphicssoft.about.com/od/glossary/g/nativeformat.htm, http://graphicssoft.about.com/library/glossary/bldefstandardformat.htm