Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!uunet!tnc!m0154
From: m0154@tnc.UUCP (GUY GARNETT)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga.programmer
Subject: Re: An Amiga Conversion Facility
Message-ID: <796@tnc.UUCP>
Date: 15 Apr 91 14:58:08 GMT
References: <790@tnc.UUCP> <1098@cbmger.UUCP>
Reply-To: m0154@tnc.UUCP (GUY GARNETT)
Organization: The Next Challenge, Fairfax, Va.
Lines: 63

In article <1098@cbmger.UUCP> peterk@cbmger.UUCP (Peter Kittel GERMANY) writes:
>In article <790@tnc.UUCP> m0154@tnc.UUCP (GUY GARNETT) writes:
>>
>>  Reason:  Current Amiga data exchange is based on IFF files. 
>>Although this system works very well for bitmap data (thanks to IFF
>>ILBM), and performs adequately for animation (IFF ANIM), and sound
>>(IFF SMUS and IFF 8SVX), there are few other widely recognised data
>>interchange formats.  "Multimedia" and "Desktop Video" (the things
>>the Amiga does best) as well as more conventional "Productivity"
>>applications (like word processors, spreadsheets, and databases)
>>would benefit from the ability to exchange data in a wider variety of
>>formats.
>
>You sure should look a little deeper into the IFF definition! Then
>you would learn that there are sure possibilities inside IFF to provide
>the features you desire, see for CATs and LISTs, for example.
>
>Though I very much appreciate this effort to get a powerful conversion
>machinery, I strongly wish that this hopefully will NOT lead into
>inventing dozens of new "standards"! This should NOT be encouraged,
>as I got a little of an impression in part 2. I bet that nearly all
>of these desired formats can easily be satisfied with IFF or at least 
>in a way to expand the IFF definition in the proper IFF manner.
>
>Best regards, Dr. Peter Kittel  // E-Mail to  \\  Only my personal opinions... 
>Commodore Frankfurt, Germany  \X/ {uunet|pyramid|rutgers}!cbmvax!cbmger!peterk


I know about the IFF standard; it is a very flexable and capable
framework for implementing just about any type of data format.  I am
not trying to introduce any new "standards"; I'm simply trying to make
best use of the ones we already have.

If programs like ProWrite, AegisDraw, ProDraw, MaxiPlan, Scribble,
Microfliche Filer, Superbase, etc ... would save all of their data in
IFF files, the conversion facility would not be needed.  Instead, each
of these applications (and many others) define their own data storage
formats.  And usually, these formats are not well explained (if at
all) for other programs to yse.  What I am trying to do do is provide
a way go get each of these "proprietary" formats (I am calling them
external formats in the formal document) into something which is a
recognised, useful Amiga "standard" format for that kind of data (this
includes IFF formats, of course, and probably some non-iff standards
as well ...).


What the conversion facility is trying to provide is a common ground
where (with only a little extra effort on the part of the applications
programmer) these proprietary data formats can be converted to the
appropriate Amiga standards.  With the conversion facility, a paint
program could (for example) import any graphic file (including
ProDraw, CAD drawings, and other formats) by requesting that the
conversion facility turn it into IFF ILBM).  Similarly, a DTP program
could print just about anything to a PostScript printer by requesting
that the conversion faciliy translate it to PostScript (from whatever,
let's say CAD drawings, IFF pictures, ProDraw pictures, etc ..).  It
could print the same thing to a Preferences-supported dot-matrix
printer by requesting conversions to an internal bitmap.

IFF will be very important to the conversion facility; however, I feel
that other "standard" formats will be required, too.

Wildstar