What is A PNG File & How Do You Open & Edit it

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When you upload a photo to your computer, it is typically saved as a JPEG file.

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What is a PNG File?

Portable Network Graphic (PNG) is a file format that is used to save images on the internet. A PNG file can be recognized by its .png extension and typically has a 24-bit color depth. This means that it saves added detail in images, making them appear more realistic than they would be if saved as another type of image format such as GIF (Graphics Interchange Format).

A PNG file format typically has more color options, making them ideal for images on the web due to their ability to have added detail in their color depth. It also allows for transparency, which is when you can see through part of an image.

More Information

PNG file format is a common image format for transferring images over the web and is supported universally by modern browsers, although older ones will display a low-resolution file. PNG files are commonly used to represent photos and other images with lots of colors and fine gradients and provide an alternative to JPEG (which has lossy compression).

Another thing that makes PNG files ideal for certain types of photographs is that they are pixel-based. This means that the program will resize the png file image depending on how many pixels there are, so an 800×600 image can be displayed at any resolution. JPEG files, however, change size with their quality settings and are not always in a predictable way.

One can encounter a PNG file when:
1) You are transferring or sharing an image through the internet or another network.
2) Downloading a picture from the internet, which will be saved as a PNG image format if not already saved elsewhere.
3) Using an image editor to save a photo.
4) Taking a macOS or Windows screenshot.

Why PNG File Format Was Developed

The PNG file format was developed in 1995 to improve upon and replace other file formats like GIF (Graphics Interchange Format) when compression for images became more common. While both file formats are similar in purpose, they were designed to be different in key ways.

GIFs use lossless compression, which means that they don’t lose image data compared to other file formats (like a JPG file) while saving the file to disk. This makes GIFs ideal for storing logos or other image types with large areas of a single color. However, due to the lack of compression in PNG files, they are not as efficient in storage space compared to a JPEG file.

This is because PNG images support transparency, whereas GIF files do not. Transparency allows for partial visibility of the background behind the image, which is often seen in PNG logos or web banners. It also makes it possible for images to blend into each other, making it ideal for collage-type situations or if you want to make your site more visually appealing with some transparency.

How To Open PNG Files

You can open a png file & convert PNG files with various programs, including image editors, web browsers, and media players. Many email clients will also allow you to open a PNG format file in their preview pane so that you don’t have to download it before viewing it. Windows and macOS also allow you to open PNG files, with the defaults being Windows Photo Viewer and Preview for macOS.

Many different image editing software programs can open PNG files. If you have an image editor, it will probably support png images including opening and saving this type of file format. For example, Adobe Photoshop supports reading and writing PNG files in its latest versions. GIMP also supports adding or editing transparency in PNG images.

Paint (Microsoft Windows) will only open PNG format files if you are using Microsoft Windows 7 or higher since it doesn’t support viewing this image format in older operating system versions. Otherwise, many different programs can read and write PNG files on Mac or Linux platforms and other computers using different operating systems.

How To Edit PNG Files

Editing a PNG file image format involves opening it in an image editing program or using the text editor in your operating system’s graphical user interface to make changes. If you are using an image editor, you will need to use the File > Open option and locate the PNG file in its directory.

One can also open it in macOS or Windows using the right-click context menu. On a PC, just select ‘Open with’ and then choose your image editing program from the list of options that pops up underneath.

If you are making edits to a PNG file in a text editor instead, you will need to open it and save it again for changes to be made. If you’re using a program like Notepad on Windows, you will need to save it as an image file if you want any edits to take place.

Choosing the right software program is important when editing PNG format files because not all programs support saving it in its original image format. For example, if you open PNG files in an image editor and convert png files to JPEG due to not being able to save them as the original PNG file format, the PNG files will all lose image quality as they are being saved as a compressed JPEG image file.

In conclusion, if you are editing an image in an editor, the software program should read and write PNG files to make changes. You can also download different programs known to be compatible with this file type instead of using the default one installed on your computer.