PICT (Apple Macintosh QuickDraw/picture file)
The PICT Raster image file format
PICT files were developed in 1984 for Macintosh Graphics. The PICT file type is primarily associated with 'Macintosh' by Apple Inc. QuickDraw is the 2D graphics library and associated Application Programming Interface (API) which is a core part of the classic Apple Macintosh operating system. It was initially written by Bill Atkinson and Andy Hertzfeld.
Technical details of PICT files
QuickDraw still exists as part of the libraries of Mac OS X, but has been largely superseded by the more modern Quartz graphics system. Image files created with said program are saved in the PICT format. They can contain both vector and bitmap images in a big variety of colors. In order to reduce the file size, PICT files support RLE (run-length encoding) and JPEG compression. Commonly, especially on a Windows platform, such files are often stored using the PCT extension as well.
More information about the PICT file format
| File extension | .pict |
| File category | Raster image |
| Associated programs | ACD Systems Canvas 15 ACD Systems ACDSee 17 Adobe Photoshop CC Adobe Photoshop Elements 12 Adobe Fireworks CCExternal Link Adobe After Effects CC CocoModX CorelDRAW Graphics Suite X7 Corel PaintShop Pro X7 Lemkesoft GraphicConverter Planamesa NeoOffice |
| Useful links | Learn more about PICT files |
| Developer | Apple |