and the Tag Image File Format (TIFF). They are described in detail in the following sections. Windows Bitmap (BMP) Windows bitmap files are stored in a device-independent bitmap format that allows the Windows operating system to display the image on any type of display device. The phrase "device independent" means that the Downloaded from Digital Engineering Library @ McGraw-Hill (www.digitalengineeringlibrary.com) Copyright © 2004 The McGraw-Hill Companies. All rights reserved. Any use is subject to the Terms of Use as given at the website. Protocols Protocols bitmap specifies pixel color in a format that is independent of the method used by a display device to represent color. The default filename exten- sion of a Windows file is BMP. The Joint Photographic Experts Group (JPEG) As we mentioned earlier, JPEG is a standard designed to control image compression. The acronym stands for Joint Photographic Experts Group, the original name of the international body that created the standard. Made up of both technologists and artists, the JPEG commit- tee created a highly complete and flexible standard that compresses both full-color and gray-scale images. It is effective when used with pho- tographs, artwork, and medical images, and works less effectively on text and line drawings. JPEG is designed for the compression of still images, although there is a related standard (still in draft at the time of this writing) called Motion JPEG 2000 (MJP2). MJP2 is not really a formal standard, although various vendors and developers have tried to formalize it; MPEG, discussed later, is designed for the compression of moving images such as multimedia, movies, and real-time diagnostic images. However, according to the MJP2 committee, MJP2 will be the compression technology of choice for medical imaging, security systems, and digital cameras. JPEG is considered to be a "lossy" solution, meaning that once the original image has been compressed, the decompressed image loses a slight degree of integrity when it is viewed. There are, 