Talk:Electronic File Formats

There should probably be an agreed definition of an electronic file format to aid in selecting content and automating reasoning based on format IDs etc (if we are not all talking about the same things then we will not be able to generalise from the results of our work).

What is an Electronic File format?

Options:

1) a knowable, repeatable set of rules for structuring content in a computer file

2) a documented standard way of structuring computer files

3) the options that appear in the save-as drop-down menus in software applications

4) a file extension

5) a mime type

6) ???

preceeding question was written by Euanc.


 * For the moment, I can make this very simple. An Electronic File Format is a file format that can only be accessed through the use of electrical charge. The rest of what you're discussing is a matter of hierarchy below the "Electronic File Format" heading, which will definitely be sticky and hard to keep on top of, but can be done. --Jason Scott (talk) 06:15, 1 November 2012 (UTC)


 * If an electronic file format is an "electronic" file format, then what is a file format? --Euanc (talk) 06:27, 1 November 2012 (UTC)


 * See the article about "File Formats"; it uses that term in a more general way than it is normally used. --Zzo38 (talk) 08:12, 19 January 2020 (UTC)


 * My own idea is that it is like 1 and 2. The others are designations of the formats rather than the formats itself. --Zzo38 (talk) 08:09, 19 January 2020 (UTC)

ASN.1
Is it a file format and if so, where should it go? Crusbridge
 * Hmm, I'd say it's a Domain Specific Language. I propose we add Domain Specific Language under Languages. Ideas, anyone? --Darkstar (talk) 03:15, 8 November 2012 (UTC)

Remaining uncategorized categories
I'm not sure where Resource Fork belongs; it's a platform-specific Mac thing, but is there some more general category it can be put in? It's kind of related to filesystems, so does it belong somewhere in that hierarchy? As for Binary Data, those can probably be moved to the specific category they belong in based on their function, like, is Multiplan a spreadsheet or something? Dan Tobias (talk) 14:17, 26 November 2012 (UTC)

I also want to know where Magic Set Editor and TeXnicard file formats belong. These are programs used for making cards for card games such as Magic: the Gathering and others. Both programs can create a database of cards, export them to various formats, render the cards, and make statistics based on the cards, although their capabilities otherwise differ in many ways, and their file formats are also very different (and incompatible with each other, although it might be possible to use import/export templates in TeXnicard to convert from/to MSE format). --Zzo38 (talk) 08:09, 19 January 2020 (UTC)
 * Game data files maybe? Dan Tobias (talk) 14:18, 19 January 2020 (UTC)
 * Maybe, although Game data files seems to be for computer games? --Zzo38 (talk) 18:53, 19 January 2020 (UTC)
 * There could be a subsection on that page for card games. The Saved Games page (another game-related category) has a board/card game section that includes bridge and chess. Dan Tobias (talk) 20:06, 19 January 2020 (UTC)