Platform-Limited File Formats

In addition to the platform-independent file formats I've just described, many file formats exist on a few platforms, but not all of them. These formats are typically tied to one or two applications that have been ported across two or three OSs. The result can be a reasonable degree of cross-platform utility if you happen to have supported OSs. I also include in this category file formats that are widely, if imperfectly, supported by programs other than those that originally used them.

In some cases the line between a platform-independent and a platform-limited file format can be a tricky one to draw. For example, both the zip file archive format and the Rich Text Format (RTF) word processor format can be used on ...

Get The Multi-Boot Configuration Handbook now with the O’Reilly learning platform.

O’Reilly members experience books, live events, courses curated by job role, and more from O’Reilly and nearly 200 top publishers.