File Types
Musink supports several types of file to publish to. Each have their own advantages and disadvantages.
Comparison
| XPS | PNG | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Opens with | Native in Windows 8 or later, else Adobe Acrobat | Native in Windows Vista/7/8 only | Native in all operating systems |
| Suitable for web | No | No | Yes |
| File size | Smaller | Medium | Larger |
| Time to open | Slower | Faster | Medium |
| Resolution | Infinite | Infinite | 96dpi |
| Can Edit with | Adobe Illustrator, Inkscape | Can't Edit | Any Image Editor |
| Notes | May have very minor preview errors on some screens | Some third party tools can convert to SVG format | One page per file |
PDF is a well known document file type. PDF files exported by Musink are reasonably compact, and can be opened on any computer with an up-to-date version of Adobe Acrobat (or another PDF viewer) (including Mac and Linux computers). PDF files take slightly longer to create than XPS documents, and may have very minor (<1 pixel) preview errors on some screens when viewing zoomed out. PDF documents often take longer to open than XPS documents. If you are sending your work to another computer for someone else to view or print, PDF is recommended. PDF documents exported by Musink have an infinite resolution (are vectors).
XPS
XPS is a Microsoft document format. XPS documents can be opened on Windows Vista, Windows 7, and Windows 8, without requiring any additional software to be installed. Third-party software is available for other operating systems, and can convert XPS to SVG files for editing or embedding in websites. XPS documents are generally larger than PDF documents, but may open much faster. XPS documents exported by Musink have an infinite resolution (are vectors). If you wish to print or view your document from Windows Vista, Windows 7, or Windows 8, the XPS format is recommended. If you want to use a third party tool to convert your score into an SVG file, choose XPS. Otherwise, PDF should be preferred.
PNG (Images)
PNG is a bitmap (image) format commonly used on the web. Use PNG images when you wish to place your work on the internet, or place in another file (e.g. a Microsoft Word document). You can edit PNG images in image editors, such as Microsoft Paint.
PNG images do not allow multiple pages per file (unlike PDF and XPS documents). Musink saves each published page to a unique PNG image, and places them in a Zipped folder. To open a zipped folder in Windows:
- Find the file in Windows Explorer (a.k.a. “My Computer”)
- Right click the file
- Select “Extract All” to unzip the file
- Follow the prompts
- Extracted files may include some “.XML” files. These can safely be ignored or deleted once the folder has been unzipped.