What is a MrSID image format?

MrSID (Multi-resolution Seamless Image Database) is a patented, wavelet-based file format designed to enable portability of massive bit-mapped (raster) images. The format was designed to enable instantaneous viewing and manipulation of large imagery both locally and over networks without sacrificing quality. Created by LizardTech, MrSID works by putting together hundreds of small image tiles into one large seamless image that can be compressed and decompressed with little or no degradation.

One problem previously associated with raster images was the amount of time it took to open very large files. The creators of MrSID overcame this by providing the ability to decompress only the portion of the image you wish to view. You can quickly move from one part of an image to another without having to wait for the entire image to decompress.

Previously, massive raster images required a significant amount of storage. MrSID, however, uses a wavelet technology, first developed at the National Research Laboratories at Los Alamos, to achieve a compression ratio of 20:1 for gray-scale images and 50:1 for full-color images. Now, a satellite photo from space that once required the storage space of 40 CD-ROMs can be compressed with MrSID and stored on one CD-ROM.

The wavelet technology relies on advanced mathematical algorithms both to compress an image and to build the viewer. Since the image remains geometrically accurate after compression, it can be geo-referenced before compression, or overlaid with other referencing data. Because MrSID (.sid) files are a binary MIME type, they can be served over the Internet. MrSID is used in photography, mapping/GIS, document management, medical imaging, and games.

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Last modified on October 29, 2007.

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