Conversion (computer science)

In computer science, conversion refers to the transfer of a file from one file format to another using a file converter . In principle there are three options:

Lossless conversion

No information is lost during the conversion, the new file contains all information that was present in the original.

For example when converting a raster image from TIFF to PNG .

Lossy Conversion

It occurs when the new file no longer contains all of the information that was present in the original. This happens when the target format compresses the data in a lossy manner or is not able to display all of the information of the original.

For example, converting an audio file from WAV to MP3 is lossy. The reverse process, from MP3 to WAV, is lossless. The conversion of a color image into a grayscale image is also lossy (and vice versa). Or conversion of HTML into a text file: Here all formatting is lost.

Meaningful conversion

With this type of conversion, data is converted “in accordance with the spirit ”, ie while retaining the content that is considered essential. This can be done with or without loss of information; the file can also be enriched with information from additional sources during the conversion.

For example converting a table from Microsoft Excel XLS to CSV or vice versa. The conversion of an order from EDIFACT to IDoc or vice versa.

See also

• Transcoding
• Message mapping
• Electronic data interchange
• Converter (EDI)

literature

• Gregor Büchel: Practical IT. An introduction: textbook and workbook with blackboard pictures, Springer Fachmedien, Wiesbaden 2012, ISBN 978-3-8348-1874-4 .
• Heinrich Müller, Frank Weichert: preliminary course in computer science. The introduction to computer science studies, 4th edition, Springer Fachmedien, Wiesbaden 2015, ISBN 978-3-658-08101-0 .

Web links

• Creating a Web-Based Converter for Virtual Machines Using Web Services (accessed July 27, 2018)
• Computer systems lecture (accessed July 27, 2018)
• Basics of Computer Science (accessed on July 27, 2018)
• Introduction to Computer Science (accessed July 27, 2018)
• Convert audio and video files (accessed July 27, 2018)

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Bernward Mütterlein: Manual for programming with LabVIEW. 2nd edition, Spektrum Akademischer Verlag, Heidelberg 2009, ISBN 978-3-8274-2337-5 , pp. 209-210.
2. ↑ Björn Schüßler, Roman Seer (ed.): The data access of the financial administration in the context of the (digital) external audit. Peter Lang Internationaler Verlag der Wissenschaften, Frankfurt 2010, ISBN 978-3-631-60994-1 , p. 96.