Help:Document types

Preferred and allowed document types

Some document types are preferred over others. The reasons for the choice for a specific type are

• sustainability of the type, in other words if the document will still be readable over a long period of time.
• usability in the wikibase, in other words if the software can handle and show it.

Not all document types are allowed. This can be because of a high risk it could damage the system, or it is not usable within the software.

Where possible, files should be converted to the preferred format before uploading, provided this can be done without loss of quality or information.

Document files

Document files can be 'static' (non-editable without specialist software) or 'editable'. Only use editable file formats if there is a need for users to edit the document (for example, a cue list template).

For static documents, PDFs are preferred, as they accurately preserve page layouts, typography and so on. For editable files, open standards are preferred, as they are more likely to be readable in future.

Preferred static file type
.pdf type A (this PDF variant is designed for archival use)
Allowed  file type
.pdf

Preferred editable file type
.odt (Open Document Text, an Open Document Format type, standardised as ISO 26300)
.txt (plain text file - may also be used to contain structured content such as XML)
Allowed file types
.docx (Microsoft word - .doc files are obsolescent and should be converted to .docx or (preferably) to .odt) 
.ps (Adobe Post script)

Images

Preferred file type 
.tiff
.jpg
.jpeg
Allowed  file type
.png
.gif
.bmp

Vector artwork

Preferred type
.svg

Video

Video file formats involve three parts:

• the video codec (a codec is the definition of how the video is encoded and decoded)
• the audio codec
• the container format, that holds the video and audio data, and metadata about the video.

Preferred video codec
For optimum quality: FFV1
For good quality and much smaller file sizes: H.264 or H.265

Preferred audio codec
For optimum quality: FLAC, WAV/PCM
For good quality and much smaller file sizes: AAC

Preferred container type
.mp4
Allowed  container type
.mkv (container files that support unlimited picture, audio, and subtitle tracks)
.avi

3D

Preferred file type
At the moment, there is not a sustainable file format for 3D objects
Allowed  file type
.gltf (standard file format for three-dimensional scenes and models)
.glb a standardized file format used to share 3D data
.skp the native file format of the design program SketchUp

Tables

Preferred file type 
None, tables should only be added as table if the information needs to be interactive, filtered, ...
Allowed  file type
.ods (OpenDocument Spreadsheet)
.xlsx (Microsoft Excel - .xls files are obsolescent and should be converted to .xlsx or (preferably) to .ods)

Presentations

Preferred file type
None, presentations should only be added as presentation if the information needs to be interactive, otherwise they should be stored as pdf-A
Allowed  file type
.pptx (Microsoft Powerpoint - .ppt files are obsolescent and should be converted to .pptx or (preferably) to .odp)

Other

• some sector specific files are not usable in the software, for exaple 3D images, showfiles or visualisation software files.
• when these files are not transferable to a preferred document type, they can be added in a zip file

Preferred file type
none
Allowed  file type 
.zip