PCT Converter

PCT (also known as PICT) is a metafile graphics format originally developed by Apple Computer and introduced alongside the original Macintosh in January 1984. PCT files can contain both vector drawing commands and raster bitmap data, encoded as a sequence of QuickDraw drawing operations — the same graphics primitives used by the Macintosh operating system for all on-screen rendering. The format evolved through two major versions: PICT 1, which recorded basic QuickDraw operations (lines, rectangles, ovals, text, 1-bit bitmaps) in a compact format suitable for the original Macintosh's limited memory, and PICT 2, introduced with Color QuickDraw in 1987, which extended the format to support 24-bit color, multiple color spaces, and embedded JPEG-compressed data. PCT files begin with a 512-byte header (originally used for resource fork information), followed by the picture size, bounding rectangle, and a sequence of opcodes that define the drawing operations. During the Macintosh's commercial ascendancy, PICT was the universal graphics interchange format on Mac OS — the system clipboard used PICT for all graphical copy/paste operations, and most Mac applications could import and export the format. One advantage is the hybrid vector/raster nature: PCT files from the QuickDraw era preserve both scalable drawing commands and pixel data in a single format, enabling resolution-independent output for the vector portions. PICT's historical significance as the native Mac graphics format throughout the classic Mac OS era (1984-2001) provides another dimension. PCT files remain readable by Preview) on macOS, ImageMagick, XnView, LibreOffice, and GIMP.