Compression
Compression is used to decrease the size of files: this saves disk space, website bandwidth, and increases download speed. For these reasons, it is widely used on the internet.
There are two types of compression, lossy and lossless:
Lossy compression
- Used for images and music.
- Removes data from the original file.
- A small lack of quality.
- The original file cannot be restored.
- Lossy file formats include JPEG, MP3 and MP4.
Lossless compression
- No loss of data.
- Condenses information, instead of discarding it.
- Looks/sounds identical to the original file.
- Lossless file formats include PNG, FLAC, and ZIP.