What is Lossy compression?
'''Lossy compression''' is a form of [[data compression]] where parts of the [[Information|data]] are lost in the [[process]].<ref>Khalid Sayood, ''Lossless Compression Handbook'' (Amsterdam; Boston: Academic Press, 2003), p. xix</ref> When a compressed data is returned to normal some data is lost. Lossy compression is used to greatly reduce the size of a [[computer file]] when it is stored, handled, or transmitted. As an example, [[JPEG]] is a lossy compression format.<ref name=Bauer>Peter Bauer, ''Using Adobe Illustrator 10'' (Indianapolis, IN; Great Britain: Que, 2002), p. 43</ref> [[GIF]] and [[PNG]] are [[lossless compression]] [[system]]s.<ref name=Bauer/> Other lossy compression systems are [[MP3]] for [[sound]] files and [[WMV]] for [[video]]. If a file were to be compressed too much, it would cause the file to be noticeably lower in quality. == References == {{reflist}} [[Category:Data structures]] [[Category:Computer file formats]] [[Category:Data compression]] {{tech-stub}}