Metafiles - save disk space?

[Guest]

The question is this. I put a 70k jpeg picture into one of my Access forms
and it causes my project file size to grow by 7meg. I have read on the Access
help files that if you use a metafile it will save a lot of disk space, the
reason being that there is very little detail information attached to
metafiles. If this is true would you have to save the picture date from raw
format straight to metafile format? Would the picture quality be any good?
What would be the advantages and disadvantages of doing this? I will be
putting a lot of pictures in my Access project what will be the best file
format to use?

Dennis B

 

[Guest]

Hi,

Store the location of the jpeg file in a Hyperlink field. You'll be glad
that you did.

 

[Guest]

Hi Jerry,

I know what your saying, but that still does not answer any of the questions
I’ve asked. I would like to know the answers to the questions I asked.

Thanks

 

[Stephen Lebans]

The answer is no. Int he context of your original post, A WMF will simply be
a wrapper around a full size uncompressed Bitmap of the original Image.

For all of the existing apps that can function as an OLE Image server in
Access, a full size non compressed Bitmap will be inserted into the OLE
field. Additionally, a MetafilePict(WMF), again containing a full size
uncompressed Bitmap will also be insterted as a Preview.

If you have to insert as OLE then the smallest possible file size would be
obtained by inserting a Bitmap via MS Paint. In this way, the single
Bitmap(DIB) is used as well for the Preview image data. To be technically
accurate you could also try to find an OLE Server app(Adobe Photoshop) that
could insert the original Image as a Static MetafilePict(WMF). I know its
possible(I have a sample here) but i have not found an App yet that inserts
a Static DIB.

The next version of Office fixes this issue once and for all as it will
allow images to be inserted and compressed.

Finally, if you can live without OLE, simply insert the compressed JPEG into
a Long Binary field. See:
http://www.lebans.com/loadsavejpeg.htm
A97LoadSaveJpeg.zip contains a database demonstrating how to use the Intel
Jpeg library with Access. Jpeg files are stored in their original compressed
state within a Binary OLE avoiding the Ole object "bloat" issue. Here is the
A2K version: A2KLoadSaveJpeg.zip

A standard Image control is used to display the contents of the field
containing the Jpeg file. The Intel DLL is used to load the contents of the
field directly into memory bypassing the need to create a temporary disk
file.

The contents of the Image control, containing any supported source Image
format, can be saved to disk as a Jpeg file.

Very large Jpeg files that could not be loaded into the standard Access
Image control directly can now be loaded through the Intel Jpeg library.

Version 1.9

Fixed Sample Report. Added A2K version.

Version 1.2

Fixed File Dialogs. Added control to resize loaded Jpegs. Added sample
Report. Starting to clean up the code!

Version 1.1

Any Image file that can be loaded into the standard Image control can now be
saved to a disk Jpeg file. Version 1.0 was restricted to Bitmap files.

Version 1.0
--

HTH
Stephen Lebans
http://www.lebans.com
Access Code, Tips and Tricks
Please respond only to the newsgroups so everyone can benefit.

 

[eseitomer]

Hey Stephen,
Thanks for the bloat image example. I tried to get an updated library
or terms of use through the intel website, but they took the page you
referenced down. Do you have a new site that you are keeping seeing
that lebans.com was last modified in March of last year? Just wondering

 

[Stephen Lebans]

That "date modified" only applies to the Home page. I don't bother changing
it each time I add/modify a solution on my site. Check the Waht's New
section to get absolute update info.
--

HTH
Stephen Lebans
http://www.lebans.com
Access Code, Tips and Tricks
Please respond only to the newsgroups so everyone can benefit.