Ani-ST vs CUR Format Comparison
Ani-ST
Ani ST Animation Script
image/x-ani-st
VS
Windows Cursor
image/x-win-cursor
CUR
A complete technical comparison of Ani ST Animation Script and Windows Cursor — covering compression, feature support, browser compatibility, magic bytes, and when to choose each format.
CUR wins on browser support
Feature Support
| Feature | Ani-ST | CUR |
|---|---|---|
| Transparency (Alpha) | ✕ No | Yes |
| Animation Support | Yes | ✕ No |
| Progressive Loading | ✕ No | ✕ No |
| HDR Support | ✕ No | ✕ No |
| EXIF Metadata | ✕ No | ✕ No |
| ICC Color Profile | ✕ No | ✕ No |
Ani ST Animation Script
image/x-ani-st
Extension
.scr.str
Container
Text-based Scripting Language
Compression
Uncompressed (Plain Text Script)
Algorithm
None
Color Depth
Atari ST Indexed Palette (up to 16 colors)
Developed by
Jim Kent (Published by Antic Software)
Released
1987
Magic Bytes
Windows Cursor
image/x-win-cursor
Extension
.cur
Container
ICO/CUR Container File
Compression
Uncompressed (BMP) / PNG (Supported in newer versions)
Algorithm
None (DIB / BMP)Deflate (If PNG embedded)
Color Depth
1-bit (Monochrome), 4-bit (16 colors), 8-bit (256 colors), 24-bit (True Color), 32-bit (True Color with Alpha)
Developed by
Microsoft Corporation
Released
1985
Magic Bytes
00 00 02 00
Browser Support Comparison
| Browser | Ani-ST | CUR |
|---|---|---|
Chrome
|
✕ |
✓ 1
|
Firefox
|
✕ |
✓ 1
|
Safari
|
✕ |
✓ 1.2
|
Edge
|
✕ |
✓ 12
|
IE (Legacy)
|
✕ |
✓
|
Ani-ST
Ani-ST Strengths
- Produced incredibly small file sizes by storing rendering instructions (vectors) rather than raw raster frames, making it ideal for floppy disks
- The human-readable script format allowed advanced users to manually edit animation paths and parameters directly in a text editor
Limitations
- Completely obsolete and inherently tied to the hardware limitations of the Atari ST ecosystem
- The generic .scr and .str extensions conflict with dozens of other historical and modern formats, making file identification a major challenge
- Zero native support in modern operating systems, web browsers, or standard graphics software
CUR
CUR Strengths
- Natively supported by Windows for desktop cursor customization
- Widely supported by modern web browsers for custom CSS cursors
- Supports an exact hotspot coordinate, which standard image formats like PNG and JPEG lack
Limitations
- Legacy format that is being gradually replaced by SVG and PNG for web implementations
- Does not support animation (animated cursors use the distinct .ani format)
- The MIME type is highly fragmented across systems (e.g., image/cursor, image/x-win-cursor, application/x-cursor)
When to choose which format
Ani-ST
Use Ani-ST when…
- Atari ST Retrocomputing Archival
- Vector Animation Scripts
- 1980s Computer Graphics History
CUR
Use CUR when…
- Operating System Custom Cursors
- Custom Web Browser Mouse Pointers (via CSS)
- Desktop Application UI
Convert & Edit Online
Free online web tools for Ani-ST and CUR files.
Free Image Resizer
Editor
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Image Metadata Remover
Privacy
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WebP to JPG Converter
Universal
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Compress WebP Images
Optimizer
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