Image MIME Reference
Compressed-XCF
Compressed GIMP XCF Image
image/x-compressed-xcf
VS
Tencent TAP Image
image/vnd.tencent.tap
Tencent-TAP
A complete technical comparison of Compressed GIMP XCF Image and Tencent TAP Image — covering compression, feature support, browser compatibility, magic bytes, and when to choose each format.
Equal browser support
Feature Support
| Feature | Compressed-XCF | Tencent-TAP |
|---|---|---|
| Transparency (Alpha) | Yes | ✕ No |
| Animation Support | Yes | ✕ No |
| Progressive Loading | ✕ No | ✕ No |
| HDR Support | Yes | ✕ No |
| EXIF Metadata | Yes | ✕ No |
| ICC Color Profile | Yes | ✕ No |
Compressed GIMP XCF Image
image/x-compressed-xcf
Extension
.xcf.gz.xcf.bz2.xcfgz.xcfbz2
Container
Gzip or Bzip2 Archive
Compression
Gzip (Deflate) / Bzip2
Algorithm
DeflateBWT (Burrows-Wheeler)
Color Depth
8-bit (Per Channel), 16-bit (Integer/Floating Point), 32-bit (Integer/Floating Point)
Developed by
The GIMP Team
Released
1995
Magic Bytes
1F 8B 08 (gzip) or 42 5A 68 (bzip2)
Tencent TAP Image
image/vnd.tencent.tap
Extension
.tap
Container
Proprietary Tencent Container
Compression
Unknown (Proprietary)
Algorithm
Unknown
Color Depth
Unknown
Developed by
Tencent (Registered by Ni Hui)
Released
2014
Magic Bytes
Unknown (Proprietary)
Browser Support Comparison
| Browser | Compressed-XCF | Tencent-TAP |
|---|---|---|
Chrome
|
✕ | ✕ |
Firefox
|
✕ | ✕ |
Safari
|
✕ | ✕ |
Edge
|
✕ | ✕ |
IE (Legacy)
|
✕ | ✕ |
Compressed-XCF
Compressed-XCF Strengths
- Drastically reduces the massive file sizes of standard XCF project files, saving significant disk space
- Preserves 100% of the non-destructive editing data (layers, masks, paths, guides) from the GIMP workspace
- Uses standard, universally supported compression algorithms (gzip/bzip2) meaning the archive can be rescued or extracted by standard OS tools if GIMP is unavailable
Limitations
- Increases file load and save times due to the CPU overhead required to compress and decompress the massive pixel arrays
- Impossible for automated tools to parse metadata or dimensions without first unarchiving the payload into memory
- File extension combinations (.xcf.gz) can confuse basic MIME sniffers which stop reading at the .gz extension
Tencent-TAP
Tencent-TAP Strengths
- Officially registered with IANA, ensuring a unique MIME type identifier for internal Tencent network routing and content negotiation
Limitations
- Completely undocumented and closed-source, making it impossible to decode or parse outside of Tencent's software
- Shares its file extension (.tap) with numerous other established legacy formats, leading to frequent automated file misidentification by Node/Python libraries
When to choose which format
Compressed-XCF
Use Compressed-XCF when…
- GIMP Multi-layer Project Archival
- Saving disk space for complex raster edits
- Open-source graphic design workflows
Tencent-TAP
Use Tencent-TAP when…
- Internal Tencent Ecosystem Applications
- Proprietary Mobile or Gaming Assets