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Image MIME Reference
FreeHand

Macromedia FreeHand Document

image/x-freehand
VS

Extended Image File Format

image/vnd.xiff
XIFF

A complete technical comparison of Macromedia FreeHand Document and Extended Image File Format — covering compression, feature support, browser compatibility, magic bytes, and when to choose each format.

Equal browser support

Feature Support

Feature FreeHand XIFF
Transparency (Alpha) Yes ✕ No
Animation Support Yes ✕ No
Progressive Loading ✕ No ✕ No
HDR Support ✕ No ✕ No
EXIF Metadata ✕ No ✕ No
ICC Color Profile Yes ✕ No
Macromedia FreeHand Document
image/x-freehand
Extension
.fh.fh4.fh5.fh7.fh8.fh9.fh10.fh11.ft11
Container Proprietary Binary (Aldus Graphic Document)
Compression Uncompressed / Deflate (in later versions)
Algorithm
NoneDeflate (Optional in later versions)
Color Depth Vector Data (RGB/CMYK)
Developed by Altsys / Aldus / Macromedia
Released 1988
Magic Bytes
41 47 44 31 to 41 47 44 34
Full FreeHand reference →
Extended Image File Format
image/vnd.xiff
Extension
.xif
Container TIFF-based Proprietary Container
Compression CCITT Group 3 / Group 4 / LZW / Uncompressed
Algorithm
CCITT Group 4LZWNone
Color Depth 1-bit (Monochrome), 8-bit (Grayscale), 24-bit (RGB)
Developed by Keyfile Corporation
Released 1994
Magic Bytes
49 49 2A 00 or 4D 4D 00 2A
Full XIFF reference →

Browser Support Comparison

Browser FreeHand XIFF
Chrome Chrome
✕ ✕
Firefox Firefox
✕ ✕
Safari Safari
✕ ✕
Edge Edge
✕ ✕
IE IE (Legacy)
✕ ✕
FreeHand

FreeHand Strengths

  • Historically one of the most powerful and intuitive vector editors on the market, praised for multi-page support long before Adobe Illustrator implemented it
  • Files are generally compact and self-contained
Limitations
  • Completely abandoned proprietary format; Adobe actively blocked native import in modern versions of Illustrator
  • No support in modern web browsers; must be converted to SVG
  • Versioning fragmentation means parsers must account for wildly different binary structures depending on the specific .fhX extension used
XIFF

XIFF Strengths

  • Pioneered early enterprise document workflow integration by binding administrative routing data directly to the document image file
  • Leveraged efficient fax compression standards to keep storage requirements low on 1990s server infrastructure
Limitations
  • Completely proprietary and obsolete; Keyfile Corporation's software ecosystem no longer exists
  • Causes widespread MIME type identification conflicts due to sharing the exact same binary header signature as standard TIFF files
  • Zero support in modern operating systems or web browsers

When to choose which format

FreeHand
Use FreeHand when…
  • Legacy Graphic Design Portfolios
  • Historical Desktop Publishing Archival
  • Old Corporate Logo Vectors
XIFF
Use XIFF when…
  • Keyfile Enterprise Document Management
  • Legacy Corporate Workflow Archival
  • Scanned Multi-page Document Routing

More comparisons

FreeHand vs ACES → XIFF vs ACES → FreeHand vs APNG → XIFF vs APNG → FreeHand vs AVCI → XIFF vs AVCI → FreeHand vs AVCS → XIFF vs AVCS → FreeHand vs AVIF → XIFF vs AVIF → All comparisons →
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