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Image MIME Reference
PTI

PTI Image (Personal/Vanity Tree)

image/prs.pti
VS

RealNetworks RealFlash

image/vnd.rn-realflash
RealFlash

A complete technical comparison of PTI Image (Personal/Vanity Tree) and RealNetworks RealFlash — covering compression, feature support, browser compatibility, magic bytes, and when to choose each format.

Equal browser support

Feature Support

Feature PTI RealFlash
Transparency (Alpha) ✕ No Yes
Animation Support ✕ No Yes
Progressive Loading ✕ No Yes
HDR Support ✕ No ✕ No
EXIF Metadata ✕ No ✕ No
ICC Color Profile ✕ No ✕ No
PTI Image (Personal/Vanity Tree)
image/prs.pti
Extension
.pti
Container Proprietary
Compression Unknown / Proprietary
Algorithm
Unknown
Color Depth Unknown
Developed by Jürn Laun
Released 1999
Magic Bytes
Unknown
Full PTI reference →
RealNetworks RealFlash
image/vnd.rn-realflash
Extension
Container RealMedia / SWF
Compression Vector (Flash) / RealAudio Compression
Algorithm
Macromedia Vector CompressionDeflate (Zlib)
Color Depth 8-bit, 24-bit, 32-bit
Developed by RealNetworks & Macromedia
Released 1997
Magic Bytes
46 57 53 (FWS - Standard Flash) or 2E 52 4D 46 (.RMF - RealMedia Container)
Full RealFlash reference →

Browser Support Comparison

Browser PTI RealFlash
Chrome Chrome
✕ ✕
Firefox Firefox
✕ ✕
Safari Safari
✕ ✕
Edge Edge
✕ ✕
IE IE (Legacy)
✕ ✕
PTI

PTI Strengths

  • Provided a registered MIME type namespace for a specific application's proprietary image format without conflicting with standard web types
Limitations
  • Completely undocumented and unsupported in modern ecosystems
  • Zero web browser compatibility
  • Falls into the 'vanity' tree, making it irrelevant for standard cross-platform data exchange
RealFlash

RealFlash Strengths

  • Allowed complex, interactive vector animations to stream smoothly over 28.8k dial-up modems
  • Perfectly synchronized streaming audio with timeline-based animations, which was revolutionary in 1997
Limitations
  • Heavily reliant on proprietary browser plugins (RealPlayer), which were notoriously bloated
  • Completely obsolete and unsupported on the modern web
  • Tightly coupled server-client architecture required expensive RealServer licenses to host

When to choose which format

PTI
Use PTI when…
  • Legacy Application Specific Workflows
  • Proprietary Image Storage
RealFlash
Use RealFlash when…
  • Historical Dial-up Web Animation
  • Late-1990s Interactive Music Videos
  • Streaming Vector Graphics

More comparisons

PTI vs ACES → RealFlash vs ACES → PTI vs APNG → RealFlash vs APNG → PTI vs AVCI → RealFlash vs AVCI → PTI vs AVCS → RealFlash vs AVCS → PTI vs AVIF → RealFlash vs AVIF → All comparisons →
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