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Xfig at a glance
Xfig
Xfig began in 1985 and accumulated decades of maintenance and export tooling, which made the .fig format a durable bridge between interactive diagram editing on Unix systems and downstream conversion to PostScript, PDF, and other outputs.
WMF at a glance
WMF
The original WMF specification was published in the Windows 3.1 SDK documentation in 1992. Aldus Corporation independently added a 'placeable' header for device independence, which Microsoft later incorporated in Windows 2000. The format specification was republished in 2006 under the Microsoft Open Specification Promise.
Format comparison
| Feature | Xfig | WMF |
|---|---|---|
| File type | Vector | Vector |
| Extensions |
|
|
| MIME type |
|
|
| Compression / quality | scalable | scalable |
| File size characteristics | small | small |
| Compatibility | moderate | moderate |
| Editability | high | high |
| Created year | 1985 | 1990 |
| Inventor | Supoj Sutanthavibul | Microsoft Corporation |
| Status | legacy | legacy |
| Transparency | Not supported | Not supported |
| Animation | Not supported | Not supported |
| Primary use cases |
|
|
| Common software |
|
|
| Archival suitability | good | good |
| Metadata handling | moderate | moderate |
| Delivery profile | strong | strong |
| Workflow fit | design | design |
| Layer support | Not supported | Not supported |
| Vector scaling | Supported | Supported |
| Structured data | Supported | Not supported |
When to use each format
When to use Xfig
- illustration
- diagramming
- brand asset delivery
- Preserves object-level editability for technical diagrams.
When to use WMF
- illustration
- diagramming
- brand asset delivery
- Universal recognition in Windows applications.
FAQs
Why convert Xfig to WMF?
Choose WMF as target when preserving compatibility with older Windows document workflows, embedded legacy graphics, or archive recovery tasks where that classic metafile format is still expected.
What changes when converting Xfig to WMF?
Convert to WMF when preserving compatibility with older Windows document workflows, embedded legacy graphics, or archive recovery tasks where that classic metafile format is still expected. It is useful as a bridge for historical Office-era vector assets. For contemporary vector exchange, EMF, SVG, or PDF are usually more practical.
What should I review after converting Xfig to WMF?
After conversion, review these destination checks: Open converted output in Microsoft Office and verify behavior on real samples; Compare output against the expected scalable quality profile; 16-bit format with limited precision.
How can I keep quality stable in Xfig to WMF conversion?
Run representative samples, keep settings deterministic, and monitor these risks: Not truly device-independent without placeable header; 16-bit format with limited precision; Validate destination compatibility before large-batch conversion.