Actually .GIF format is VERY good at compression too. Particularly for files with just a couple of colors in them. GIF is far superior to showing schematics becasue the conversion from bitmap to GIF is not a lossy compression. When a GIF is expanded you will see the same as the original bitmap.

JPG on the other hand is a lossy compression and if you compress a schematic with .JPG format you can end up with something that looks a little "fuzzy". With lossy compression it is not possible to re-display the original bit map. Some programs that create JPG files, such as Corel PhotoPaint 10, allow for the degree of compression in the output JPG file to be selected. Via a preview window one is able to trade off compression achieved with the amount of fuzziness you are willing to live with.

If you look at the schematic I posted in this recent thread you can see what I mean by a fuzzy image. The original screen capture was of course pixel clear in Orcad.

Michael Karas