Game Files stored as Portable Network Graphics

[CJC]

So this is a hair-brained idea I just had, and it doesn't particularly apply to Zelda Classic so I thought I'd put it in general discussion.


Since any image file is just a collection of data, and since you can embed information beneath an image (We've seen this in the recording of the date on the image by digital cameras), I wonder if it would be possible to convert a game file (such as a .qst) into a PNG and back again.



Why would anybody want to do that?
1.) Well, to see if they could!
2.) Given the extensive presence of internet social media, having the ability to share a quest simply by uploading a picture would be... interesting.




I don't think we can actually do something like this, but I thought I'd bring it up and see what people think. It'd be essentially like a QR code.

[Nightmare]

Probably not feasible. While data can be manipulated any way people like, the file format probably wouldn't support it sad to say.

-James

[Gleeok]

The compression would probably be better than a packfile format I suppose... I might give it a try if I get bored enough.

[CJC]

Was discussing it in the chatroom and apparently you can hide RAR files beneath a JPEG (or any other file type, probably). I thought I'd heard of this somewhere!


Sorry, brain mush syndrome is a common affliction of college students.

[SUCCESSOR]

Was discussing it in the chatroom and apparently you can hide RAR files beneath a JPEG (or any other file type, probably). I thought I'd heard of this somewhere!


Sorry, brain mush syndrome is a common affliction of college students.

Are you talking about simply combining files? This is an old trick people have used for ages to get around file type limitations. Like members of 4chan would combine zip files with jpegs and upload them. All you had to do was open it with an zip program to access the files or change the extension from jpg to zip. I am pretty sure 4chan has blocked this and I imagine a lot of social media sites have too.

I remember hearing about someone combining a certain type of illegal photos to mp3s of popular songs and sharing them on p2p networks so thousands of others were hosting his illicit porn stash for him.

[CJC]

Well I was actually picturing something more along the lines of a barcode: a specifically formatted image that represents a series of bits and can be converted into a quest file. When I mentioned such in chat, the file combination was suggested as an alternative and the discussion veered in that direction. I thought I'd mention it here so that the same veer would not occur, and to explain that something close to my idea already exists.

Still, it's actually much less exciting a prospect than I initially imagined.

[Gleeok]

Here you go: 1st.qst loaded and saved as a .png. Enjoy.



I think it's one of those "you need to stare at it for a while to see the sailboat" but I don't see anything. :\

[Squint hard at it...there's a feature in the image called Goatse]

[Zim]

I used to save my .qst files as .modi (which don't even have applicability, yet..) files to bypass the recognized ban of .qst files by microsnatch, then put back the title.

It would be tricky to overlay an actual picture on the file itself, I believe that the picture of the png would ultimately look just as valid as the Triforce, nonetheless.

[Chris Miller]

@Gleeok : I won't even repeat what I saw in that image. Needless to say, posting such...gratuitous pornography is against the Terms of Service. I'm afraid I have to ban you.

[Gleeok]

Nintendo is just a front for an international kiddie porn ring! :O