Tutorials » •
Currently, web browsers can't correct the colors of the images you see on the Web. The color and brightness of all images will look different on different computer systems. Consider this: If your Web browser could talk to your computer and read its gamma, and if it could send an image that would carry color profiles and gamma information, if this were possible, you would see much better colors. (...with the exception of a bad monitor). It's very easy to do this, but unfortunately, it's not possible today.
To achieve accurate colors, we need the following:
1. First, the image has to carry chromaticity and gamma information. In spite of the fact that web designers can now embed color profiles in all graphics, the problem is that the current web graphic file formats (gif and jpeg) don't have the capability to carry this information. There is hope for the future. New and improved file formats will be able to carry this color information. In addition to the traditional JPEG format, a new graphic file format, the JPEG 2000, is currently under development and will render better pictures, provide more compression options, and enable full ICC color profiles. Also, the PNG Portable Network Graphics) file format is one of the most promising solutions.
2. Next, the software, the web browser, needs to be able to read this information before it can deliver it to the viewer's computer. This capability must be built into the browser or added as a plug-in. As of 2002 only Microsoft Explorer (for Macintosh) has the capability to handle profiles that are embedded in web graphics.
Another possibility is a graphics format called PNG (Portable Network Graphics). PNG (pronounced ping) can store gamma and chromaticity data for improved color matching and is designed to work on all computer systems and Web browsers. More than three dozen graphic development tools support PNG, and a plug-in is available for browsers.
The issue of a color standard is also addressed by the International Color Consortium. Other groups, such as those who are developing new graphic formats which store gamma information, are also evaluating the idea of a color standard. One of the recommended standards is the sRGB color space. This proposed standard has provoked considerable debate. Some say “Keep everything in sRGB and he color will be ‘good enough’ for consumers.” In truth, it was never designed as a solution to color accuracy on the web. Furthermore, sRGB is a very limited color space which represents the “average” PC monitor — a $300 VGA monitor at best. Today's monitors offer far greater capabilities.
Finally, in the more distant future, we will have superior systems which will bring us Internet access and traditional television into the same "TV". At the present time, even if the technology were complete, there is not enough bandwidth to make this possible.
