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XBM File - What is an .xbm file and how do I open it?
Learn about .XBM files and view a list of programs that open them.
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Overview
What is an XBM file? An XBM file is a bitmap image used by the X Window System (X11), a GUI used to manage networked client-server computers. It contains C code that defines the image's appearance. Primarily, XBM files contain cursor and icon images.
More Information XBM file open in XnViewMP Developers creating C programs for the X Window System can embed XBM, or X BitMap, images into those programs. Each XBM image consists of plain text C code that looks something like the following: #define 2x2_width 16 #define 2x2_height 16 static char 2x2_bits[] = { 0xff, 0xff, 0xff, 0xff, 0x33, 0x33, 0x33, 0x33, 0xff, 0xff, 0xff, 0xff, 0x33, 0x33, 0x33, 0x33, 0xff, 0xff, 0xff, 0xff, 0x33, 0x33, 0x33, 0x33, 0xff, 0xff, 0xff, 0xff, 0x33, 0x33, 0x33, 0x33}; When displayed in a program or opened in an image viewer, an XBM file appears as a monochrome image. The image's appearance is defined by its width and height parameters as well as its static array of pixel values. NOTE: The .XPM format eventually replaced the XBM format.
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NEW: Open your .XBM file online with File Helper . View Online
What is an XBM file?
An XBM file is a bitmap image used by the X Window System (X11), a GUI used to manage networked client-server computers. It contains C code that defines the image's appearance. Primarily, XBM files contain cursor and icon images.
More Information
XBM file open in XnViewMP
Developers creating C programs for the X Window System can embed XBM, or X BitMap, images into those programs. Each XBM image consists of plain text C code that looks something like the following:
#define 2x2_width 16 #define 2x2_height 16 static char 2x2_bits[] = { 0xff, 0xff, 0xff, 0xff, 0x33, 0x33, 0x33, 0x33, 0xff, 0xff, 0xff, 0xff, 0x33, 0x33, 0x33, 0x33, 0xff, 0xff, 0xff, 0xff, 0x33, 0x33, 0x33, 0x33, 0xff, 0xff, 0xff, 0xff, 0x33, 0x33, 0x33, 0x33};
When displayed in a program or opened in an image viewer, an XBM file appears as a monochrome image. The image's appearance is defined by its width and height parameters as well as its static array of pixel values.
NOTE: The .XPM format eventually replaced the XBM format.
How to open an XBM file
You can open an XBM file with many image viewers and editors, including XnViewMP (multiplatform), IrfanView (Windows), ImageMagick (multiplatform), and GIMP (multiplatform), and Tom's Editor (Web).
You can also open an XBM file with Microsoft Notepad (Windows), Apple TextEdit (Mac), or any other text editor, to view the C code the file contains.
How to convert an XBM file
You can use ImageMagick , GIMP , Tom's Editor, or XnViewMP to convert XBM images to other image formats. For example, XnViewMP can convert XBM files to the following formats (and many others):
Programs that open XBM files
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Windows
File Viewer Plus
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XnViewMP
Free
IrfanView
Free
ImageMagick
Free
GIMP
Free
Any text editor
Mac
XnViewMP
Free
ImageMagick
Free
GIMP
Free
Any text editor
Linux
XnViewMP
Free
ImageMagick
Free
GIMP
Free
Any text editor
Web
FileHelper.com
Free
Tom's Editor
Free
Android
File Viewer for Android
Free +
Category: Raster Image Files
Updated: January 9, 2023