BMP stands for Bit-Mapped graphics.

The Bitmap file format is used for bitmap graphics on the Windows platform only. Unlike other file formats, which store image data from top to bottom and pixels in red/green/blue order, the BMP format stores image data from bottom to top and pixels in blue/green/red order. This means that if memory is tight, BMP graphics will sometimes appear drawn from bottom to top.

Compression of BMP files is not supported, so they are usually very large. Generally used for files that need to be modified repeatedly. When saving a file to the BMP format, add the ".bmp " file extension to the end of its file name.

Windows bitmap files are stored in a device-independent bitmap (DIB) format that allows Windows to display the bitmap on any type of display device. The term "device independent" means that the bitmap specifies pixel color in a form independent of the method used by a display to represent color.

It is important to know that the rows of a DIB are stored upside down. That means that the uppest row which appears on the screen actually is the lowest row stored in the bitmap, a short example:

The 20 Windows-Reserved Colors

The table contains a list of the 20 colors that Windows reserves in the system palette to paint buttons, icons, etc. A system palette is only used in the 256-colors display mode so, of course, this table only applies for this mode. The index statement is given as a decimal value, the value statement is the hexadecimal RGB-value of the color (the first two digits represent the red value, the third and fourth digit the green value and the fifth and sixth digit represent the blue value).

Click here to see BMP's Color Table

Click here to see BMP's Maximum Resolution