Convert classic Atari ST DEGAS and DEGAS Elite picture files (.pi1, .pi2, .pi3, .pc1, .pc2, .pc3) into lossless 32-bit RGBA PNG graphics directly in your browser. 100% private in-browser decoder.
Detailed side-by-side format architecture for PI1 Graphic Raster (.pi1) and Portable Network Graphics (.png). Every conversion executes strictly within isolated browser memory without network transit.
Drag and drop your .pi1 file onto the working surface or use the system file dialog. File magic bytes are verified locally on device.
Select a quality preset (Lossless, Visually Lossless, Balanced, Smallest) or adjust advanced encoding switches in the options panel.
Click CONVERT to execute local WebAssembly compilation. Save the finished .png directly to local storage, or stage it for chaining.
Prefer local shell scripting? Run this standard POSIX command on your machine to achieve equivalent transcoding without a web interface:
# Convert PI1 to PNG locally
magick input.pi1 output.pngWorking with files across multiple web pages? The official convrtr Chrome Extension adds native Side Panel docking, right-click context menu media extraction, and visible viewport capture. Powered by the same zero-upload client-side WebAssembly engine.
Detailed technical comparison between PNG and JPG (JPEG). Understand lossless vs lossy compression, alpha channel transparency, and file size optimization.
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DEGAS (Design & Entertainment Graphic Arts System), created by Tom Hudson and published by Batteries Included in 1985, was the preeminent graphics editor for the Atari ST computer line. Standard uncompressed files are 32,034 bytes containing a 2-byte resolution mode header, a 32-byte 16-color palette (Atari ST 9-bit RGB), and 32,000 bytes of interleaved screen bitplanes.
.pi1 files are Low Resolution (320 × 200, 16 simultaneous colors from 512). .pi2 files are Medium Resolution (640 × 200, 4 colors, displayed aspect-corrected at 640 × 400). .pi3 files are High Resolution monochrome (640 × 400, 2 colors). Files starting with 'pc' (.pc1, .pc2, .pc3) are DEGAS Elite PackBits RLE compressed versions.
Modern operating systems, image viewers, and web browsers cannot natively decode Atari ST hardware bitplanes or 9-bit color palettes. Converting to PNG produces a universal, lossless 32-bit image ready for sharing on social media, demoscene archives, or personal retrospectives.
Never. All bitplane reconstruction, PackBits decompression, palette decoding, and PNG generation happen 100% locally inside your browser memory using pure TypeScript. No data ever leaves your device.
PI1 Graphic Raster (PI1) and Portable Network Graphics (PNG) serve distinct roles across the digital workflow. Converting to PNG provides optimized compatibility, modern compression efficiency, or standardized playback across web browsers, operating systems, and media production environments.
The output format (PNG) is inherently lossless or supports lossless operation. Your original visual or audio fidelity is mathematically preserved without quantization artifacts.
Never. convrtr is architected with a strict zero-upload model. All processing, decoding, decompression, and encoding happen 100% locally on your machine using sandboxed WebAssembly and Web Workers. Your data never touches an external server, database, or analytics collector.
You can execute this conversion locally via command-line utilities such as ffmpeg, cwebp, or ImageMagick. For example: see the developer terminal recipe provided in the technical specifications dossier above. convrtr provides the identical local-first capability directly inside your browser without installing CLI packages.
Yes. You can drop multiple .pi1 files into the instrument to process them concurrently in browser Web Workers, or click 'Open in Master Studio' to queue mixed formats, configure individual targets, and export as a single ZIP archive.
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