Image file formats face off on the international sporting stage.
This is a Scalable Vector Graphics (SVG) file of the Papua New Guinea (PNG) flag.
This is a Portable Network Graphics (PNG) file of the Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG) flag.
For years the debate has raged on. Which is better: PNG or SVG?
Advocates of SVG files will point out that the format enables images to be scaled up without loss of quality and that it is better for high density displays.
PNG fans will counter that it has wider browser support and that in some instances PNG performs better.
Clearly, we need further information in order to come to a decisive conclusion.
Image file formats faced off in the Commonwealth Games
This year’s Commonwealth Games finally gave us that opportunity to see which is better: PNG or SVG?
I found three instances of Papua New Guinea athletes going head-to-head with an opponent from Saint Vincent and the Grenadines.
The first was a squash showdown between Othniel Bailey of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and Schubert Maketu of Papua New Guinea. It was a convincing victory for Othniel Bailey of SVG, who won 3 matches to 0.
Next up was a table tennis tussle featuring SVG’s Unica Velox taking on PNG’s Maryanne Robert Loi. Once again the SVG competitor was triumphant, winning 4–1.
In case any doubt remained, that same morning another pair of ping pong players from PNG and SVG battled it out to be the wiff waff winner. Romano Spencer of SVG beat PNG’s David Loi, again by 4 matches to 1.
The evidence is clear: in one-to-one situations, SVG is better than PNG.
But the medals table tells a different story
Looking at the medals table, SVG is nowhere to be seen. Despite their clear supremacy over Papua New Guinea in one-to-one situations, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines failed to win a single medal in the Commonwealth Games.
Meanwhile, Papua New Guinea won two medals — and they were both gold. Not bad at all.
In the end, whether PNG is better than SVG entirely comes down to how you look at it
It looks like we’re back to square one in this debate.
This image of square one is a JPEG
This image of square one is a GIF