FOURCC is a term that refers to a four-character code used in multimedia files to identify the format of the data within. The spelling of the word FOURCC is fairly straightforward, with the first syllable pronounced as "fohr" with a long o sound, followed by the second syllable "k" with a hard "k" sound. It is then followed by the last two letters "c-c" pronounced as "see-see". This results in the phonetic transcription of FOURCC being written as /fɔr-k-see-see/. Overall, FOURCC is a term that is important for those working with multimedia files and digital content.
FOURCC is an acronym that stands for "four-character code" in computer programming and multimedia applications. It refers to a specific identifier or code that is used to represent various data formats and codecs. This 32-bit code is commonly utilized in video file formats to indicate the compression algorithm or the specific encoding used for digital video and audio streams.
In a FOURCC, each character represents 8 bits or one byte, resulting in a total of four bytes or 32 bits. These codes are primarily comprised of alphanumeric characters, such as letters and numbers, along with special characters. FOURCCs can be found in various multimedia file formats like AVI, QuickTime, and MPEG, to distinguish between different codecs, compression methods, or data formats.
The FOURCC code allows software applications and media players to recognize and decode the encoded video or audio data correctly. For example, the FOURCC "H.264" denotes the video codec used for storing compressed video data in such file formats. Additionally, FOURCCs are also employed in hardware devices and drivers to identify specific video modes or image formats.
In summary, FOURCC is a four-character code used in multimedia applications and file formats to identify the compression algorithm or specific encoding used for digital video and audio data. It plays a crucial role in ensuring proper interpretation and decoding of multimedia content by software applications and hardware devices.