Data files

The following data directories include examples and a little information about various file formats I have encountered.

  1. 3ds, a data directory which contains examples of 3DS (3D-Studio) files.
  2. amiramesh, a data directory which contains examples of Amira Mesh files, the general purpose file format for the Amira graphics package.
  3. ascii_art_grayscale, a data directory which contains examples of grayscale ASCII Art files, in which images are created using printable characters.
  4. ase, a data directory which contains examples of ASE files.
  5. avi, a data directory which contains examples of AVI files. "AVI" stands for the "Audio/Visual Interleaved" format, and is a common animation format.
  6. bamg, a data directory which contains examples of the geometry files that can be input to the BAMG meshing program.
  7. bezier_surface, a data directory which contains examples of bezier_surface files, a simple format comprising two files, suitable for storing the definition of a Bezier surface used in 3D graphics;
  8. bmp, a data directory which contains examples of BMP files. The BMP file is a bitmap image format developed by Microsoft and commonly used in the Windows operating system for storing icons.
  9. byu, a data directory which contains some examples of BYU files. More specifically, we are interested in Movie.BYU surface geometry files.
  10. cdl, a data directory which contains examples of CDL files, a text version of NETCDF files created by the NCDUMP program;
  11. cgmb, a data directory which contains examples of binary CGM files, a 2D image file format created using the binary Computer Graphics Metafile format.
  12. cnf, a data directory which contains examples of CNF files, the DIMACS CNF file format, used to define examples for the satisfiability problem in conjunctive normal form;
  13. csv, a data directory which contains examples of CSV files, a flat file format of Comma Separated Values.
  14. dolfin_xml a data directory which contains examples of XML files, which describe 3D finite element meshes as used by DOLFIN and FENICS.
  15. dot, a data directory which contains examples of DOT files.
  16. dsp, a data directory which contains examples of DSP files, a sparse matrix file format, storing just (I,J,A(I,J)), and using one-based indexing.
  17. dxf, a data directory which contains examples of DXF files.
  18. eps, a data directory which contains examples of EPS files, Encapsulated PostScript file format for 2D graphics;
  19. fd1d, a data directory which contains examples of 1D FD files, two text files that can be used to describe many finite difference models;
  20. fd2d, a data directory which contains examples of 2D FD files, two text files that can be used to describe many finite difference models;
  21. fd3d, a data directory which contains examples of 3D FD files, two text files that can be used to describe many finite difference models;
  22. fem1d, a data directory of examples of 1D FEM files, a set of three text files that can be used to describe many finite element models;
  23. fem2d, a data directory of examples of 2D FEM files, a set of three text files that can be used to describe many finite element models;
  24. fem3d, a data directory of examples of 3D FEM files, a set of three text files that can be used to describe many finite element models;
  25. fig, a data directory which contains examples of FIG files;
  26. fit, a data directory which contains examples of FIT files, which are commonly used by NASA to store and transfer astronomical and weather images.
  27. freefem_mesh, a data directory which contains examples of the mesh files created by the FreeFem++ program, which use the extension ".msh".
  28. gif, a data directory of examples of GIF files, a 2D graphics file format;
  29. gif_animation, a data directory which contains examples of GIF_ANIMATION files, a 2D graphics animation format;
  30. gmod, a data directory which contains examples of GMOD files;
  31. gpl, a data directory which contains examples of GPL files, which use a graphics file format used by GNUPLOT;
  32. graph_representation, a data directory of examples of ways of representing abstract mathematical graphs
  33. grf, a data directory which contains examples of GRF files, an abstract graph file format, 2D graphics;
  34. grf1, a data directory which contains examples of GRF1 files;
  35. grf2, a data directory which contains examples of GRF2 files;
  36. grf2s, a data directory which contains examples of GRF2S files;
  37. hb, a data directory which contains examples of HB files, the Harwell Boeing sparse matrix file format;
  38. hdf, a data directory which contains examples of HDF files, a general scientific data file format;
  39. hdf4, a data directory which contains examples of HDF4 files, a general scientific data file format;
  40. hdf5, a data directory which contains examples of HDF5 files, a general scientific data file format;
  41. hex_mesh, a data directory which contains examples of HEX_MESH files, which define a planar mesh of hexagons.
  42. hrc, a data directory which contains examples of HRC files, which are SoftImage HRC ("hierarchical)" files.
  43. ice, a data directory which contains examples of ICE files, which define a NETCDF file format for icesheet grids.
  44. iges, a data directory which contains examples of IGES files.
  45. iv, a data directory which contains examples of IV or INVENTOR files, which are a 3D graphics file format.
  46. jpg, a data directory which contains examples of JPG or JPEG files, which is a file format for high quality 2D graphics;
  47. mat, a data directory which contains examples of MAT files, a data storage format used by MATLAB.
  48. medit_mesh, data which can be used by the MEDIT program to define a 2D or 3D mesh for use by the finite element method (FEM), using triangles, quadrilaterals, tetrahedrons or hexahedrons.
  49. meshlab, a data directory of examples of files that can be used by the MESHLAB program.
  50. met, a data directory of examples of MET files, a graphics file format used by the DISLIN plotting package of Helmut Michels.
  51. metis_graph, a data directory of examples of METIS GRAPH files, the format for graphs to be read by METIS, which can partition a graph;
  52. metis_mesh, a data directory of examples of METIS MESH files, the format for finite element meshes to be read by METIS, which can partition the elements of such a mesh;
  53. mfem_mesh, data which can be used by the MFEM finite element program to define a variety of 2d and 3d finite element meshes.
  54. mm, a data directory of examples of MM files, the Matrix Market Sparse Matrix File Format;
  55. mov, a data directory which contains examples of MOV files, a graphics animation format;
  56. mp4, a data directory which contains examples of MP4 files, a video file format.
  57. mpg, a data directory which contains examples of MPG files, a video file format.
  58. msh, a data directory of examples of MSH files, the native 3D mesh format used by gmsh.
  59. mtl, a data directory which contains examples of MTL files, a format used to describe materials used in graphics textures.
  60. mtv a data directory which contains examples of MTV files, a graphics format used by PLOTMTV.
  61. netcdf a data directory which contains examples of netCDF files, a format for the interchange of scientific data.
  62. netcdf_gis a data directory which contains examples of GIS files, stored using the NETCDF format.
  63. netcdf_glimmer a data directory which contains examples of GLIMMER data files, stored using the NETCDF format.
  64. netcdf_mpas a data directory which contains examples of MPAS grid files, stored using the NETCDF format.
  65. obj, a data directory of examples of OBJ files, a Wavefront file format for 3D graphics;
  66. off, a data directory of examples of OFF files, a file format for 3D graphics;
  67. oogl, a data directory of examples of OOGL files, a file format for 3D graphics;
  68. p3d, a data directory of examples of P3D files, the Pittsburgh 3D graphics file format.
  69. pam, a data directory of examples of PAM files, the Portable Any Map file format.
  70. pbma, a data directory of examples of ASCII PBM files, ASCII Portable Bit Map 2D graphics, black and white;
  71. pbmb, a data directory which contains examples of binary PBM files, which are binary Portable Bit Map 2D graphics, black and white;
  72. pcd, a data directory which contains examples of PCD files, which is the Point Cloud Data format, developed in particular for the Point Cloud Library (PCL).
  73. pcx, a data directory which contains examples of PCX files, which is a format originally developed for images created by the PC Paintbrush program.
  74. pdb, a data directory of examples of PDB files, a file format used by the Protein Database;
  75. pdf, a data directory of examples of PDF files, the Portable Document Format, 2D text and graphics;
  76. pgh_mri, a data directory of examples of PGH MRI files, a format for storing brain scan data gathered by magnetic resonance imaging;
  77. pgma, a data directory of examples of ASCII PGM files, ASCII Portable Gray Map, 2D graphics;
  78. pgmb, a data directory of examples of binary PGM files, binary Portable Gray Map, 2D graphics;
  79. plc, a data directory of examples of PLC files, used to describe a piecewise linear complex, a surface that bounds a 3D region that is to be meshed.
  80. plot3d, a data directory of examples of PLOT3D files, a variety of formats used by the PLOT3D program;
  81. ply, a data directory of examples of PLY files, a format for objects defined as a collection of polygons, 3D graphics;
  82. png, a data directory of examples of PNG files, Portable Network Graphics, 2D graphics;
  83. pnm, a data directory of examples of PNM files, known as the "Portable Any-Map" format.
  84. poly, a data directory of examples of POLY files, a 2D format used by triangle for Planar Straight Line Graphs;
  85. poly_3d, a data directory of examples of 3D POLY files, a 3D format used by tetgen for a Piecewise Linear Complex;
  86. polygonal_surface, a data directory of examples of POLYGONAL SURFACE files, a simple file format comprising two files, suitable for storing the definition of a surface that is made up of a set of polygons of a fixed order, 3D graphics;
  87. pov, a data directory of examples of POV files, Persistence of Vision format, 3D graphics;
  88. ppma, a data directory of examples of ASCII PPM files, ASCII Portable Pixel Map, 2D graphics, color;
  89. ppmb, a data directory of examples of binary PPM files, binary Portable Pixel Map, 2D graphics, color;
  90. ps, a data directory of examples of PS files, PostScript files, 2D graphics;
  91. quadrilateral_mesh, a data directory of examples of quadrilateral mesh files.
  92. quadrilateral_mesh_order1, a data directory of examples of quadrilateral_mesh files, a quadrilateral mesh in 2D, with an associated data value that is constant over each element of the mesh;
  93. quadrilateral_surface, a data directory of examples of quadrilateral_surface files, a quadrilateral mesh in 3D, used to define a surface.
  94. rb, a data directory which contains examples of RB files, which use the Rutherford-Boeing sparse matrix file format.
  95. rgb, a data directory which contains examples of RGB files, which were used by Silicon Graphics Incorporated to store textures.
  96. slap, a data directory which contains examples of SLAP files, a sparse matrix file format used by the Sparse Linear Algebra Package (SLAP).
  97. smf, a data directory which contains examples of SMF files, which was used by Michael Garland as an input and output format for his surface simplifying program QSLIM.
  98. sparse_ellpack, a data directory which contains examples of SPARSE_ELLPACK files, a format used by ELLPACK for sparse matrices.
  99. stla, a data directory which contains examples of ASCII STL files, which are ASCII Stereolithography files for 3D graphics;
  100. stlb, a data directory of examples of binary STL files, binary Stereolithography files, 3D graphics;
  101. sudoku, a data directory which contains examples of Sudoku puzzles. A 9x9 grid of 3x3 boxes and 81 cells is presented. In a completed Sudoku, the digits 1 through 9 are placed in the 81 cells, in such a way that each row, column and box contains each digit exactly once. A Sudoku puzzle is a partially completed Sudoku in which the user must figure out how to complete the pattern.
  102. svg, a data directory of examples of SVG files, Scalable Vector Graphics, 2D graphics, that can be included in an HTML file;
  103. table, a data directory which contains examples of TABLE files, which store doubly indexed data.
  104. tec, a data directory which contains examples of TEC files, which store 2D or 3D graphics with attributes;
  105. tet_mesh_tet_neighbors, a data directory which contains examples of TET_MESH_TET_NEIGHBOR files, description of a format for tetrahedron adjacency information in a tetrahedral mesh of 3D points;
  106. tga, a data directory which contains examples of TGA or TARGA files, a bit map graphics file format.
  107. tif, a data directory which contains examples of TIF or TIFF files, a format for high resolution photographs and images.
  108. tri_surface, a data directory which contains examples of TRI_SURFACE files, a 3D surface defined by a collection of triangles.
  109. tria, a data directory which contains examples of TRIA files, which is an ASCII file format for the rendering of 3D surfaces as a collection of triangles.
  110. triangle_files, a data directory of examples of files used by the triangle and showme programs.
  111. triangulation_order3, a data directory of examples of TRIANGULATION_ORDER3 files, description of a linear triangulation of a set of 2D points, using a pair of files to list the node coordinates and the 3 nodes that make up each triangle;
  112. triangulation_order4, a data directory of examples of TRIANGULATION_ORDER4 files, description of a triangulation of a set of 2D points, using a pair of files to list the node coordinates and the 4 nodes that define each triangle (3 vertices and the centroid);
  113. triangulation_order6, a data directory of examples of TRIANGULATION_ORDER6 files, a description of a quadratic triangulation of a set of 2D points, using a pair of files to list the node coordinates and the 6 nodes that make up each triangle; Six-node triangles are used when a higher degree approximation is desired; they may also be used as isoparametric elements that model curved boundaries;
  114. trib, a data directory which contains examples of TRIB files, a binary file format for the rendering of 3D surfaces as a collection of triangles.
  115. ts, a data directory of examples of TS or THREESCRIPT files, which is a 3D graphics file format once used by Mathematica.
  116. txt, a data directory which contains examples of TXT files, which are simple text files.
  117. ucd, a data directory which contains examples of UCD files, which are a graphics file format used by AVS;
  118. vla, a data directory which contains examples of VLA files, which are used by the Evans and Sutherland Digistar II Planetarium projection system.
  119. vtk, a data directory which contains examples of "legacy" (old style) VTK files, a file format used by the Visualization Toolkit;
  120. vts, a data directory which contains examples of VTS files, a format used by the Visualization Toolkit, which contains information associated with a curvilinear or structured grid, which can be displayed by the paraview program;
  121. vtu, (archived), a data directory which contains examples of XML-based VTU files, which are a file format used by the Visualization Toolkit for unstructured grid data;
  122. vu, a data directory which contains examples of VU files, which are a file format used by the VU program;
  123. wav, a data directory which contains examples of WAV files, which store audio information.
  124. wrl_1, a data directory which contains examples of WRL_1 files, which is version 1.0 of a format known as VRML (Virtual Reality Modeling Language).
  125. wrl_2, a data directory which contains examples of WRL_2 files, which is version 2.0 of a format known as VRML (Virtual Reality Modeling Language).
  126. x3d, a data directory of examples of X3D files.
  127. xbm, a data directory which contains examples of XBM files, which is a bitmap file format used by X Windows.
  128. xgl, a data directory which contains examples of XGL files, which use XML to store 3D graphics information as created by OpenGL.
  129. xml, a data directory which contains examples of XML files, which are a standard general datafile format.
  130. xpm, a data directory which contains examples of XPM files, which is a pixel format used by X Windows.
  131. xwd, a data directory which contains examples of XWD files, which are X Window Dump files.
  132. xy, a data directory which contains examples of XY files, which record points in 2D space.
  133. xyf, a data directory which contains examples of XYF files, which records points and faces in 2D space.
  134. xyl, a data directory which contains examples of XYL files, which records points and lines in 2D space.
  135. xyz, a data directory which contains examples of XYZ files, which record points in 3D space.

Last revised on 02 August 2025.