File Format Information Database Home Update

BinHex encoded data

Quick Info

This format is used, whenever Macintosh files are transferred over a network. In the Mac file system, each file is stored in two seperate byte streams: A "ressource fork" and a "data fork". Since other operating systems cannot handle this way of storage, Macintosh files must be coded into a single bytestream for network transfer. This is exactly what BinHex does: It takes a Mac file, and converts them into a 7-Bit Ascii-File, which can be sent by e-mail, or stored on an FTP-server.

There are DOS-utilites (BinHex for Dos), which can decode BinHex files and split them into the two forks and the file info block.

Quick Info:

Name: BinHex encoded file
Type: Communication
Extension: HQX
Native Application: BinHex 4.0
Specification:
ftp://x2ftp.oulu.fi/pub/msdos/programming/formats/binhex4.inf
If you have additional information, send mail to Alexander Krauss