ppmtolss16

ppmtolss16 [options] [ppmfile]

-lss8
    Force the output image to Labs Systems LSS8 format. This option cannot be used if the input PPM image contains more than 256 colors.

-lss16
    Force the output image to Labs Systems LSS16 format.

-verbose
    Print detailed debugging information to standard error during the conversion process.

-map mapfile
    Use the palette specified in the mapfile (which should be a PPM image) as the color map for LSS8 conversion. If this option is not provided, a suitable palette will be automatically generated.

ppmfile
    The path to the input Portable Pixmap (PPM) image file. If omitted, ppmtolss16 reads the PPM image data from standard input.

ppmtolss16 is a Netpbm program used for converting Portable Pixmap (PPM) image files into Labs Systems LSS16 or LSS8 format images. These LSS formats are proprietary and typically used with specific Labs Systems equipment. The command reads the PPM image from standard input (or a specified file) and writes the converted LSS image to standard output.

The program automatically determines whether to use LSS8 (8 bits per pixel) or LSS16 (16 bits per pixel) based on the number of colors in the input PPM image. If the image contains more than 256 colors, it must be converted to LSS16. If it has 256 or fewer colors, it can be LSS8 or LSS16. Users can explicitly force the output format using the -lss8 or -lss16 options. For LSS8 conversion, an optional palette can be specified using the -map option; otherwise, a palette is automatically generated.

The LSS format is specific to Labs Systems equipment and may not be widely supported by general-purpose image viewers or editors. Ensure your target system or application supports this format. The -lss8 option will fail if the input PPM image has more than 256 colors.

ppmtolss16 reads input from standard input by default, or from a specified PPM file. It writes the converted LSS16 or LSS8 image to standard output. This design allows for seamless integration with other Netpbm commands through piping or redirection to a file. For example, you can use cat image.ppm | ppmtolss16 > image.lss16 or directly ppmtolss16 image.ppm > image.lss16.

The ppmtolss16 command was contributed to the Netpbm project by Marshall Space Flight Center, NASA. Its initial public release occurred with Netpbm version 10.3 in January 2002. It has since been maintained as part of the Netpbm suite of image processing utilities, serving specific needs for conversion to the Labs Systems image formats.

lss16toppm(1), ppm(5), pnm(5), netpbm(1)