A metafile is a file containing information that describes
or specifies another file.
Microsoft uses this term for its Windows Metafile (WMF) format. A WMF
file contains a sequence of graphical-device-interface (GDI) function
calls ("commands" to the Windows operating system) that results
in the presentation of a graphic image. Some of the function calls are
equivalent to vector graphics statements and others identify stored bitmap
or literal specifications of which bits to illuminate (raster graphics
images). Using WMF files rather than already-built bitmaps saves space
when many bitmaps are used repeatedly by different components of the operating
system or of an application. The WMF file assumes a 16-bit operating system.
Microsoft has an enhanced metafile (EMF) format for its 32-bit operating
systems. Microsoft's clipboard (CLP) file can contain a WMF file, an EMF
file, or a bitmap (BMP) format file.
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