JPG and ICO explained
JPEG is a lossy image format designed for photographs. It works by discarding detail the human eye is least likely to notice, particularly in colour and in smooth gradients, which is why it compresses photos far better than it compresses text or line art.
ICO is a container that holds several versions of the same icon at different sizes, so the operating system or browser can pick the one that fits. It is capped at 256×256 pixels.
- Where JPG files come from
- Digital cameras, phone screenshots on Android, and essentially every photo on the pre-2015 web.
- Where ICO is used
- Website favicons and Windows application icons.