PNGTOICO(1)

📦 version 1.0.1, in nixos 26.05, nixpkgs unstable, opensuse-leap 16.0

🎀 PNGTOICO(1) 🎀

okay bestie, welcome to the pngtoico manual page 💖 this lil cutie lives in the General Commands Manual section, and honestly? she's giving "tiny but does one thing" energy ✨

✨ NAME ✨

pngtoico — convert png images to M$ ico format 💅

✨ SYNOPSIS ✨

pngtoico files.png...  > output.ico

(yes that's literally it, redirect it and go, no cap 🫶)

✨ DESCRIPTION ✨

So here's the vibe: pngtoico converts a whole set of palettized (indexed) Portable Network Graphics (PNG) files into a single Micro$oft icon (ICO) file 🔥 one file, many pngs, very slay.

But listen, there are rules, and the vibe check is strict 🙈

  • Each input PNG image should be no larger than 255x255 pixels — that's the ceiling, don't push it.
  • Each input PNG should use no more than 256 colours.
  • Fully transparent pixels are allowed 💜
  • Partially transparent pixels (alpha blending) are not allowed — like, at all.

🌸 NOTES 🌸

Okay so tea time ☕ the ICO format is out here on the web getting used as a "favourites icon" format, and ngl?? it's actually very ill-suited for that purpose 😭 like genuinely bad at it.

The glow-up you want instead: using a <LINK> tag, PNG images can usually be specified instead. And the use of PNG images is recommended 👑 periodt.

bestie the manpage is literally telling you to use PNG. take the hint 💀

💀 BUGS 💀

The ICO format is space-consuming and full of limitations. that's it. that's the bug report. iconic honestly ✨

🦋 AUTHOR 🦋

H. Peter Anvin <hpa@zytor.com> 🫶

⭐ SEE ALSO ⭐

png(5) — go read it, iykyk 🌈

mwah 💋 this was pngtoico 1.0, dated 1 January 2002 — a whole legend from the General Commands Manual era, and she still hits different 🎀💖✨

📦 where this page comes from