NAME
exifcom - display or set the UserComment tag
contained in a JPEG Exif section
SYNOPSIS
exifcom [ -bfinv ] [ -w
comment ] [ -s delim ] file ...
DESCRIPTION
When invoked without arguments, the
exifcom utility displays the contents of the Exif
UserComment tag contained in file to the standard output.
Otherwise, depending on the options specified, exifcom will
blank the tag or set it to comment.
Some digital cameras include a standard UserComment tag in the
Exif data added to the image files they produce. This comment tag
is fixed-length and supports multi-byte character sets (though
exifcom does not). Note that not all cameras will include
the tag.
The utility is conservative in its approach to writing the
UserComment tag. It does not modify, extend, or otherwise
adulterate an image's Exif metadata structure. When writing the tag
it merely changes pre-allocated bytes. Therefore, exifcom is
at the mercy of the Exif data creator for both the presence of the
tag and its length. It cannot create a UserComment tag when the
camera does not include one, nor can it write a comment longer than
the space pre-allocated by the camera. exifcom only displays
and writes ASCII character set comments.
OPTIONS
- -b
- Blank the UserComment tag, overwriting both the character code
and comment fields with NUL. The character code specifies how the
comment is represented; it is "undefined" when blank. This is the
state to which many cameras initialize the tag. When used in
conjunction with the -w option, exifcom will blank
the comment prior to setting it to comment.
- -f
- Overwrite or blank existing or unsupported comments without
prompting for confirmation.
- -i
- Write a prompt to standard error before overwriting or blanking
an existing or unsupported comment. If the response from the
standard input begins with 'y' or 'Y', the comment is overwritten.
This option is default behavior.
- -n
- Do not overwrite or blank existing or unsupported comments and
do not prompt for confirmation (i.e., automatically answer 'no' to
a confirmation prompt). This option takes precedence over both the
-f and -i options.
- -s
- Separate field name and value in the verbose and multiple file
cases with the string delim. The default is ': '.
- -v
- Be verbose when printing the contents of the UserComment tag.
Besides the comment itself (if present and supported),
exifcom will display the maximum comment length supported,
the character code of the comment, and the length of the comment.
- -w
- Set UserComment to the ASCII string comment. If
comment is longer than what the tag supports, it will be
truncated to fit.
DIAGNOSTICS
The exifcom utility exits 0 on success.
When displaying a comment from a single file, if the UserComment
tag is missing, it exits 1; if blank, it exits 2; if in an
unsupported character code, it exits 3. Otherwise, it exits 1 if an
error occurs.
SEE ALSO
exiftags(1),
exiftime(1)
STANDARDS
The exifcom utility was developed using
the January 2002 Exif standard, version 2.2 (http://tsc.jeita.or.jp/).
BUGS
If the tag doesn't exist or is too short, too bad.
AUTHOR
The exifcom utility and this man page were
written by Eric M. Johnston <emj@postal.net>.