Extract text from PhotoDraw illustrations (PD4)
To convert PD4 illustrations to another format, you need DNASTAR PrimerSelect or other Data software.
To convert other file formats to the "Bioinformatics & Graphics File" file type, you need software like DNASTAR PrimerSelect or a similar tool.
The .pd4 file extension has two wildly different primary uses. First, it serves as a DNA primer design file or sequencing data file for bioinformatics software like DNASTAR PrimerSelect. Second, it is widely known as a legacy PhotoDraw Picture File created by the discontinued Microsoft PhotoDraw 2000.
The .PD4 format is heavily fragmented and notoriously restrictive. If you possess a bioinformatics .PD4 file, it is a proprietary binary/text blob that requires expensive, specialized software like the Lasergene suite to read. If you possess a PhotoDraw image, you are dealing with a dead 20-year-old Microsoft ecosystem. These graphics files are completely unsupported by modern operating systems or major image editors like Adobe Photoshop.
Converting .PD4 files is highly recommended to ensure future accessibility. For DNASTAR data, exporting to standard text formats like TXT or FASTA is best. For PhotoDraw images, converting to PNG or JPG is ideal, though layers and proprietary vector data will be lost.
Because this format is closed, proprietary, and dual-natured, standard online converters usually fail to process it. Most converters cannot differentiate between a vector/raster PhotoDraw image and a DNA sequence. Often, only the original software can properly read or export the data. However, convert.guru can still identify the file format, inspect the file, and show text or internal content. If our analysis detects a supported underlying or embedded format, viewing or conversion may still be possible. Just drag and drop your file to see what it is and convert it if supported.
Convert.Guru analyzes your PD4 file, detects the exact format, and lets you read the text inside.
Users also converted PNG, PDF, PD1, PD5, UNF and PD3 files.
If you want to convert PD4 file to CSV, JSON, XML, YAML, YML, TOML, INI, CFG, CONF, DAT, DB or SQL, you can use DNASTAR PrimerSelect or similar software from the "DNA Primer Design & Images" category. In the File menu, look for Save As… or Export….
To convert DBF, XML, SQLITE, XLSX, SQL, TSV, ACCDB, YAML, MDB, CSV, ODS or JSON files to PD4, try DNASTAR PrimerSelect or another comparable tool in the "DNA Primer Design & Images" category.
The history of Convert.Guru began over 25 years ago in California with Tom Simondi’s file-format database. A former contributor to Space Shuttle development and a software pioneer of the 1980s, Simondi established a trusted resource for file type analysis that was even referenced by Microsoft Windows XP. Today, we use modern technology to process and convert thousands of file formats while continually improving our PD4 converter.