The Portable Network Graphics (PNG) format uses adjustable, lossless compression to display 24‑bit photographs or solid-color images on the World Wide Web and in other online media. PNG was developed as a patent-free alternative to the GIF file format. It supports transparency in an alpha channel or a designated color. PNG is best used for online documents, although its color support makes it better for printed documents than GIF. However, color PNG graphics placed in an InDesign document are RGB bitmap images, so they print only as composites, not on color separations.