Encode Ascii85

Encode binary data as Adobe ASCII85 text for printable transport.

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ToolAscii85 Encoder
Input
Output
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Preview

How it works

Four bytes become five base-85 characters, with z abbreviating four zero bytes; decoding reverses the base-85 accumulation. A final partial block is padded for encoding and truncated after decoding.

  • The five-character expansion carries binary through printable ASCII.
  • z shortens runs of zero bytes in PostScript-style streams.

Worked example

Encode "Man " with the Adobe delimiters
The standard test vector for this format
Input
											Text: Man 
Mode: encode
Variant: adobe
Output
												<~9jqo^~>

When to use this

PDF streams, PostScript resources, and binary debugging use ASCII85.

Edge cases

  • A short final block requires padding and truncation.
  • z is valid only for four zero bytes.
  • Decoder whitespace may be ignored even though it is outside the alphabet.

References