What is MIME type "application/x-macbinary"?

A MIME type is a string that tells browsers and other tools how to handle a particular kind of file.

The MIME type application/x-macbinary is used to package Macintosh files into a single binary stream. It bundles both the main content and file metadata for safe transfer.

Classic Macintosh files often divided data into several parts. MacBinary encoding merges these parts. This ensures that no essential information is lost during transfers between systems.

• File Packaging: Merges separate data sections into one file.
• Data Preservation: Keeps extra file details like resource forks intact.
• Cross-Platform Transfer: Helps move files from classic Macintosh systems to other platforms.

This MIME type is used by files such as BIN and MACBIN. It signals that special handling may be needed to extract all the file’s components.

For further details, you can review more about MacBinary formats on external resources like Wikipedia.

Associated file extensions

.bin, .macbin

Usage Examples

HTTP Header

When serving content with this MIME type, set the Content-Type header:

    Content-Type: application/x-macbinary
  

HTML

In HTML, you can specify the MIME type in various elements:

    <a href="file.dat" type="application/x-macbinary">Download file</a>
  

Server-side (Node.js)

Setting the Content-Type header in Node.js:

    const http = require('http');
    
    http.createServer((req, res) => {
      res.setHeader('Content-Type', 'application/x-macbinary');
      res.end('Content here');
    }).listen(3000);
  

Associated file extensions

.bin, .macbin