What are the tradeoffs between vector (metafile) and raster (bitmap) graphics?
In general, vector graphics take longer to display but can be scaled to any size with no degradation. Raster graphics are faster to display but image quality suffers when they are scaled up or down. Here is a small picture that is saved as a bitmap and then scaled up to a larger size: Here is the same picture scaled up as a vector graphic: Also, there is a tradeoff between the size of a graphic and its complexity. The vector graphic file needed to draw a cross-hatched rectangle full page on a 600-DPI laser printer might be just a few hundred bytes; the comparable raster graphic might be a thousand times bigger! On the other hand, the vector graphic file needed to draw a detailed engineering drawing in a one inch square could be thousands of times bigger than the corresponding raster graphic. So you can’t say vector graphics are smaller than raster graphics or vice versa. It depends on the graphic!
