The
color depth known as
True Color, so named because
the
human eye can (
theoretically) not discern colors that fall between adjacent colors in the set of
16777216 allowed by 24
bits of data.
In a 24 bit image, the colors break down to 8 bits each of red, green, and blue per pixel, which are capable of displaying the RGB Color Cube. (Note that this is not "all visible colors", but rather a large subset of them)
Also note that while the theory is that 24 bits give "true" color, this is not 100% correct. This is especially evident when viewing rendered images; On surfaces which should be a smooth gradient, banding (which is not due to rounding errors in the renderer) is often visible. One method used to counteract this is to render an image in 32 bit (or higher) color, and then dither to 24 bits. (An old trick, to be sure, but quite effective..)
this is the most uninspired writeup I have ever contributed.... HELP ME!