File extension STL
| File type | Stereolithography Format |
| Developer | N/A |
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What is a STL file?
The .STL extension refers to files of the type, Stereolithography files. It is a native file format for CAD software that are based on stereolithography. There are many community developed and supported packages that work with the STL file and language for CAD.
The STL file is mostly used for rapid prototyping and contains usually 3D modeling data. Some of the various versions of STL are ASCII STL, Binary STL and the native STL. The 3D printers are based on the principle of stereolithography and hence the use of STL is widely seen in the industry.
Program(s) that can open the .STL file
Mac OS
Linux
How to open STL files
If you cannot open the STL file on your computer - there may be several reasons. The first and most important reason (the most common) is the lack of a suitable software that supports STL among those that are installed on your device.
A very simple way to solve this problem is to find and download the appropriate application. The first part of the task has already been done – the software supporting the STL file can be found in the table. Now just download and install the appropriate application.
Possible problems with the STL format files
The inability to open and operate the STL file does not necessarily mean that you do not have an appropriate software installed on your computer. There may be other problems that also block our ability to operate the Stereolithography Format file. Below is a list of possible problems.
- Corruption of a STL file which is being opened
- Incorrect links to the STL file in registry entries.
- Accidental deletion of the description of the STL from the Windows registry
- Incomplete installation of an application that supports the STL format
- The STL file which is being opened is infected with an undesirable malware.
- The computer does not have enough hardware resources to cope with the opening of the STL file.
- Drivers of equipment used by the computer to open a STL file are out of date.
If you are sure that all of these reasons do not exist in your case (or have already been eliminated), the STL file should operate with your programs without any problem. If the problem with the STL file has not been solved, it may be due to the fact that in this case there is also another rare problem with the STL file. In this case, the only you can do is to ask for assistance of a professional staff.
Similar extensions
| .a2l | ASAP2 Description Format |
| .afd | Alphacam Flame Drawing Format |
| .afs | STAAD.foundation Project Format |
| .any | AnyRail Layout Plan Format |
| .ard | ArtiosCAD Workspace Format |
| .bbcd | BobCAD-CAM Document |
| .bdl | CoCreate Designer Bundle Format |
| .bit | Xilinx Integrated Software Environment Bitstream Format |
This extension
can be converted to:
- STL to 3DXML
- STL to AC
- STL to ASC
- STL to ASS
- STL to C4D
- STL to CATPART
- STL to CATPRODUCT
- STL to CGR
- STL to DGN
- STL to DWG
- STL to DXF
- STL to EASM
- STL to EPS
- STL to FCSTD
- STL to GBR
- STL to IAM
- STL to IDW
- STL to IGES
- STL to IGS
- STL to IPT
- STL to IV
- STL to JPEG
- STL to JSON
- STL to JT
- STL to KMZ
- STL to LWO
- STL to LXO
- STL to MAX
- STL to OFF
- STL to PDO
- STL to PLY
- STL to PNG
- STL to PRT
- STL to PTS
- STL to SAB
- STL to SAT
- STL to SCAD
- STL to SKP
- STL to SLDASM
- STL to SLDPRT
- STL to SSA
- STL to OBJ
- STL to STP
- STL to TCW
- STL to U3D
- STL to VRML
- STL to W32
- STL to WRL
- STL to XML
- STL to X_B
- STL to X_T
- STL to XGL
- STL to LWOB
- STL to EPRT
- STL to A3S
- STL to BREP
- STL to CATDRAWING
- STL to A3D
- STL to GERBER
- STL to 3DS
- STL to DAE
- STL to JPG
- STL to PDF
- STL to SRT
- STL to STEP
- STL to FBX
- STL to GLB
- STL to BDF
How to associate the file with an installed software?
If you want to associate a file with a new program (e.g. my-file.STL) you have two ways to do it. The first and the easiest one is to right-click on the selected STL file. From the drop-down menu select "Choose default program", then click "Browse" and find the desired program. The whole operation must be confirmed by clicking OK. The second and more difficult to do is associate the STL file extension to the corresponding software in the Windows Registry.
Is there one way to open unknown files?
Many files contain only simple text data. It is possible that while opening unknown files (e.g. STL) with a simple text editor like Windows Notepad will allow us to see some of the data encoded in the file. This method allows you to preview the contents of many files, but probably not in such a structure as a program dedicated to support them.