hydra 

HYDRA File Extension

Have a problem opening a .HYDRA file? We collect information about file formats and can explain what HYDRA files are. Additionally we recommend software suitable for opening or converting such files.

What is the .HYDRA file type?

Files with the HYDRA extension are associated with the Hydra development environment introduced by Adobe Systems in 2007. It was designed for creating complex effects or filters that can run on CPU or GPU multiprocessor systems. Hydra filters are supported by a number of Adobe products, including Flash Player and After Effects.

Files with the .hydra extension contain source code written in the Hydra programming language which employs C++-like syntax for the description of image manipulation algorithms. Hydra filters can be created by Adobe or by third party developers via AIF Toolkit, an Adobe application for building custom image filters.



Hydra is the predecessor to Adobe Pixel Bender. According to the company's press release, the word 'Hydra' was too widespread and didn't pertain to image processing technologies. To avoid confusion, the company decided to use 'Pixel Bender' instead of Hydra and 'Pixel Bender Toolkit' instead of 'AIF Toolkit'. The file extension was also changed from .hydra to .pbk.



Software to open or convert HYDRA files

You can open HYDRA files with the following programs: 

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