GuideSystem3 min read
Inline, Hybrid & direct media
Choose how the files reach the browser, separately from where the files are stored.
Select an underlined word to see what it means.
In this guide
- 01Inline
The complete presentation arrives when the token is read
- 02Hybrid
The browser retrieves and checks the stored pieces
- 03IPFS access
A chosen gateway reaches files stored on IPFS
- 04Raw artifact
Open the original media directly, without a Shell
One delivery or several reads?
With Inline, the token’s prepared presentation already contains what the work needs to open. With Hybrid, the browser first opens a small shell and then asks chain readers for the exact remaining objects.
An RPC is simply a service used to read a chain. Hybrid needs those reads to be available and permitted by the host. An explicit IPFS route uses a different file-delivery network.
| Presentation | Delivery after the token read | Storage meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Inline | The complete document already carries its resources | May reuse native KEEL objects during assembly |
| Hybrid | The browser reads exact objects through RPC | Can still be entirely native onchain storage |
| IPFS | A gateway/provider supplies the selected document or graph | An explicit external dependency |
| Raw artifact | A compatible reader opens the artifact descriptor directly | No shell; still independently releasable and readable |
Shared Parts stay shared.
The builder can assemble a complete presentation from stored shell fragments, shared PartsReusable components included in a work, with their own identities and permissions.For exampleSeveral artworks can share the same verified drawing library.Full glossary entry →, and your creator file. A complete returned document does not require storing a new copy of every library for each SlabThe collectible token recorded in your wallet. It identifies an owned item and points to its work.For exampleYou collect Tidal Study #7. That token is your Slab; the artwork files have their own storage records.Full glossary entry →.
For a standalone image, video, or self-contained 3D model, the direct-media route uses the original file and the registered display Part. You do not need to invent a new HTML wrapper just to show a picture.
Do not wrap the same content repeatedly.
Sometimes the page that opens your work has to travel inside the token’s own description. OnKeel stores it in a compact form, so it is not wrapped again and again. That keeps it smaller and cheaper to store.
Images, sound, and other media files still travel in their own format.
Technical detail: envelopes and builders
A presentation sometimes carries HTML inside a larger metadata document. The compact saver keeps that inner content close to its original form and escapes only the characters its envelope requires, which avoids extra layers of encoding. Binary files still need their declared packing, and the outer metadata document has its own encoding rules. Raw-percent Inline assembly uses a registered builder and matching fragments on the chosen chain. Earlier Base64 and percent builders use different formats. Prepared bytes must match the format expected by the selected builder.
Measure the whole package.
A small sketch can produce a much larger response once the player, preview, and metadata are included. Check the complete token response and the work needed for the chain reader to return it.
The SDK can recommend a delivery mode from measured size, but a selected mode remains an explicit choice. A recommendation should explain its reason.
Technical detail: current SDK read limits
KEEL defaults automatic presentation to Inline at up to 1,750,000 compressed asset bytes. The complete tokenURI compatibility ceiling is 2,000,000 bytes. Read gas is bounded by the smaller of 60,000,000 and the selected chain’s latest block gas limit; the actual provider can be stricter. These are KEEL reader budgets, not token-standard file-size rules or prices. Measure the complete token response against the selected network and provider.