![]() CompuServe published the GIF format in 1987, and it was last updated in 1989. In other words, GIF is older than about 35% of the US population, and it predates the World Wide Web by two years. It helped to define early GeoCities websites, MySpace pages, and email chains (remember the dancing baby?), and it’s still a large part of internet culture. In fact, the GIF format may be more popular now than ever before. GIFs are gaining popularity because, like memes, they’re useful for communicating jokes, emotions, and ideas. Plus, sites like GIPHY and Gyfcat make it super easy to share and create GIFs. The worlds largest library of free GIFs, Clips, & Stickers GIPHY for Android is the fastest, simplest way to search and share sort form content and. These services are integrated into apps like Twitter, and Facebook Messenger, and your phone’s keyboard, so they’re just as easy to use as emojis or “stickers.”īut why the GIF file format? Why hasn’t something else come along? The classic dancing baby GIF. Honestly, GIF is a terribly outdated format. GIF files are 8-bit, which means that they’re restricted to 256 colors and almost always look like crap. The GIF format also doesn’t support semi-transparency, and GIFs often have a large file size (more than MP4 video files) because they’re uncompressed. People have tried to replace the GIF format. Mozilla’s APNG (animated PNG) format was created to replace GIF ten years ago, but that didn’t work out at all. All Browsers Are Different: Browsers have their quirks, and sometimes one stinkin’ browser can prevent the web from moving forward.There are many reasons why GIF has managed to stick around, but for the sake of time, we’re just going to give you the three big reasons now: ![]() Need a specific example? Mozilla’s APNG format came out in 2008, but the Microsoft Edge browser only began to support the format this year. Open the iPhone Messages app and go inside a conversation or tap on the compose button to start one. HTML Didn’t Support Video: Before HTML5 launched in 2014, the HTML standard didn’t support video.(In other words, if this animation doesn’t work, then you’re using an out-of-date version of the Edge browser.) All browsers have supported animated GIFs for a long time now. This meant that it was easier to share GIFs than actual videos, so GIFs stuck around. Many websites used Adobe’s Flash plug-in for videos, but Flash didn’t work on mobile devices like iPhones.
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