Everything You Never Wanted to Know About GIFs (You’re Welcome)

I love reading “history of” articles. I wonder about things such as GIFs.  If you’re like me, and you’ve been deeply curious about the history of GIFs, wonder no more. Mihir Patkar over on Make Use Of takes us on a not-so-brief tour of the history of GIFs, from the original dancing baby to 3D and stereoscopy. Along with the history lesson, he explores why GIFs are so popular despite the low picture quality and lack of sound.

“It’s easier to be funny with a GIF than with your own words,” Adam Pash tells MakeUseOf. Pash developed the record-your-own-GIF app And Then I Was Like. “When you type into a chatbox all day, sometimes it’s nice to have variety—it’s largely the same reason we use emoji/images/anything.”

Be sure to check out the article especially the pronunciation discussion near the end. Spoiler alert: Oxford says either GIF (hard G) or GIF (J sound) is fine. Just be consistent with both the noun and verb form.