CompuServe introduced GIF on 15 June 1987 to provide a color image format for their file downloading areas. This replaced their earlier run-length encoding format, which was black and white only. GIF …

GIF is a raster file format designed for relatively basic images that appear mainly on the internet. Each file can support up to 8 bits per pixel and can contain 256 indexed colors.

Learn about GIF file format and APIs that can create and open GIF files.

Sep 25, 2019 · In its simplest form, a GIF (pronounced "gif" or "jiff") is just an image file. Like the JPEG or PNG file formats, the GIF format can be used to make still images.

GIF (Graphics Interchange Format) is a creation of CompuServe and is used to store multiple bitmap images in a single file for exchange between platforms and systems. In terms of number of files in …

Aug 7, 2025 · GIF stands for Graphics Interchange Format – a bitmap image format supporting up to 256 colors. Developed in 1987 by Steve Wilhite and his team at CompuServe for efficient image …

Apr 16, 2024 · What Is a GIF? A file with the GIF file extension is a Graphical Interchange Format file. Most people use GIFs (pronounced 'gif' or 'jiff') to create animated images to share on social media.

Jul 23, 2025 · GIF stands for Graphics Interchange Format. GIF is a digital file format developed by CompuServe in 1987 to compress images and short animations without any loss of information at the …

Jul 20, 2025 · GIF stands for Graphics Interchange Format and is a file type that helps create short animations or videos. It is looped so the animation can be repeated infinitely. They are often used to …

Jan 16, 2026 · Because GIF is a lossless data compression format, meaning that no information is lost in the compression, it quickly became a popular format for transmitting and storing graphic files.