
The Graphics Interchange Format is not intended as a platform for animation - nstj
https://www.w3.org/Graphics/GIF/spec-gif89a.txt
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dang
This breaks the site guidelines, which ask: " _Please use the original title,
unless it is misleading or linkbait; don 't editorialize._" Please see
[https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html](https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html):

Cherry-picking one detail from an article is editorializing. If you want to
say what you think is important in an article, please do so in a comment,
where your view is on a level playing field with everyone else's.
[https://hn.algolia.com/?query=by:dang%20title%20level%20play...](https://hn.algolia.com/?query=by:dang%20title%20level%20playing%20field&sort=byDate&dateRange=all&type=comment&storyText=false&prefix&page=0)

Another thing you could do is write your own article that goes into why this
is interesting, and submit that instead. That might be the best option. You
could always link to the original article from your post.

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airstrike
Yeah, that is one lost cause

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DoctorOetker
I have often thought about how vector graphics should be extended to
animations: instead of defining curves in 2 dimensions, define curved surfaces
in 3, where the third is simply time.

I wouldn't mind conditionals etc, as long as it is held turing _in_ complete.

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DaiPlusPlus
SVG supports animation.

Flash supports animation.

You can define basic shapes in CSS and use its own animation capabilities.

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DoctorOetker
I never new SVG supports animation!

is it scripted and turing complete like Flash?

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DoctorOetker
the 3 methods of SVG animation from wikipedia are either through scripting, or
limited transforms as far as I can tell.

I meant defining the animation in as geometry in a higherdimensional space.

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i_am_proteus
Screwdrivers are not intended to be prybars. Jelly roll pans are not intended
to bake cookies. The Fender Bassman is not intended to be a guitar amp. A TV
tuner chip is not intended to be a general-purpose software-defined-radio
receiver. &c....

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DoctorOetker
But unlike prybars, cookie trays, guitar amps, SDR, ... there is no
minimalist, bloatless, turing incomplete, popular, open standard for
animations.

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chevas
Yet it has proven functional for certain animations for years with entire
websites devoted to the file format. At some point you let it be what it is.

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Mathnerd314
Needs a [1990] tag

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aspaceman
Sadly, there wasn't a better alternative. Especially on mobile.

HTML5 requires a tap, a gif doesn't. I think that's what made all the
difference in the world

Have there been attempts at alternatives that address the actual use cases for
GIF in the wild?

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journalctl
Animated PNG (APNG) seems like a decent alternative:
[https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/APNG](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/APNG)

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aspaceman
Based on that article, once Edge moves to Chromium based all the major
browsers (except IE) will have APNG support.

For folks more in the know: are there any political issues that would prevent
more widespread adoption? Or is it just that most folks are already on GIF and
it's "good enough".

I suppose GIF being in the common vernacular might make things tougher as
well.

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univacky
It also was intended to have its name pronounced like "JIF", but you know what
happens to intentions.

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bch
“The street finds its own uses for things”

-Burning Chrome

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teilo
And yet it moves.

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aaronbwebber
It's not intended to be pronounced with a hard G either, but that doesn't stop
people.

