Common graphics file format on the Internet. This format can display only 256 colors at the maximum (8 bits), therefore a GIF is mostly used to show clip-art images (photographic images are usually in the JPEG format). The GIF 89a standard allows multiple images in one file, so you can use a GIF file to show some animation on your Web site (also called an animated gif).

This is the most popular graphics format on the Internet (along with JPEG). It is generally the best format for simple graphics.

This is one of the most common types of image file.

Common graphics file format on the Internet. This format can display only 256 colors at the maximum (8 bits); therefore a GIF is mostly used to show clip-art images (photographic images are usually in the JPEG format). In some cases an animated GIF is used to show movement.

The GIF image format was developed by Compuserve and is widely used on the Internet due to its high compression (provided by Unisys) and subsequent small file size. GIF files can be interlaced and animated making them a popular choice for web designers, however, due to the format being limited to only 256 colours the JPEG image format is used for more colour demanding images such as photos. GIF files have the .gif file extension (click here for more on file extensions) and can be created and/or edited in most popular graphics applications such as Paint Shop Pro.