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The GIF Format is Finally Patent-Free

tonymercmobily writes "Not many people noticed that the GIF file format is only now free from patents, as of the 1st of October 2006. Quick recap: first in 1999 Unisys tried to extort money from users and developers. Then, in 2003 the world hoped that the saga would finally be over. Then, in 2004, it was IBM's turn. Now, the SAGA seems to be over for real! Does anybody find Unisys' page on GIF as hilarious as I do...?"

4 of 369 comments (clear)

  1. Re:killed the format by Cheeze · · Score: 0, Troll

    common to whom? The only thing it's used for these days is cheesy animated banner ads, but that's quickly being replaced with flash and java stuff. There are some applications like transparency that people still use it for, but professional web designers would probably be required to put a little more thought into their work.

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    Why read the article when I can just make up a snap judgement?
  2. Re:Just in time... by robyannetta · · Score: 0, Troll

    Why hasn't the F/OSS community attempted to create a patent-free high-quality graphics format?

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    - Just my $0.02, take with a grain of salt, your mileage may vary.
  3. Suspension of Habeas Corpus by tmjva · · Score: 0, Troll

    Anyone notice the suspension of Habeas Corpus in the bill? Why if your suspected of supporting terrorism, you could simply disappea...

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    Tracy Johnson
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  4. experiencing the better web by roman_mir · · Score: 0, Troll