.gif --> jif or gif

[Jessica Sant]

so... on the heals of thegooey/GUI post....
what is the correct pronunciation of .gif?
gif like gift? or jif like giraffe?
I've got a friend who cringes every time someone says jif -- but that just sounds right!

[Randall Twede]

while we are at it how is .jpg pronounced?
i always figured .gif was gif not jif and call .jpg j-peg

[Jason Menard]

jpg -> "jay-peg"
gif -> *as in gift
* I have heard people call it a "jif" but to me that is like fingernails being drageed across a chalkboard. The 'g' in gif stands for "graphic" so to me the 'g' should be hard, not a soft 'j' sound.

[Matthew Phillips]

Definately gift.

[Jim Yingst]

JPEG and JPG are both J-peg to me. GIF is less clear - I usually think and say gif (hard g), but I'm willing to use jif if that's what folks around me are using. I will use both in the same sentence just to confuse people.
Most of these pronunciation questions, I don't care much really. The exception is linux - people who say lie-nicks really grate on me, and are to be avoided. If they want to be purist about the linux/Linus connection, it should be lee-nooks. Otherwise linnicks is preferred. Lie-nicks is just plain ugly.

[Rob Ross]

speaking of gifts, the Unysis patent expires in June of 2003, at which time gifs can re-enter the mainstream of tools unencumbered by excessive royalties to that stupid company.
I've got it circled in my calendar

[Matthew Phillips]

I have to agree on lie-nicks. That's just annoying.

[Jason Menard]

Originally posted by Rob Ross:
speaking of gifts, the Unysis patent expires in June of 2003, at which time gifs can re-enter the mainstream of tools unencumbered by excessive royalties to that stupid company.
I've got it circled in my calendar

I had always thought that it was Compuserve who owned the patent on GIF. Did they sell it to Unisys or have I been mistaken all this time?

[Gregg Bolinger]

What about Linux. Is it Linux where the 'i' is as in Stick or Linux where the 'i' is as in Tide.

[Michael Matola]

Originally posted by Jason Menard:
The 'g' in gif stands for "graphic" so to me the 'g' should be hard, not a soft 'j' sound.

Would you likewise pronounce OSHA as "oss-ha" because of how the "o" is pronounced in "occupation," of how the "s" is pronounced in "safety"?...
I'm not arguing against pronouncing the "g" in "gif" hard. I just don't think the reason you gave for doing so is a very good one.

[Rob Ross]

Originally posted by Jason Menard:

I had always thought that it was Compuserve who owned the patent on GIF. Did they sell it to Unisys or have I been mistaken all this time?

What happened was that compuserve developed the gif format based on a patented compression algorithm that wasn't enforced until years later, when the whole world was using gifs.
< rant >
That's why EVERYONE should vigorously oppose allowing ANY standards body to rely on proprietary, patented, or otherwise non-freely available technology in the Standard. Otherwise you end up with situations like the whole Gif fiasco.
< / rant >
Anyway, compuserve had to pay a lot of royalties to this company (I forget now who it was) but eventually Unisys bought the patent, and became grade A-1 anti-cooperative a*holes and started charging everyone left and right for the privledge to even use a gif on their website.
Interesting how they've recently partnered with Microsoft to slam Unix and Linux.

[Jason Menard]

Originally posted by Michael Matola:

Would you likewise pronounce OSHA as "oss-ha" because of how the "o" is pronounced in "occupation," of how the "s" is pronounced in "safety"?...
I'm not arguing against pronouncing the "g" in "gif" hard. I just don't think the reason you gave for doing so is a very good one.

No, but saying gif with the hard g is consitant with normal English pronunciation, whereas "oss-ha" isn't. It's not a hard and fast rule for every acronym in the use.

[Randall Twede]

hmmm, noone i knows pays anything to have gifs on their site. they would have to send the devil himself to collect even a penny from me. anyway unless its animated i usually use jpg anyway.

[Cindy Glass]

If you prounce a .gif file "jif" tehn someone is going to think that it is a file about Peanut Butter .

[paul wheaton]

In 1995 I had a booth at a conference and the booth next door was "The Giffy Girls". They used a hard G (as in "gift"). They got naked in our booth, so I don't care what anybody else says, I'm sticking with the hard G.

[Johnson Chong]

I usually think of gif as jif. Now that I've learn that gif is as in gift, I would tell everybody I know in my country that gif is as in gift. Wow!This is a whole new experience to me, it's so exciting. Wait till I see their expression when I speak of gif as in gift.

[Randall Twede]

oh yeah giffy girls mmm_mmm

[Randall Twede]

yeah jif is already taken by a peanut butter company anyway

[Jim Yingst]

I have to say, Paul provides the most compelling argument so far.