Many a link-baiting slideshow and BuzzFeed post have been using animated GIFS, the moving images assembled from videos, sequences of photos or original animations.
But how did the initially cheesy, early computer and Internet age animation trick using a file format become the au courant method for obsessing over celebrities and being web-ready shorthand for expressing emotions? SXSW has the answer: According to the GIF artists and writers in “The Economy of the GIF,” you can blame your phone and microblogging platform Tumblr.
The GIF lineage goes something like this: they were first used in website banners and as quickie animations in those quaint AOL disc days of the Internet — and then Flash animation came along. Remember when websites resembled the futuristic, highly-interactive interfaces of science fiction films? With those slick drop-down menus and fancy moving ads? That was Flash.
Flash still exists, but with Apple and its iPhone (which famously does not support Flash-based animations or videos), web designers and animators and branding gurus had to rethink their media strategies. Suddenly, entire websites were rendered unreadable on phones and other mobile screens.
So as Flash fell out of fashion, simpler web designs prevailed and led to a GIF renaissance of sorts — because GIFs will still display on phones and tablets and other magic, mini computer devices. And it helps that social networking sites and phone web browsers have made using the Internet much more photo-centric (hence, Tumblr).
Plus, GIFs, says writer Lindsey Weber (who’s done some GIF work for BuzzFeed and New York magazine) are better representations of how we consume the Internet in 2013.
“[GIFs] span this space between photos and videos,” Weber says. “The GIF takes the best parts of a photo and the best parts of a video and puts them together. It’s just a better way to ingest that.”
And they’ve become so wildly popular, argues artist Jimmy Repeat (who’s GIFed for MTV in the past), they’ve become a new art form all in themselves.
“GIF is the new medium because it’s more of a challenge than a static image,” he says.
Perhaps their greatest claim to legitimacy is their looming legal precedent: Weber says GIF-related lawsuits and copyright cases are just around the bend — she’s come up against all kinds of rights issues with the GIFs she worked with.
But for now, there’s still plenty of GIF fun to be had. Just go on Tumblr and get lost for days.
Austin is a great place to touch grass, but locals and visitors will be seeing a few more screens downtown thanks to a newly approved initiative to install digital kiosks. Like the digital information boards people might see at a mall or festival, these kiosks will serve as compact information centers for transit tips, small business advertising, and more. Austin Economic Development is leading the initiative.
City Council approved the idea at its March 26 meeting (the same one that saw the approval of a resolution supporting front yard businesses — an impactful day at City Hall). In this case, the city is advancing an ordinance that amends City Code Chapter 25-10 to allow the kiosks.
According to a city newsletter, the kiosks will offer the following information and services:
- Transit routes and schedules that update in real time
- Small business directory that businesses do not pay to be included in
- Discounted advertising for small, local businesses
- Other tools for navigating the city
- Local event listings and other cultural happenings
- Civic information and emergency messaging
- Wi-Fi access
- Option to send information to users' phones
The city provided this mockup showing the scale of the machine and possible displays.Graphic courtesy of IKE Smart City via the City of Austin
The kiosks will be found in "high-activity areas" that aren't limited to downtown; locations haven't been finalized yet. The machines will adhere to ADA and federal accessibility standards, enabling users to adjust the screen height, view high-contrast and large-text configurations, and reach the interactive elements.
The city gets ahead of a few possible concerns, saying the kiosks won't be too obstructive in the space they take or the light they emit. These details will be overseen by Transportation and Public Works. It also says the kiosks "will not include cameras and are not designed to collect personal information from users."
Further, it emphasizes that the kiosks come at no cost to taxpayers. The machines are made by IKE Smart City, LLC, a Delaware company that has already installed similar models in other cities, including Houston and San Antonio. Advertising will generate revenue, which the city and IKE will share. The city's portion "can support public priorities, services, and community-serving initiatives," the newsletter says.
The city's next steps are to develop criteria for where the kiosks will be installed, engage the community, and ultimately settle on a phased deployment. The newsletter does not give a timeline for the project.
