Steve Wilhite GIF pronunciation explained as creator dies aged 74 

The creator of the GIF, Stephen Wilhite, passed away after contracting COVID-19. He was 74 years old and passed away on March 14. The inventor was reportedly surrounded by his family at the time of passing.

Stephen Wilhite's obituary read:

“Even with all his accomplishments, he remained a very humble, kind, and good man.”

The creator worked on GIFS or Graphics Interchange Format, which is best used to create memes, reactions, and messages. Wilhite developed the same while working at CompuServe in the 1980s. He told The Daily Dot in 2012 that the first one he ever created was "a picture of a plane. It was a long time ago."

However, Wilhite retired in the early 2000s and spent his time traveling, camping, and building train models in his basement. Speaking of his passion for building train models, his wife Kathleen Wilhite said:

"When we had the house built, we actually had a whole section in the basement for his train room. He always did the designs and electric work for the layout."

The internet now revels in the video-like images and uses them across social media platforms. Although known by many, the correct pronunciation of the image format remains a topic of debate. However, Wilhite told The New York Times the correct manner of pronouncing 'GIF' in 2013:

“The Oxford English Dictionary accepts both pronunciations. They are wrong. It is a soft ‘G,’ pronounced ‘jif.’ End of story.”

While receiving a Webby Lifetime Achievement Award for the invention of the image format, he reiterated the correct pronunciation.

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Why did Stephen Wilhite create GIFs?

Although GIFs are now being used solely for internet memes these days, that was not the reason why such an image format was created. They were introduced in the 1980s as a way to distribute "high-quality, high-resolution graphics" in color at a time when internet speed was tremendously slow compared to the speed they are at today.

His wife, Kathleen, expressed that creating the image format was something he was most proud of. Speaking of him receiving the award, she said:

“After 25 years, they finally honored that achievement that he did."

In an interview with The New York Times, Wilhite revealed that his favorite GIF was of the dancing baby, which went viral before the term "meme" and "going viral" ever came into being.

Kathleen said that Wilhite created them "all by himself," and she added:

"He actually did that at home and brought it into work after he perfected it. He would figure out everything privately in his head and then go to town programming it on the computer."

Stephen Wilhite is survived by his wife Kathleen, his son David, and his stepchildren Rick Groves, Robin Landrum, Renee Bennett, and Rebecca Boaz. He is also survived by his 11 grandchildren and great-grandchildren.