Stephen E. Wilhite, the "dad" of the Gif format (Graphics Interchange Format), has died aged 74.
Born on March 3, 1948, he died of complications related to Covid on March 14, but the news only circulated in these hours.
Initially, in the late 1980s, the Gif format was not meant for "memes" and animated images but wanted to offer a way to facilitate the download of color images at a time when Internet speed was completely different from today.
Wilhite, at the time of the invention, was employed at CompuServe and has always been out of the spotlight over time.
After retiring in the early 2000s, he spent his life traveling and building model trains in the basement of his home: "Even with all his accomplishments, he remained a very humble, kind and good man," said his wife. Kathaleen.
(Unioneonline / ss)
