Scott wrote:
I know y'all are discussing DOS-based GIF -> PNG converters, but in case no one has checked, Linux comes with gif2png, an open source converter that could be used in Xfractint.
We can modify gif2png in a way that preserves GOF extension blocks. As we discussed elsewhere, PNG has a chunk defined for exactly that purpose. I lobbied for it because I had fractint in mind. We can't use a gif2png utility that drops the fractal data. Here's some amusing ancient history. I implemented saving fractal data in a GIF in 1988. Originally, fractint put the data neatly after the GIF terminator. Then Compuserve started "cleaning" all the GIFs folks uploaded, thereby stripping out the fractal data! Then GIF was developed mostly behind closed doors. We lobbied relentlessly for a GIF extension block to accomodate our data. When GIF89a came out, it had this feature. Then years later, I had to lobby for a PNG chunk to preserve GIF extension blocks. When we were writing the PNG spec, we thought (well, at least hoped) that it would sweep away GIF quickly. So it had to support close to 100% of the GIF feature set. Things didn't turn out the way we expected, but PNG has been pretty successful. But the explosion of the internet kept GIF alive. I don't want to exaggerate my role in GIF and PNG in telling this story, it was really pretty small. Tim