How GIFs work
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There are only two image formats that work on the web, GIF and JPEG.The way JPEGs work is complicated -- it uses a lot of complex maths.
The way GIFs work, on the other hand, is quite simple, and the things that make a GIF large or small in file size are quite easy to understand.
A good example is comparing the flag of France to the flag of Germany (don't worry if you don't know them).
If you have GIFs of the two flags, and they're exactly the same size in pixels, (say 6 tall by 15 wide, that's roughly the proportions of a flag) you'll notice that, when properly optimised, the flag of Germany is smaller in file size, although they have exactly the same number of colours.
Why? solve this mystery and you'll understand how GIFs work...
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