Chromium Adds Support For Animated PNGs

[Delgarde]

webm is an audio/video format and quite a complex one at that, it requires a lot of code to parse properly. APNG is *much* simpler in this regard and serves a different purpose. For short, few-second long looping animations, webm is total overkill.

True - but the code required to parse WebM is going to exist regardless. So while APNG might be a simpler format, it's still the choice that involves adding extra complexity to the system..

APNG is something that's simply *needed*, so the PNG folks should show some flexibility here . Especially now that real-life usage is against them - when it was just Mozilla, that was one thing, but now with other browsers getting on board, the situation is quite a bit different.

Eh, maybe. But well, APNG support was added to Firefox around thirteen years ago - and in all that time, nobody has cared, nobody has bothered using it, even in the days before Chrome when Firefox was the big alternative to IE. So, it's interesting that Chrome have suddenly decided to add support... but I still don't think it'll go anywhere.

[M@yeulC]

A replacement for GIF was long overdue. And I don't think that mp4/webm is the solution. As far as I know, it is pretty hard to add them with transparency, and lossless compression right now.

I have been using APNGs here and there for a while, and I wouldn't be surprised if the google chrome adoption meant that we will see this format thrive overnight. Of course, the various libraries/tools out there will have to add support first.

Bye, animated advertisement with dithering and 16 bit colors. Welcome to HDR animated ads! :P
(I am not sure (A)PNG supports HDR, by the way. Maybe with some extensions?)

[liyuxi972822596]

Do you know WebP everybody?I believe Google don't support APNG to support WebP,a Open Image Format developed by Google,it support high color standard, metadata and animated.

[liyuxi972822596]

Do you know Google WebP,everybody?a open image format developed by Google,support high color depth,metadata and animated.Why Chromium don't support it long time?Because it!Why Google support it know?Because Apple and Mozilla all support it!I think Chromium when to support MATHML?

[PieterDeBruijn]

A replacement for GIF was long overdue. And I don't think that mp4/webm is the solution. As far as I know, it is pretty hard to add them with transparency, and lossless compression right now.

That's exactly where WebP shines; It's the webm version of images:
Lossy, lossless, transparency, Alpha channel, smaller, web-optimization, etc.

A great replacement for jpg(2000), (a)png and gif altogether.

[uid313]

Now if it could only support Wayland also... 🙄

[Vistaus]

why? webm has already replaced gif in most places

Well, I guess I'm visiting the wrong websites then 'cause from the moment since WebM first surfaced up to this very day, I've only come across WebM stuff (where otherwise GIF would've been used) on a handful of sites...

[chithanh]

WebM is an open standard which is better suited for short video clips.
APNG is a proprietary Mozilla format and only really useful for optimizing existing GIFs.

Add to that the disregard for open standards which the APNG authors displayed, I don't see how support for APNG in Chrome is a reason for celebration.
WebP is also a proprietary image format by Google, but at least it didn't try to hijack PNG and is better suited for video clips than APNG.

[hajj_3]

Now all we need to go is argue over how APNG is pronounced ah-ping, app-en-gee, ahh-pee-en-gee, ahh-pee-en-jay

i think you mean ayyy-pee-en-jee

[maxst]

APNG is a proprietary Mozilla format and only really useful for optimizing existing GIFs.

WebP is also a proprietary image format by Google

What makes them proprietary? Am I not allowed to read the specs and implement them?