I HATE animated gifs. I'm completely with you, and would favor an informal moratorium on them in this forum, both as avatars (user icons) and within the threads themselves.

If you must animate, loop it like thrice and that's it.

hhp

You are all very right. And in support of your rightness I have reduced my previously infinite loop to no loop.

While we're on the topic of such annoyances, I feel the same way about signatures.

I feel the same way about all posts that I disagree with, or disagree with me.

Slow+Steady?! > /
Blow+Bloody?! > x

I feel the same about all these non-conformist free thinking radicals who's user icons are any size other than the requested 60x60 pixels. You all just make the place sooo untidy. Grrrr.

If you have a problem with that you can complain to
jon @ obsessivecompulsive.org

While I agree that animated gifs can be quite annoying, particularly if they recycle forever, I would rather put up with nausiating animated gifs than suggest further censorship of Typophile members.

ChrisL

Both animated GIFs and censorship have their place.
The trick isn't to banish, it's to relish. Or sauerkraut, depending.

hhp

Some browsers can stop the animation. Pressing ESC will do it in Firefox. I'm told that you can hit the Stop button in Internet Exploder to do the same.

Some animations are indeed annoying, but others (such as Eric_West's old one) are truly awe-inspiring.

s'marks

free thinking radicals who’s user icons are any size other than the requested 60x60 pixels.

Strange bedfellows, eh Hrant?

60x60px seems awfully small, given the amound of space the dateline takes up.

Nick, you lost me. But strange, yeah, everything pretty much is. Life itself seems so surreal to me these days. I look at stuff, and I think, come on, this can't really be happening.

hhp

"60x60px seems awfully small..."

It is an icon, not a mural. Anyone can come up with a decent icon within 60 pixels. It isn't just "how much space", it is overhead on page load. I would sure rather see pages load fast than turn the icon windows into a Soho gallery space. Look at Hrant's, his is only half that size and still reads well.

ChrisL

Haha. Ok. Yes, I agree. We need to stick to the requested dimension. But, Chris, you are guilty of filling some of the threads with much more than icons. ;^)

I think most of us are guilty of this one, Tiff.... ;-)

Filled them with groans? Now I am guilty :-/
Be careful Tiff, or I will ask Little Richard to come back :-D

ChrisL

I think it doesn't have to do with animating. It's 'how' it animates. Most animating icons draw too much attention it's true. But Nick's doesn't. I think it's just fine. I also think that Hrant probably has the single most effective icon here.

I have said it before but just for fun - my all time favorite is this one.

http://typophile.com/user/3247

It takes a while, but it's worth it. Basically after a minute the moth flys away & 20 seconds later it comes back. It so low key...

Anyway, I would be opposed to a moritorium.

HAha! Yes, true. We all fill threads with hot air. P^:

I was just poking fun. No harm, no foul. :^P

As the person who suggested the voluntary moratorium I'll just say there is a difference between a subtly animated gif like Stephen's and a butterfly madly flapping its wings in the middle of a thread. It also affects how seriously I take the content, and thus the user.

nuff said.

"It is an icon, not a mural."

Funny you should say that Chris. I've considered making all the 60x60px Typophile user icons into a giant mosaic/quilt style graphic. Wouldn't that be nice? It could make a rather pleasing, if somewhat noisy, desktop wallpaper.

The non-conformist regulars would need resizing though, otherwise Hrant would be conspicuous by his absence.

It also affects how seriously I take the content, and thus the user.

That's probably true for me too. Even although I hope I can seperate the text from the icon the icon probably does have an impact. Especially at first.

I also had zero arguement with the Stephen's animating icon.

Pedants may insist that user icons be primarily typographic in nature. Not that I ever would of course.

But I could go along with it if required...

"there is a difference between a subtly animated gif like Stephen’s and a butterfly madly flapping its wings in the middle of a thread."

I fully agree, though I thought you might bring up the madly flapping mammaries of another animated gif seen here recently.

Yes: It's just a visual cue to identify the poster quickly, not ad space. They could even be smaller and still function. I also don't want to be distracted by them while reading.

Jon,
They don't have to be type related or even look loike Crest Toothpaste. They can even be medieval vegetable broth :-)

ChrisL

This is a Flash-y site. How about only allowing animations on mouse over, which is of course, when it also zooms to 3x size? Even better still, details about the post author could pop out below it(a/s/l, online status, blood type, blog site, hey this could be endless) as well.~

> ... and a butterfly madly flapping its wings in the middle of a thread.

Patty, I dont love what you hate and do not hate what you love.
That butterfly was used as a mark to guide the addressed in a long thread.
It was deleted when he refrained from the answer.

> Pedants may insist that user icons be primarily typographic in nature.

Wormwood,
1. Do you judge a typophile by his/her icon?!
2. Do not you see beauty in the (curves of) Fish and Cats?!

smarks wrote:

Some browsers can stop the animation. Pressing ESC will do it in Firefox.

Firefox can also be configured to allow animated GIFs to play only once, or even to disable GIF animation altogether. See this article for details.

I would hate to see animated GIFs categorically banned around here; when used with restraint, as in Nick Shinn's avatar, animation can be very effective. I think avatar creation can be considered an art form in itself, and animation is a useful tool in the artist's toolbox.

Yes, not quite on par with the content of my post, eh? Bone waving like there´s no tomorrow. Actually, and I can just assume my animation is what bothered you the most, it was my first try with a new icon. I am getting tired of it, so I don't expect it will last long. All I need is to find a striking picture of my cat, shouldn't take all day. I have a bunch. I'm quite the softie you see. OK, I'm doing it right now.

ƒ

They don’t have to be type related or even look loike Crest Toothpaste. They can even be medieval vegetable broth :-)

You're not wrong Chris. Works a treat...

Mmmmm, broth.

Brilliant idea... hows about the first ever "Typophile Food Avatar Day". Who's with me?

> Pedants may insist that user icons be primarily typographic in nature.

Wormwood,
1. Do you judge a typophile by his/her icon?!
2. Do not you see beauty in the (curves of) Fish and Cats?!

Aziz, I'm not sure what you think I was saying. I was joking. Maybe you are too. I can't tell :)

1. Never. But I always see the beauty in them.
2. Always. But I never judge a Fish or Cat by his/her icon.

Not even Martha Stewart could come up with a lovlier dish, Jon (well maybe when she was in jail) :-P

ChrisL

I'd never heard of Martha Stewart, so I guess she's a US institution. Google led me to her website where I found the laugh of the day...

TODAY'S IDEA FROM MARTHA
“ On a bright afternoon, dry the laundry outdoors to conserve energy. ”

Genius that Martha, pure genius.

I like the thought she has a dark side though. Mmmm, naughty. What was she jailed for?

Me and Martha in penitentiary C - O - O - K - I - N - G

She was jailed for unfair trading of stock--a fine American wholesome white-collar crime.
Here is her diary from prison:

http://www.bobfromaccounting.com/10_2004/marthadiary.html

Oh, and here is my entry for the food icon:

ChrisL

The more newslike story on Martha is at:

http://money.cnn.com/2004/07/16/news/newsmakers/martha_sentencing/

ChrisL

Never heard of Martha Stewart!?! Wow, didn't know that was possible.

I worked for her husband back when she was married. She was a total byotch, the rumors are true. Treated me like a serf. Has the coldest fish eyes I've ever seen.

So her comparing herself to Nelson Mandella is quite a stretch then?

ChrisL

Did Nelson Mandela ever back his SUV up over a tray of chicks that hatched too soon?

I don't know if that story is true or apocryphal but I can believe it, having dealt with her.

That said, tho, I have friends who work for MS Living and love it.

No, Nelson's only transgression was freeing his people--for that, he got a MUCH longer sentence in a much nastier jail than poor little Miss Martha.

ChrisL

Here's a nice food picture for you, a bowl of traditional Finnish Easter delicacy called mämmi

What is in that stuff Mili?

ChrisL

Water, malt and rye. Often served with cream and sugar. It's very nice, even though it doesn't look it

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mämmi

Gee, skip the cream and sugar, add some yeast, and you could make beer. ;-)

I will take your word for it, Mili.

The dish I pictured is Greek spanokopita--spinich, feta cheese, filo pastery, and herbs. Very tasty. I never find it made as well as my Grandmother's though but I keep hoping :-)

ChrisL

I've made it a few times, but never have gotten the hang of it -- my baklava, OTOH, is pretty good....

The tough part, Linda, is keeping the pastry flaky and buttery while keeping the spinich filling moist. Most of the time, you get both dry or both soggy. Yiayia knew how to do it!

ChrisL

I had a great one in Victoria last month, as a take away, no less: the secret has to do with high heat to crisp up the base, and squeezing out the moisture from the cheese in the filling.

(And it's "spinach" the last time I looked, unless you've hybridized some new sort of veggie....) ;-)

The way I spell vegetables, I could have been a vice president a few years back :-)

ChrisL