libnsgif ☆

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Description:
Decoding library for the GIF image file format

Type: Formula | Tracked Since: Dec 28, 2025

Links: Homepage | formulae.brew.sh

Category: Multimedia

Tags: gif image-decoding c-library multimedia graphics

Install: brew install libnsgif

About:
Libnsgif is a lightweight, standalone C library designed for decoding GIF image files. It provides a robust and efficient API for extracting raw pixel data and frame information from GIF streams. Its primary value is enabling GIF support in applications without the overhead of larger, more complex image processing libraries.

Key Features:

Written in C for portability and minimal dependencies
Provides a simple, non-blocking decoding API
Supports animated GIFs by decoding frames sequentially
Can output raw pixel data in 32-bit ARGB format

Use Cases:

Integrating GIF support into custom web browsers or renderers
Building lightweight image viewers for embedded systems
Processing GIF files in server-side applications

Alternatives:

giflib – giflib is a widely used, more feature-complete library, while libnsgif is designed to be smaller and simpler for specific use cases.
libvips – libvips is a full-featured image processing suite; libnsgif is a specialized decoder focused solely on GIF format.

Version History

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