According to Steve Wilhite it is pronounced “JIF” with a soft g (he should know, he invented it),  so it sounds like the peanut butter brand. That was his five word message, presented as an animated GIF,  when he received a Lifetime Achievement Award (at this years Webby Awards) for inventing the GIF file format in 1987.

You can see it all here in this short video.

Webby recipients are limited to a five word acceptance speech. i can think of several other award ceremonies that would benefit from that policy.

Not wanting to miss out on such a wonderful opportunity for self promotion, the Smucker’s company capitalized on the moment with a GIF of their own.

The GIF (short for Graphics Interchange Format) file format is widely used for 8 bit animated graphics on the internet.