Image macro
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An image macro is a term coined for a picture with superimposed text, often for humorous effect. It is not to be confused with macro photography.
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[edit] Internet forums
On internet forums and imageboards, image macros are used to emphasize a certain phrase (often an Internet meme) by superimposing it over a related picture. In some forums, use of image macros outside of certain subforums is seen as annoying or disruptive and may be prohibited.
[edit] Formats
Although they come in many forms, the most common type of image macro is a photograph with large text superimposed in Impact font, using all upper case letters and coloured white with a thin black outline.
One of the more famous image macros is "O RLY?" O RLY is often used on the internet as an abbreviation for the phrase "Oh, really?" Originally started with a snowy owl photograph (which is the classic O RLY image macro)[1], it spread out over the Web quickly and was followed by other macros that convey a wide range of emotions. Another style of image macro that has amassed its own separate subculture is the "lolcat", a photo of a cat with a humorous or idiosyncratic caption.
[edit] Etymology
The name "image macro" was first used on the Something Awful forums[2]. The name derived from the fact that the 'macros' were a short bit of text a user could enter that the forum software would automatically parse and expand into the code for a pre-defined image[2], relating to the computer science topic of a macro, defined as "a rule or pattern that specifies how a certain input sequence (often a sequence of characters) should be mapped to an output sequence (also often a sequence of characters) according to a defined procedure."
Though modern-day image macros may not follow the literal concept of a macro, the name is still often used in accordance with their definition as described above.
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ Stephen Phillips (2006-01-18). "Internet Term of the Week". The Independent Tiger Weekly. http://tigerweekly.com/article/01-18-2006/1524. Retrieved on 2007-08-06.
- ^ a b "SAClopedia entry for "image macro"". Something Awful SAClopedia. http://forums.somethingawful.com/dictionary.php?act=3&topicid=83. Retrieved on 2008-07-28.
