http://www.boutell.com/gd/ is the web page of the original author of the GIF creation library GD. Originally, when Compuserve created GIF, the file format most commonly used included a compression algorithm that was patented by UNISYS. When UNISYS began enforcing their patent, work on free GIF creation libraries shifted from generating compressed files using the patented algorithm to creating image files uncompressed.
The UNISYS patent has expired, and libgd is alive and well.
BR - ?? IANAL, and sources on the 'net are not really reliable for legal advice, but according to the LPF [L1 ] the patent will expire in June.
http://martin.gleeson.com/fly/installation.html http://www.rime.com.au/gd/