An example of an image macro
An image macro is a term recently coined for a picture with digitally superimposed text, often for humorous effect. It is not to be confused with macro photography.
Internet forums
On internet forums and imageboards, image macros are used to emphasize a certain phrase (often a clichéd Internet phrase or reference) 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.
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 most famous image macros is "O RLY?" O RLY is often used on the internet as slang 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 is now succeeded by many other photos that convey the entire spectrum of human 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.
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.
See Also
References
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