Animated .gif

If you are speaking of your avatar it is working fine. I see a wolf running.

Weird. I see a clown tap dancing.

Looks good to me!

GIFs on most message board websites will stop after a few minutes. Maybe you looked at the GIF after the page had been open for a while.

And a fine looking wolf at that:)

Hmmm. The concesus is everyone sees my road dog running under the moon. That's good. What's strange is I don't see anything but a static gif. I do see all the animated gifs perfectly from other members though. Well... I'm not going to worry about it. I have to study the POI file formats and figure out what to use for my Nuvi 750 CSV or GPX. Maybe both? BTW, I did find a POI file on the Nuvi 750. It came preloaded with the Mad Maps Route 66 POI. Like an idiot I followed some instructions on the Garmin site and managed to delete the Mad Maps Route 66 POI. Now I just have an empty POI file on my Nuvi. Maybe I can find it here or maybe on the Mad Maps site.

If this is really true for you (and I'm finding more and more things reported in this forum to be inaccurate), then it is not the doing of "most message boards". The boards don't keep downloading the frames, an animated gif contains all of the frames in one file. It also contain information about how long each frame should be displayed and how many times the sequence should repeat (this last is usually infinitely but could be as low as one). It is extremely unlikely that any board would modify an avatar file to change the number of cycles that an avatar should cycle through, so if you are actually seeing many boards cycle multiple times and then stop you should suspect your display program (browser).

Similarly, if the original poster isn't seeing the animation, he should check the gif in a known good viewer (I suggest the great free image viewer IrfanView) and confirm that the animation works there. You should also be able to right click on the avatar in the browser and save it, then confirm that it still works by looking at it in a viewer. The likely fix for the original poster's problem is to use a different browser (I suggest Firefox) or to check his browser settings to see if animations are disabled.

You fail to realize that some websites have software that controls the number of repetitions animated GIFs are allowed. With such software you can elect to allow the animated GIFs to cycle through each frame just once and then stop, allow it to loop forever...or stop the animation at "x" repetition.

Yes, I fail to realize that. In fact I still fail to believe it. Since the website doesn't resend anything to make the animation happen, why would any website modify a gif just so that it stops after X cycles? Can you post the address of any such site?

I'm certainly not saying that some sites don't have gifs of their own where they have set the number of animation cycles to display to a set number, some artist do indeed like to create some gifs that way. And similarly if a user created and uploaded an avatar with a fixed number of cycles of an animation, then the site would certainly download it and the avatar would display for a fixed number of cycles. But if a normal animated avatar set for unlimited animation cycles is uploaded to a site, it should display for an unlimited number of cycles, or the cause of it to stop is the browser, not the website.

I have 3 computers. All are running Firefox 3.5.3.

The operating systems are Vista Home Premium, XP Pro, and Windows 7 Ultimate RC. All are updated with the latest service packs and security downloads.

On the Vista and Windows 7 machines I see my avatar as an animated GIF of an EYE but see no animation, just the eye.

On the XP machine a see the avatar as an animated GIF of an astronaut holding an American Flag.

Before you ask, all 3 machines have been rebooted and at one time or the other I have uploaded both the gif files to the poi-factory site.

I'm wondering firstly what do you folks see and secondly any ideas about how different machines would show different gifs.

I'm seeing the eye. I downloaded the eye and it seems to be a single frame gif, so no animation is seen or expected.

Here's my theory on what may be going wrong for you: While a website can detect the OS and / or browser and download different images based on that information, there would be no reason for POI factory to do that. What is much more likely is that one or two of your systems have the older image in their browser cache and so when you view the image with that browser on that system, you don't download the newer image and the browser just displays the old image. Since you're using firefox, here is how to clear the cache: In the menus select Tools > Options > Advanced > Network - In the Cache section click "Clear Now" . Please let me know if this helps.

If you expect the eye to be animated, why? How did you create it? As far as I can tell it is not an animated gif.

I'm not to worried about the eye. It's suppose to flash so it makes it look like it's blinking. Works fine in Irfanview but not on this site. No biggy but if you have a suggestion I'm all ears or eyes .

I'll clear the caches out on all the units and see if that at least gets them all showing the same gif.

Thanks to the suggestions.

UPDATE - clearing the cache has now made all 3 units show the same gif. Thanks.

At one point in the past your Gif was flashing.

I do recall seeing it flash but not now.

If you want to check the 'eye out there is one at:

http://www.webdeveloper.com/animations/e.html

Glad to hear that clearing the caches resolved the issue, although that really was about the only thing that it could be.

The eye that is attached to your post does not seem to be an animated GIF. When I saved it from Firefox I got a 6K gif file named picture-20843.gif. That file does NOT blink in IrfanView. How big is the file that does blink? I suspect that POI factory has the wrong version of the file, and that if you upload the blinking GIF file again, and clear your cache, you will see it start blinking. Other users may have to wait for the cache to expire or clear their cache to see it start blinking after you do a new upload.

http://www.webdeveloper.com/animations/bnifiles/eyeflash.gif

Frovingslosh, the gif I downloaded is the one that Koot notes above. It's called eyeflash.gif. It works fine in Irfanview and in Window's Picture and Fax Viewer.

This is the file I uploaded to POI-Factory:

C:\Documents and Settings\xxxxxxxxx\Desktop\eyeflash.gif

yet here is what it shows as in POI-Factory:

http://www.poi-factory.com/files/pictures/picture-20843.gif

The file I upload is 15KB in size while the one that gets listed is 6KB.

I have no idea what is happening

The Eyeflash GIF you want (and uploaded to POI-Factory) has a frame count of "3", meaning there are three frames in the animation. However, this GIF on the POI-Factory website has a frame count of only "1". Thus, there is no animation on POI-Factory's website.

You can check this yourself by right clicking on the original image ( http://www.webdeveloper.com/animations/bnifiles/eyeflash.gif ) and choosing "Properties", then "Summary". (You'll see the number of "Frames" the GIF has is 3.) To check the GIF on this website; Save As your Eyeflash GIF from the POI-Factory website to your My Pictures folder...and choose "Properties", then "Summary". (You'll see the number of "Frames" the GIF has is only 1.) The original GIF has 3 frames, but only 1 frame on the website.

Note: This is what I was telling "Frovingslosh" (above) - just because an original animated GIF has "x" properties does not mean that after it's loaded on a message board/forum website it will have the same "x" properties.

Hitting ESC key will make your animated gif stop. Also some addons for firefox and stop animated gifs from playing.

This was discussed many months ago, how to do it and the size of it. click on the link and read thru it and it will answer a whole lot.

http://www.poi-factory.com/node/16132

Thanks for the link. Turns out my problem was the gif was 95 x 95. When I resized it and uploaded it again it works as advertized.

Now that I see it I don't think I like it flashing but at least I know how to do it now.

Thanks again.

If your browser has an old avatar in cashe that is what you will see...if you clear history you will see what is new...

keep them coming.

I just want to know where all you clever folks get these (usually) animated avatars?

I would love something more interesting than a dumb static tank - perhaps a moving tank.... Is there a library where you can "liberate" a design you like or does it have to be another DYI project?

No need to tank me either...

Websites that allow avatars almost always limit the size. This is important to do, as you don't want someone with a 8x10 inch avatar or an animated avatar that takes hundreds of megs of space and shows an entire motion picture. So forums will limit file stpace and many will resize avatars that are larger than what they permit (others may just reject oversized avatars). What is happening here is that the forum is trying to resize the avatar, but it is actually only making a new gif of the first frame. So the new gif is not what was uploaded and is not animated.

I have no doubts that forums may resize a gif and the simple way that is done replaces an animated gif with a satic one. But what I questioned and says does not happen is the claim that an animated gif that is created to cycle infinately is ever replaced by a forum with another animated gif that cycles for a limited number of times and then stops automatically. That was the original claim and that just does not happen.

The animated blink shown above certainly does blink too fast. But there is software that allows for the creation of animated gifs and such software should allow you to set the time that each frame of the animation is displayed. This blink animation could be "fixed" simply by slowing it down and by displaying the open eye image for a much longer time than the other images.

Glad to see we're all good now

Many animated GIFs on this thread

There are ton of them at http://www.webdeveloper.com/animations/

Also a Google search of "free animated gif" will get you lots more.

As the folks here have been so helpful with the problem I was having, I'll point out the one thing that made all the difference for me - run your gif file through http://www.gifworks.com/image_editor.html and make sure you resize the one you pick to 85 x 85 pixels.

Being new to this, I was wondering if there is a particular software program you'd recommend to create and modify animated gif files?

It has been a very long time since I've had occasion to make animated Gifs. Assuming that you want free software and are using the Windows platform, one of the tools that I used was Animagic. There was another that I can't recall the name of, and I honestly can't remember the benefits of each contrasted to the other. So Animagic might be a place to start, it still seems to exists. But I hardly know what is currently available and their certainly might be better choices that were not even options when I was making animated gif files. Google is your friend, a few searches should turn up a lot.

Yo kind and gentile Rayzers,
I have replied (2X), but keep getting bounced by your security settings - yikes! I will try again with another account as I really do want to take advantage of your generosity!

Yours in SPAM protection,
DFSNapa

and nothing there DFSNapa. What kind of message are you getting? I have the normal spam filters, but nothing special.

Try Emailing Rayzers@Comcast.net
Hope this works for you

tanks a lot:)

I will try from another e-mail account.

Nice avatar - I wish I had one like that!

Tanks for hanging in there with me on this.

Cheers,

And a few to select from.

Send me your email address and I will send you a custom made just for you POI Factory Animated gif.

This holds true for anyone else, just give me a clue to the direction of what you want. They will all be branded to be used on the POI Factory.

Bob, you are so awesome;) I always get a kick out of your new avatars.

Miss POI

No kidding! I am like a kid at Christmas, waiting for what Santa Bob will send me....

Thanks Bob... It goes BOOM!!!!

That's a real sharp comment Rayzers!

I nominate BobDee to be honored as "Contributor Of The Week"...

Are doggin' me here with that comment Petlaur:)

Cool breakfast and a little comedy;) Great way to start a Sunday morning.

You guys crack me up.

Miss POI

Miss POI, is there any way within the forum software that users can select to not view animated avatars?

Do they drive you crazy too?

Yes. Can't stand them.

We are currently working on a face lift for the site. The forum structure will look much different.

The Avatars will be to the left of the screen, separate from the posts so you will be able to manipulate the size of your screen and scroll them off the page.

That is what I am planning on doing. They do strain the eyes after a while.

Miss POI

Thanks, Miss POI. You are awesome!

You mean my winking eye will get a shot of Murine and I will no longer be inflicted.

Gary Hayman

"And I can no longer shake my stick" Now that statement can be taken several ways depending on where your mind is.

Miss POI, did you have eggs for breakfast yesterday?...and to Rayzers, you're such a "Joker.":) That's it I better stop right there.