What are animated GIFs

An animated gif consists of a series of frames that are played one after the other giving a semblance of animation. This is similar to traditional animation technique where frames are displayed in quick succession. Also, in animated gifs you can control the time for which each frame is displayed.
In simplest terms, the frames of an animated gif can be considered as individual images. Each frame is displayed for a specific amount of time and is followed by the next. Displaying one frame after the other results in an animated web gif image.

There are several programs available (and some of them are free) for creating animated gifs. Though these programs might differ from each other in their interfaces, the procedure for creating animated gifs is the same.

As you read along this section, you will learn how to create a simple animated gif image. We'll first make the individual images in an image editing program and then export these into the Gif animation software, which will compile all images into one animated gif.

Animated gifs are typically used on a web page to attract visitors attention as . However, always remember to use them in moderation. Excessive use of animated gif images on a web page is very distracting and is surely a major irritant. Remember, visitors come to your site for information not to look at your annoying animated gif creations. Finally, do not have animated gifs that loop endlessly.
Another use of Gif images on the web is in animated Gif banners and the reason is again the same... animation attracts the visitors attention.