Animated .gif files in Captivate - why doesn't it work?

[Big4_ISD]

OS:                         XP

Captivate Version:      3

I was e-mailed an animated .gif that I want to use in a project I'm working on.

I saved the .gif to a drive.  I then clicked Insert - Animation and selected it.  I received a message stating This is not an animated GIF file or file in use.  If I click Insert - Image, it brings in the image but the file is not animated.

Just for testing purposes, I moved the .gif file by itself on to the web server.  When I access it through Internet Explorer on the web server, it works.

How do I get the file to animate in Captivate?

Your help is appreciated.  Thanks.

[Big4_ISD]

Update

After my post, I tried copying the attachment directly from the e-mail and posting it to a different drive.  This time, when I selected Insert - Animation, it inserted; I did not get the same message.  I think the first time I renamed the .gif file and then changed the name back to the original name.  In that process, it must have done something to the file.

However, there are still no signs of the animation working in Captivate.  Even though the file has been inserted, I can't see the image at all.

So my question remains the same - how do I get this file to work in Captviate?

Again, I appreciate your help.  Thanks.

[Lilybiri]

Hello,

Do not have an answer to your problem. Animated GIF's that I have been creating (in Photoshop) are imported, and converted in CP4 without any problems. Indeed if I try to import your GIF as an Animation (Image has no sense, it will always be static in that case) it is imported but I get an empty image. And I cannot open the animation itself in PS.

Did you try to convert the GIF to a SWF? There are several free converters, but I am not able to recommend one.

Lilybiri

[Big4_ISD]

Lilybiri,

Based on your message, I did download software (7 day trial) and tried converting it.  I then inserted the .swf file into Captivate.  That didn't work.  A still image is inserted-- there is no animation.  My lack of familiarity with the conversion tool may have contributed to this result.

Thanks for your suggestion, though, I appreciate it.  It looks like this question will get filed under "unsolved mysteries".

Thanks again.

[Big4_ISD]

Based on your suggestion, I downloaded software (7 day trial) and converted the file into the .swf format.  Unfortunately, Captivate still treats it as a still image.

For testing purposes, I posted the .swf file to an internal intranet and opened it using Internet Explorer.  The .swf file remained a still image.  Even the original .gif file animated when I tried it in the same test.

My lack of familiarity with the conversion tool could have been part of the problem, too.

I appreciate the suggestion, though.  Thanks.

[jay fresno]

I wasn't able to open your GIF animation in Photoshop and nothing appeared in Captivate when I inserted it -- the same experience that you had. I tried an experiment with a very simple GIF animation that I created from scratch in Photoshop CS4. When I tried to insert this simple animation into Captivate 4, a message appeared that Captivate was converting. It never finished converting and eventually hung Captivate and had to force it to quit.

Since Lilybiri is able to insert Photoshop animated GIFs into Captivate without any problems, it may be that there are some version incompatibilities. It would be interesting to know which versions of Photoshop and Captivate Lilybiri is using and which versions you are using. It would also be interesting to know if Lilybiri is using transparency in the GIF, and which settings are being used when saving the GIF.

[Lilybiri]

Hello,

The animation I tried to insert in CP4 was created in PS CS3 (still waiting for CS4), and yes, it did have transparent pixels. Everything worked fine, even though the animation was too large for the CP-resolution, CP happily converted it and inserted it on the slide.

Lilybiri

[jay fresno]

I opened my simple animation in Photoshop CS3, saved it using Save for Web and Devices, and it still didn't insert into Captivate 4. The Running Man animation inserted just fine in PowerPoint, but my animated GIF saved from Photoshop wasn't recognized by PowerPoint. This doesn't solve the problem, but shows that not all animated GIFs are equal as far as PowerPoint and Captivate are concerned.

[Lilybiri]

Hello, <http://frontmail1.kahosl.be/exchweb/img/justify-l.gif>

This is really puzzling. Althoug mostly I prefer SWF's as animations to animated GIF, I would like to know something more about it. I just tried another animation (not a very nice one, meant for an exam Photoshop) and it imported all right as well in PPT 2007 as in CP4. In this animation I made use of layers and tweening, this time no transparency.

If you have the time to try, I include this animation. Perhaps you could attach yours to have it tried here?

[jay fresno]

Lilybiri,

Would you mind re-posting your GIF animation? When clicking the link in your post, nothing happens. When I copied and pasted the link into the browser, all I got was a static image that looks like horizontal lines.

I've uploaded the GIF animation I created that doesn't insert into either Captivate 4 or PowerPoint. Actually, I was able to insert it into PowerPoint 2007 (but not 2003), but it inserts as only the first frame and is static. There are only two frames in the animation.

https://www.sendthisfile.com/362tWupmi3ahzWJguOqKM3fM

[Lilybiri]

Hello,

Apparently there were some problems with the webmailserver of our college, sorry for that.

For the moment I'm at school, teaching all day. I'll try to send the animation this evening when I get home (now 8:52 AM here). I will also try inserting your animation in CP and PPT 2007.

Lilybiri

[Lilybiri]

Hello,

Got home. I tried your animation, it is importing as a static image in PPT 2007, and I could import it as an animation in CP4. I think it is an animation: the black square is duplicated after a while in another region.

I'l attach one of my animations, that can be imported in CP4, has been created in PS3.

[jay fresno]

Hi Lilybiri,

The animation that you sent works in PowerPoint, but does not insert into Captivate 4. In Captivate nothing happens and the program hangs. Yes, my animation is just a square that changes position. I guess this issue of GIF animations will just have to remain yet another one of those Adobe unsolved mysteries.

[Lilybiri]

Strange, because I could insert it in CP. I had to wait sometime, but it converted and played well.

Life would be boring without mysteries, do you agree?

Lilybiri

[Big4_ISD]

Jay,

I was trying to insert the animation into a file created in Captivate 3.  I do not know what program the image was created in.  The image is part of an internal technology application.  I asked someone on the development team to send the animation to me, which she did.  When I made the request, I was actually expecting the file to be a .swf file, not a .gif file.  That tells you how much I know!

I appreciate you interest in this challenge.  Thanks.