Since the creation of the online avatar, or icon, users have endeavored to make them as eye-catching as possible. Icons, which are pictures that identify a user on a message board, journal or other website, are just as often made animated as they are made in still form. In some ways, making animated icons has gotten more complex over the years, but the basic steps remain the same. You can make animated icons online in several different ways, including the use of downloaded programs, YouTube and the Windows MovieMaker program.
Instructions
1. Determine the type of animated icon you would like to make. Icons from videos must be made using an existing video file and a video program such as Windows MovieMaker, while animated image-and-text icons can be made as moving GIF files with programs like UnFreez, The Gimp, Paint Shop Pro and PhotoShop. Purchase or download the required programs for your type of animated icon, using the links in the Resources.
2. Gather the pictures or video file that you wish to make icons from. If making an animated icon from still pictures, open the pictures in your chosen image editing program. If making a video icon, open the video in Windows MovieMaker.
3. Edit all pictures and video as desired, using the programs. You may wish to add text to certain frames, or still images, which you should do before you start the animation process. The editing method will differ depending on the program. For example, in Paint Shop Pro and PhotoShop, you can use the text function to add text in any font to your still images. You can also draw on or otherwise alter the images from their original states. Save all still images as .gif, and make sure that they are all the same size, which is usually 100 pixels by 100 pixels for icons.
4. Specify a delay time for each still image, which makes the icon pause for a certain amount of time before changing to the next still image. Set the animation to loop, so that the icon continues playing over and over again, then set the image type to animated GIF and save it to your computer. If using a video, put your video into the timeline in Windows MovieMaker, save it, and open GifNinja.Com. Click "convert video to GIF" and upload your video to the site. Click "make my GIF," then save the resulting image by right-clicking and choosing "Save As."
