Animated Gifs in Email

Question

Level 1

8 points

Animated Gifs in Email

I want to attach animated gifs to my email messages. When I do, the images stay static and aren't animated.
My PC friends use Outlook Express to compose their email, and the animations work fine. I checked the information for Entourage and found that it doesn't support animated gifs. Does anyone know how to do this on the Mac, using Tiger 10.4.11?

iMac G5, Mac OS X (10.4.11)

Posted on Jul 17, 2008 12:35 PM

Reply

Answer 1

Mulder

Level 6

8,990 points

Jul 17, 2008 1:18 PM in response to square8

Neither Mail nor Entourage allow this on the mac, so you'd have to check out other Mac email programs for that ability. But that seems like a lot of work for a pointless animated GIF image. You'd be better off focusing your efforts on the actual message instead of the animated image.

Mulder

Reply

Answer 2

square8 Author

Level 1

8 points

Jul 17, 2008 1:28 PM in response to Mulder

I can see that you are very active on this forum and that you DO know what you're talking about!
Do you have any suggestions for other mail programs that I might use? I really don't know where to start my research on that. My emails are already pretty "snappy," and I would like them to be "unforgettable."

Thanks so much for your quick reply.

Reply

Answer 3

a brody

Level 10

83,001 points

Jul 17, 2008 1:35 PM in response to square8

Images have never really been standardized on any e-mail client. If you must deal with images, it is best to just point someone to a website that has content with images. Many people now because of phishing practices turn off images on e-mail to prevent themselves from being caught off guard. And attachments frequently can contain viruses that PC users also try to avoid. For additional reasons not to do images, see this page:
http://www.birdhouse.org/etc/evilmail.html

So even if you were to find an animated GIF compatible e-mail client for the Mac, only those users on the Mac who have the same version of the same e-mail client will be able to see what you are sending them.

Mac OS X Mail used to support animated GIFs under a certain version, but does no longer.

Reply

Answer 4

Mulder

Level 6

8,990 points

Jul 17, 2008 1:53 PM in response to square8

In order for this to work, you need to compose your email as HTML, which Mail does not support. You can send HTML email using a workaround:

1. Create your email (including the animated GIF89A format file) as HTML in a text editor or even something like Dreamweaver or SeaMonkey (an email client and HTML editor from Mozilla). Save the file with an HTML extension.
2. Drag the HTML file into a new Mail window; it should be rendered correctly if the file is correct.
3. Send it to your recipient.

You should test this several times by sending test emails with different HTML files to yourself before you try it on someone you know.

Mulder

Reply

Answer 5

Jul 26, 2008 7:27 PM in response to square8

You can send them in Mail in Tiger if you first select Unicode 8 as your text encoding, then format in bold. Your animations will work for the recipient. This won't work in Leopard, sadly. If anyone knows a way to do it in Leopard, I'd love to hear about it.

Reply

Answer 6

BDAqua

Level 10

239,363 points

Jul 26, 2008 8:13 PM in response to GatewoodK

Using 10.5.4 & Eudora 5.2, I just sent myself an Animated GIF, and there are many later versions.

Eudora...

http://www.eudora.com/

PS. Mail sent an animated gif to Eudora, but Mail did bot animate it.

Reply

Answer 7

Jul 27, 2008 8:16 AM in response to BDAqua

Did Mail animate it when you received it?

OK, I'm sorry; I didn't understand that Eudora is a mail app. I think I was thinking about an alternate browser instead.

Message was edited by: GatewoodK

Reply

Answer 8

square8 Author

Level 1

8 points

Jul 27, 2008 9:31 AM in response to GatewoodK

I am not using text encoding. I simply want to embed Animated Gifs in my outgoing emails that I have downloaded as clip art from places like the Animation Factory. My operating system is Tiger 10.4.11, and I am
using Apple Mail to compose the emails. As I mentioned before, I can forward emails originally composed on a PC using Outlook Express, and the animations work just fine when received by the people I've sent them to. However, if I create an email from scratch, the animations are dead when others receive them.

Thanks very much for your interest. If you come across any more info on this subject, please let me know.

Reply

Answer 9

BDAqua

Level 10

239,363 points

Jul 27, 2008 11:41 AM in response to GatewoodK

Did Mail animate it when you received it?

Sorry, only sent from Mail, but since it did not animate in the send/compose window, I wouldn't expect it to animate it in the receive window.

Also found out Copy/Paste an animated GIF doesn't work, it must be drug to Eudora, dragging to Mail doesn't help.

Reply

Answer 10

Mulder

Level 6

8,990 points

Jul 27, 2008 12:40 PM in response to BDAqua

I have sent a variety of test emails to myself from Mail with animated GIF images, and although Mail doesn't animate them when you insert them, it does animate them when received. I merely dragged the images into a new message window and sent them. The key to making this work seems to be:

Preferences for composing email must be set to Rich Text, and there must be actual text in the email itself, either before or after the images; otherwise, static images will be all you see.

Mulder

Reply

Answer 11

BDAqua

Level 10

239,363 points

Jul 27, 2008 1:15 PM in response to Mulder

Thanks Mulder, that may help others hopefully, but Mail is just to weird for me to use, it also takes longer to check one Mailbox than Eudora does 14. 🙂

Reply

Answer 12

square8 Author

Level 1

8 points

Jul 27, 2008 1:48 PM in response to Mulder

Mulder,

I saw that you had success by dragging the animated GIFs into your test emails and I tried my own test emails using your technique. Unfortunately, the images still didn't animate. I checked my preferences and do have Rich Text checked. I also added text next to the GIF on the same line, as well as added text below it in my tests. I'm really scratching my head to determine how you've managed the impossible. Could it be the actual GIFs that you're using? Were they perhaps purchased somewhere? Maybe the ones I have wouldn't load even if you blasted them with TNT.

Your suggestions have made me feel hopeful and I thank you very much for your efforts.

Reply

Answer 13

Mulder

Level 6

8,990 points

Jul 27, 2008 2:10 PM in response to square8

Could it be the actual GIFs that you're using? Were they perhaps purchased somewhere?

No, I just went to this site and downloaded some random ones to my Desktop and started testing:
<http://www.gifanimations.com/>.

I sent these from one of my email accounts to another, both through Mail. Having the compose preferences set to Plain Text was a guarantee the images would not be animated, so I changed to Rich Text and selected a rich text signature for the account I was sending from. While the images don't animate in Mail when you create them, once you've sent them you should be able to go back to your Sent mailbox and open the message and see it animated as well. However, I believe the recipient's mail program will also need to be set to read HTML or Rich Text emails, or they won't get animation regardless of what you do.

You might also want to test the Balzac email client, which does support HTML messaging.

Mulder

Reply

Answer 14

square8 Author

Level 1

8 points

Jul 27, 2008 2:59 PM in response to Mulder

Mulder,

I went to the site you mentioned, downloaded an animated GIF, and sent myself a test email. When it didn't work, I went back to that site's help menu and have copied what it said below:
--------------------------------
"How to use animated GIF Images

For use in web pages: see Image Usage & Linking Policy

For use in Microsoft Outlook: In Outlook 2003 and earlier, an animated image can be incorporated into the email text, only when using the HTML format. Position the cursor at the point where the image is to appear and select Insert/Picture.

When using the Word editor for composing email messages, the image will not animate. Outlook 2007 does not support animation in any format.

For use in Microsoft PowerPoint: You should not have any issues inserting and viewing animated images."
------------------------
I checked your response carefully and found that the only difference is that you have a signature set up for your emails, and I do not.

I went to the Eudora site and they support animated GIFs if you sign up for their "paid" program. I couldn't find out the cost anywhere and suspect that it shows up after you've downloaded the program. I'm not familiar with the Balzac client but will check it out. I don't compose my emails using HTML. I simply use the Mail program and format my text using the font and color menus. Is that how you do yours? (I'm still looking for that "extra ingredient" that you have [besides your brain] that makes yours work.)

Thanks again.

Reply

Answer 15

Mulder

Level 6

8,990 points

Jul 27, 2008 3:03 PM in response to square8

I simply use the Mail program and format my text using the font and color menus. Is that how you do yours?

Yes. I set my preferences to compose mail in Rich Text format, and I do have a signature setup, but it should also work if you just type a line above or below the images (give it one or two carriage returns before typing anything), but if that fails, try setting up a signature and use that instead. It won't animate when you compose it, but after you send it you can go back to the Sent mailbox and if it's going to work, it will be animated there.

Mulder

Reply