Convert MP4 to animated GIF

[Peter2]

I have Snagit 11 to create captures, but the animated stuff is only saved as MP4. Is there a way to convert MP4 to animated GIF?

Thanks

Peter

[Drahken]

Few progs can create animated gifs at all, and xnview is not one of them.
There is a version of virtualdubmod that can convert video files (such as mp4) into APNG format, I don't know if it can convert to gif or not. http://vdubapngmod.sourceforge.net/
If VDM-apng can't create gifs & apng files won't work for your purposes, you could then re-convert the apngs to gifs with this: http://apng2gif.sourceforge.net/
Granted, converting twice is not an ideal solution, but at least it'll get the job done.

[Peter2]

...can convert video files (such as mp4) into APNG format, ....

I did not ask for APNG because I do not know (realize) them. Are they an alternative to / better than / worse than aGIF?

Peter

[Drahken]

APNG is comparable to animated GIF. It is better in almost every way though. The only drawback to APNG over GIFs is support. Most newer browsers support APNG, but few older ones do, whereas animated GIF is supported in every browser. On the other hand, support in image editing software is better than animated GIF, probably due to the lack of patents/licenses. While very few non-commercial editors can create animated GIFs, several free ones can support APNG, and most can at least support reading them, though many progs still require plugins to achieve it.

APNG supports truecolor (vs GIF's 256 colors) and alpha transparency, the drawback to this is that filesizes can be quite large vs comparable GIFs (but this is due to the increased quality, not a lack of efficiency).
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/APNG

examples:




*edit* I just dug up the old copy of the APNG vdubmod I have & it does indeed support exporting videos to GIF, so if you get the APNG vdubmod prog you can convert MP$ vids to either image format.

[Peter2]

I think that I'm convinced - your "mouse" has only 46 kB...
But my IE 10 / Win7 x64 does not show the animation. I have to search for an option ..

Peter

[XnTriq]

I've successfully converted AVI and MPEG files with the following tools:

• Beneton Movie GIF (Freeware)
• Gamani GIF Movie Gear
• Corel/Jasc Animation Shop
• Microsoft GIF Animator (Freeware)
• Corel/Ulead GIF Animator
• Zoner GIF Animator

I'm afraid they don't support MP4 “out of the box”, and not all of them will run on Windows 7.
Softpedia's editor(s) gave Free Video to GIF Converter a 4/5-star rating. The program cosists of a 2MB executable and a weird 17MB DLL

There's been a growing trend towards (free) online services for converting videos to animations.

• wikiHow: How to Convert a Video Into a Gif Animation
• Mashable: 5 Free Animated GIF Creators You Can Use Online
• Gizmodo: How To Make a GIF in Five Easy Steps
• The Tech Gears: Top 3 methods to create animated GIF from video

You see the results on sites like tumblr et al.
So far, I've only used Zamzar myself. Fortunately, I gave them a disposable e-mail address. Guess what: Spaaahaaam!

[Drahken]

According to the wikipedia page 9and all other sources I can find), IE has no support for APNG, not even through plugins.
Firefox & opera support APNG from 2008 onward (although opera 15+ require a plugin). Chrome/chromium browsers likewise support it via plugin, though apparently safari does not.
(btw The strange looking object next to the mouse is also an animated image, with extremely smooth, video-like animation, but it's an APNG.)


Unfortunately, I was looking into the vdubmod APNG prog and it doesn't support the import of MP4 files.

[MaxSt]

But my IE 10 / Win7 x64 does not show the animation. I have to search for an option ..

Notice that:

you could then re-convert the apngs to gifs with this: http://apng2gif.sourceforge.net/
Granted, converting twice is not an ideal solution, but at least it'll get the job done.

[MaxSt]

Unfortunately, I was looking into the vdubmod APNG prog and it doesn't support the import of MP4 files.

vdub can load pretty much any video with DirectShow input filter.

[Drahken]

I found that gimp can convert from mp4 to gif, although you need to install the gimp animation plugin as well as gimp itself (it should also be able to convert to apng if you grab the gimp apng plugin while you're at it. Here's a tutorial : http://www.slideshare.net/Keef21Moon/ho ... using-gimp