OFF2000: Animated GIF Files Play Very Quickly in Web Page

When you preview Web pages created from an Office program, animated GIF files may play very rapidly. In contrast, the same GIF file may play more slowly when viewed directly from your Web browser.

Some types of animated GIF files are "Multi-Imaged" GIFs. They use a different looping structure than other GIF files, called "Multi-Framed" GIFs. The Multi-Imaged GIF uses a LOOP command. The LOOP command is not recognized when the GIF is used in Office or Microsoft Internet Explorer 5.

Multi-Framed GIFS contain a frame-delay value between each picture frame. Multi-Imaged GIFS do not. If there are no frame-delay values between frames, the Office VGX engine defaults to a 10 millisecond delay between frames. Internet Explorer 5 defaults to 100 millisecond delay, which is much slower than the delay in Office programs.

To resolve this problem, use one of the following methods.

Method 1: Do Not Use Multi-Imaged GIF Files

Do not use Multi-Imaged GIF files in your document, as they will animate very quickly. Office contains no means of altering the frame-delay value of GIF images.

Method 2: Alter the Frame Delay Value

Alter the frame-delay value of the GIF image in another program. Several third-party programs are capable of inserting or altering the frame-delay value for animated GIF files.

The third-party products that are discussed in this article are manufactured by companies that are independent of Microsoft. Microsoft makes no warranty, implied or otherwise, regarding the performance or reliability of these products.
The following example demonstrates how to change the frame-delay value of a Multi-Imaged GIF using Corel Photo-Paint 8.0.

1.	In Corel Photo-Paint, click Open on the File menu.
2.	Select your animated GIF, and change Partial Load to Full Image in the appropriate list. Click Open.
3.	On the Movie menu, click Frame Rate.
4.	Click each frame individually and adjust the Frame Delay, displayed in the top of the window. Alternatively, click Select All, and then alter the Frame Delay for all frames simultaneously. The frame delay is measured in milliseconds (1 second = 1000 milliseconds).
5.	Click OK to apply your changes.
6.	On the File menu, click Save. Check the File Settings and Frame Settings, and then click OK to save the file. (For more information about how these options will affect your animated GIF file, consult the Help file or product documentation.)

The animated GIF file will now play at the speed set within Photo-Paint for both PowerPoint and Internet Explorer.

Microsoft has confirmed that this is a problem in Microsoft Office 2000.