SORRY, scrap that last post. I just found the 'BACKGROUND COPY' brush which does exactly what I asked for - and there is still so much more to discover. Next time I will fully investigate before asking questions - Gee this is such an amazing product. I'd be happy to pay the price asked. Thankyou.

Hi. Just a thought - Does this program have the facility to 'paint' out [or in] the water horizon? If not, would it be possible to make one for the next version? If it does could someone kindly let me know how to do this. Ponds and rivers for example don't have straight lines and I would love to be able to use a brush to paint my river boundary so that it meandered across the scene rather than had a perfect straight edge. It may be that there is such a brush but, as the program has so many options available, I haven't yet had time to try them all to find out. What I have achieved is a terrific animated landscape with an animated stream but a stream which has a perfectly straight boundary so it doesn't look 'right'. Thanks a bunch.

I'd like to see this program have an options to abort the exporting operation. The ability to export to.flv and perhaps a preview window with file properties listed before exporting is done.

Ouialaraison,
Just looked at your animations done with DP's programs. Impressed. Your help has done a lot of good today. Thank you.

I installed DP Animation Maker fine onto a Win 7 laptop. I was pleasantly surprised at the range of animations that the program can provide. There is a learning curve, but the company does provide some great tutorials on their blog. I even purchased the nature add on, which for 40 animated creatures, plus upgrading the licencing to commercial and the guarantee of future upgrades, ten dollars was a bargain. Given that I write and can do some illustrating, myself, I'm wondering if I could use this program to create HOG PC games. That'd be a buzz.
Thumbs up from me.

Something must have happened to the download file, because after I open the save dialog box, it won't go any further, so no download for me. I was hoping to get it but it looks like there is not enough time for any repairs to be made, although I will try back at least one more time.

Every time I run this kind of program I keep getting a message every time I start my computer. There is no disk in the drive. Please insert a disk into drive\Device\Harddisk\DRI.

It is really driving me nuts and I will not install from this company again, if I can not get this fixed.

I have the same error messages as #39 and #41, I always get this error when I try animated wallpaper or animated wallpaper makers. I wasn't expecting it on this type of program because I can use 3D and animated images and 3D animated screensavers. Is there any programs of this type that I might be able to use or any fixes for this issue short of getting a new graphic's card. I run XP Pro sp3 with directX 9.0c and 736 RAM.

Installed with no problem on Win7 & Win8 computers. Registration was nice and quick process, without having to enter key, just run activate program.
Played few minutes with and enjoyed.

Animation Maker installed and runs fine on my Windows 7 Home Premium, 64 bit, i7. I created 3 gifs and an AVI with no problems. I don't mind not having thumbnails because, even when they're on their own dropdowns, they tend to clutter up the workspace. I'll use the program a few times and know what's what. I really like this software because it gives me one more tool in my arsenal of creative wrenches, hammers and screwdrivers:-) It's great for those of us who like to make and send e-cards. I'm already thinking of ways to use the "No Background" animated objects in my videos.

@4 and @32: much thanks for the links. The Holiday Pack doesn't seem to be available but I discovered the free lightning, explosion and fire animators.

@38...deleted and re-downloaded. Worked fine this time...although the DL is very slow both times, unusual for such a small file. I am on fast internet.

On extraction I got a WinRAR diagnostic message:

"CRC failed in Setup.exe. The file is corrupt."

Any suggestions? or extend the time limit with a fix?

I have windows 8. I have installed under administrator. Just want to check. I have activated. when I check it has new licence code under your licence. Is this meant to be empty. How can you tell if the copy is registered? I have been caught so many times saying a program is registered and when I go to use it says its not.

Just did a quick toying with, and seems like a very functional program to have

Oh fussbudget! I bought the Nature pack after playing with the Wallpaper maker last week! Are substitutions allowed? I'll add the tech info regarding Animation Maker in a few minutes after installing and playing with it. Wallpaper Maker has been a lot of fun!

For those of you with problems and/or questions, I recommend the forum (link at the top). Yes, you have to register but it's painless. I used the forum last week for a question and got a prompt, helpful and kind answer. And, please, when you post a problem, include some information about your computer so we can see if there's a general problem with the software or if it's an individual problem.

I had v.2.1.3 from GOTD installed & working for ages, but this version fails every time. It simply won't run, saying it's "Switching to the render rasterizer..." and with an error message for render_wnd. I've tried uninstalling & cleaning the registry, & installing into a new location, but nothing works. I even tried to reinstall v.2.1.3 with the same result. Help someone, please!

Definite a good piece of software. Being a animator starting in 1974 when we had to use cell animation to get these affects lol I can say this is a keeper and the addons are also well done. You can always make your own and add them as well. So many types of output is why they have it divvied into screensaver, wallpapers and animation makers. Fun for all and good enough for professional results IMHO. Good work GOTD and to the makers of this fine software, making it free for use and trial.

Beautiful animations and worked great on my Windows 7 fast computer but total fail on Windows XP SP2 fairly fast computer. It gave same message as above from #28 : Switching to the reference rasterizer, a software device that inplements the entire direct3D feature set, but runs very slowly. failed creating the direct3s device. After that it exits and the program never started. I ran 3D diagnostics from MS for DirectX and 3D and it passed all the tests.

Well now I'm playing with some of the "alternatives" Giovanni mentioned. Although they are not really alternatives, I sure like having Giovanni here to post cool apps for us.

Although I see this program as being more of a $14.99 bargain title, it does what it does well. It's rather subjective for me to try to put a value on it based upon comparing the complexity of dissimilar programs. The developer needs to make a buck - I'm just thinking the added sales would be better at a lower price, because of the "perceived" value of a fun little novelty program.

It's a simple, but powerful tool for what it does. Between this offer and the other offer for $7.99 I've happily spent $18 for two programs and two add-ons

The $7.99 deal appears to still be live:
http://www.desktoppaints.com/order_old4.php

Today's $9.99 Deal:
http://www.animationsoftware7.com/order_old2.php

The program is much more solid than a couple years ago, and I'm very happy to see them throw these deals at us.

Been having some fun with this program today but, try as I might I cannot understand the way you use additional slides. When I try to export only the first slide appears, if someone could help this poor old addled brain of mine and explain to me I would much appreciate it.

Failed to run on my system. There was an error message.
Uninstalled.
Not a big loss. There are free animated GIF makers.

#30 got everything correctly and summed up everything perfectly.

IF you enjoy making animations, and have a creative streak, you WILL love these animation programs from Desktop Paints. They are easy to use, and an enjoyable pastime. Each of the three programs delivers a different type of animation result, so if you want to make animated wallpapers... get the animated wallpaper-maker. Same goes for screen savers. It takes a little bit of practice to use ANY software, but these from Desktop Paints are some of the easiest to use that I have come across. My friends and family LOVE the animations that I make with these programs. I enjoy them also,just for the pleasure of making something cute for people to enjoy. With this program, a little patience and imagination... you can have a LOT of fun ! GET IT, and enjoy !

To #20 and #17

Giovanni often (but others as well) comments also the price.
Even in the past many say that commenting the price is irrilevant becuase any way "today" (whichever is the day) you can get it free.
OK, that's true but...
The price is not anymore "irrilevant" the day that for whatever reason you have to reinstall the program if you use it regularly.
In fact, if you download and install a GOTD I assume that you think to use it; otherwise you might always get a free trial version.

But if you use it and it is useful to you, the day that you cannot reinstall it you need to buy it and at that time you'll realize that its price matters!

Think it over...

Hello Guys!

Here are links to other packs they sell at Desktoppaints.com There is an underwater pack and a brilliant holiday pack that can extend your library of animations in your projects. I am a customer of theirs over many years and as I understand it, they release new animation extension packs from time to time. The nature pack is very good, but the others are magnificent as well. That's point of using DP Animation Maker anyway, THE CONTENT you can buy and use in your commercial work, because with no content, the program would be less useful. For me and a lot of other people, the fact that they have those add-on packs is great since some of us need quick animations we can simply drag and drop! They are in 3D so they look very realistic. I have purchased them all and it's well worth it, in my opinion.

I absolutely love these and the animations are SIMPLY SUPERB!!

You've got to check these links out below for the other add-ons:

1. http://www.desktoppaints.com/about.php?product=ex_holiday

2. http://www.animationsoftware7.com/about.php?product=ex_underwater&utm_source=newsletter1307&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_content=find_more&utm_campaign=newsletter&utm_nooverride=1

Enjoy!

again I tried this program and it crashes every time I try to make an AVI file. win7 32bit 3.2 duel core Intel processor with 1tb hardrive and 2gb of ram.

#1: "The programme offers many different effects, but it is hard to see why I should want to use them."

One purpose is to create backgounds with enough motion so they're not terribly boring, yet not so much that they distract from whatever's in the foreground. Examples include stuff like DVD or Blu-Ray menus, disc autorun menus, cropped to allow slicing it can work on a web page etc...

"However the greatest problem is the resulting size of the files."

The physical size of any video file is the result of 3 things -- the frame size, the video duration, & the video compression used. Whenever a file's too big for your purposes, just re-encode. Video enthusiasts & pros often prefer original files with less compression, even though they can be very large, because by having the max amount of data they can better withstand the unavoidable quality loss from editing &/or special FX -- it's not unlike editing a .wav file vs. a lower quality MP3.

* * *

#7: "can someone please enlighten me on the difference between this program DP Animation Maker... Animated Wallpaper Maker"

The biggest difference is that rather than producing wallpaper today's GOTD is designed to create Animated GIF, .avi or .mov video files, &/or .png image sequences. And since you're creating video rather than generating the FX on the fly [i.e. in real time], hardware that's not capable of generating the FX can view the results.

"... correct the obvious spelling errors so you don’t look so much like an amateur organization..."

Purely FWIW, I'm used to seeing spelling, usage, &/or grammatical errors in articles on very major web sites, with errors often enough made by pro journalists, &/or some of the top officials in government. If/when it's [semi] permanent copy rather than a more temporary article sort of thing, if it bothers you enough [or if you have enough time on your hands to be generous with it] contact whomever associated with the text or site, listing the exact error(s) -- in my experience they're usually appreciative.

At any rate the takeaway is that nowadays you can't always judge credibility based solely on language errors *regardless context* -- or shouldn't anyway. Yes you can & should be skeptical when something *smells like a scam*, but otherwise a simple error is Very often just that, a simple error. :)

* * *

#14: "... I appreciate the fact that these programs are free, but it would be so much nicer if there were less off the wall converters, animated desktops and such and more main line useful software…

I **think** a lot may well have to do with software companies & developers stuck in a rut, where they can't imagine giving anything away -- ironically many of these same folks wind up losing even more profits, having sales with drastic price markdowns because they just can't generate enough interest [& buyers] in their software. A couple of examples I've encountered are Corel PaintShop Pro & Nero, who've discounted those products so very often that even their pre-release emails advertise upcoming new versions at ~1/2 normal upgrade price. Hopefully this will change -- successful Android & iOS developers have long known it pays in the long run to have short term giveaways... just look at Rovio & their Angry Birds.

* * *

#17: "Giovanni, I’m confused – is $38 a lot?"

With apologies to Giovanni for adding my own couple of cents in reply, it can be a lot, & not just for him. $40 can sometimes mean the kids eat, or the rent's not short, or there's gas in the car to make it to work etc. Or for some folks $40 simply means a cheap lunch. I usually don't talk about pricing because everyone has their own priorities, their own sliding scale of what's a fair price for what, assuming they've got the cash to spend in the first place -- many don't.

As far as Giovanni highlighting free apps, those are pretty much the only one's I'll ever try. I've fairly long ago given up buying Any software on faith that the seller accurately represented it in their ad copy, & that's after spending, & too often wasting $2k+ over the years on software. I will try free versions, giveaways, & more rarely trials [too many are too crippled] -- I'll never buy anything I can't return without proof it does as claimed. IOW if Giovanni quit listing free alternatives, I'd ignore his posted links.

"There is one other that I know of that will “animate” your picture with water effects, and drop in items like smoke, fire, weather, and… stuff – but it is much inferior to this, and it’s not free. If you have any idea at all of one that competes please let us know."

RE: alternatives, If you can bear with me for a moment... Years back, when Java was new & popular on web sites for more than exploits, applets for similar FX were somewhat common & free -- I think many [most?] just called [used] OpenGL effects. Apple also released free tools for rendering the same sort of thing as .mov files. Nowadays many games use more sophisticated versions of the same thing, using either DX or OpenGL. Outside of game engines, particle effects are most common I think with 3D software, generating stuff like explosions or simulating the natural movement of things like water & hair or fur.

Desktop Paints produces I think unique or somewhat unique apps making several FX easily accessible for casual users -- I don't know how much direct competition there is in this market niche [I think I recall one other company offering similar long ago on GOTD]. For a particular effect or effects you might find some of the older stuff, like the Java applets I mentioned above, or apps that use them, & other graphics & video apps & plug-ins do let you add the same sort of things, though often I think the selection of particle effects you have to choose from is more limited, &/or you might have less control over the settings or parameters, &/or they may be harder to use.

OTOH some graphics, video, &/or 3D software can produce higher quality results, e.g. 3D apps & plug-ins that rather than making it look like ripples on water, will generate realistic water that has ripples on the surface. The free Blender is a very viable solution, though it's not as easy as Desktop Paint's apps; there are several video apps that let you use particle effects generators like Adobe After Effects, though many like AE are expensive; & there are folks using game engines to handle the physics involved, e.g. Valve's free Filmmaker http://www.sourcefilmmaker.com/faq/ . Much more general info on using game engines here http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Machinima

* * *

#23: "Now, there must be some kind of preview for effects, because there are a lot of them. It’s good to have so many effects, but it’s time consuming to try them all manually or to learn them all, so preview is a must."

FWIW, using any of the Desktop Paint apps is a lot faster than alternatives I've tried -- if it takes too much time/effort you likely don't want to explore alternatives. :)

That said, most all of the video editors I've tried or used over the years do have a simplified preview of the FX &/or filters that's presented right in the FX or filters menu window, so you'd be right in thinking that sort of thing is expected.

ouialaraison

Thank you for uploading your examples. It makes me want to get started making some animated gifs!

Could not get this program to work. I got several error msgs.

Switching to the reference rasterizer, a slftware device that inplements the entire direct3D feature set, but runs very slowly

failed creating the direct3s device

exception code c0000005
exception offset 00005c9e

at the time it was released in may of 2011 it cost $26.77 now for the same product it cost 37.77 how ironic http://www.giveawayoftheday.com/dp-animation-maker/#comments checkout these comments and reviews as well as the price in may 2011.

I love this prog. Use your imagination and wow your friends!

I can't activate it. I ran setup and then activate, but I don't get dumped back on the "What's next" screen, nor does the activation work. I just keep getting the register your copy popup. I'm under administrator, so I'm not sure what the problem is. Any help???

To Giovanni: Muvizu cost to remove the watermark. also this program take up way too much space on your hardrive. I don't recommend this program. thumbs down. it had bad reviews in 2011 checkout #6 reviews and you will see there has been no change in this software since may 2011. you can buy crazytalk7 standard for $29.99 or crazytalk animation for standard for 49.99 a little more money, but a better program. alternatives: http://www.reallusion.com/store/purchase_ct.aspx http://www.reallusion.com/crazytalk/animator/default.aspx my

Wow, I like this one. Thank you Giovanni for your suggestions, but I still can't find anything like this app, free or not, so thumbs up from me and big thanks to the author.

Now, there must be some kind of preview for effects, because there are a lot of them. It's good to have so many effects, but it's time consuming to try them all manually or to learn them all, so preview is a must.

Also I don't see a pause or stop button (for animation), maybe it's there?

It could not do the simplest task: (1) input an existing animated GIF (all its frames) (2) operate on frames, like delete one frame and change the order of others, and (3) save with the original size. The task, by the way, that two free "animation" apps did with ease. Thanks but... uninstalled.

.17 Robert Reilly

Honestly I didn't get your point...

If you are eager to animate your pics with wheater or animal effects only, why searching for other FREE alternatives??

Grab this GAOTD and enjoy it!!!

BLENDER is a great OS animating software which actually does much more than this GAOTD...but if you are a noob in this field is not for you bcs it's not easy to handle (it took me months to understand its functions).

If what you want is just to create animated GIFs or Avatars you can use this FREE tool as well:

http://www.rw-designer.com/image-editor

So it all depends on your needs & skills!!!

I usually mention many FREE ALTERNATIVES here because I quite understand that everybody has different skills...that's it!

So why moaning??

Giovanni, I have to agree with Robert Reilly [#17] about your bringing up the cost of a giveaway. I enjoy reading your posts as I check here every day. You, yourself, have made this argument - it's irrelevant how much a program costs because it's free today. Please continue to provide your very nice reviews but stick to the feature set and skip the cost part as it's irrelevant and takes away from your otherwise well thought out reviews.

This program has a limited number of effects but of excellent quality.
I use it such a way: make test animation with gray background, look at the size range of animated objects and the way they move. Next I search my photos keeping in mind what I want and make final animation (gif, avi or exe depending on the purpose).

For example: flying butterflies. If I put some garden photo as a background I make sure the flowers are of reasonable size comparing to the butterflies and located in the corner of the most intensive move. Then I can apply secondary effects like sun beams, waving grass etc.
Of course the butterflies in the office or on top of the mountain look not very convincing. For some effects I still have no proper background photos. And some day when everybody recognises the effects from this program I will be bored untill DP add more and more new effects.

@ imagical:
If you don’t happen to know each one by its little name, the best is to make, once and for all, a project with all birds, one with all butterflies etc. to choose from later, especially if you buy and install the extension packs. A preview of each animation (not only of the entire project) is really something that needs to be added, especially as their number is growing.

Giovanni, I'm confused - is $38 a lot? I'm thinking since you don't have any programs with similar features, that it's really not relevant what some other freeware does.... Blender? You can't be serious.

There is one other that I know of that will "animate" your picture with water effects, and drop in items like smoke, fire, weather, and... stuff - but it is much inferior to this, and it's not free. If you have any idea at all of one that competes please let us know.

For the developers - If I could just offer a suggestion. Is it possible for you insert small thumbs to show what the effects look like? Perhaps a thumb directly above the 'add' button so you can see what the animation looks like before adding. I know it's not hard to check out say, one of four butterflies or one of eight fish, but it does take time and an example above the 'add' button would be very helpful. All in all a top little program. -
iMagical

What a lot of fun this program is, but it does have the ability to be a little more serious too. At #8 Thankyou for sharing, and showing me what else can be achieved with this program, and of course thankyou to the developers for the giveaway. Although it's not for everyone, it has it's place and many people will find it useful. Cheers - iMagical

I religiously look at this site every day, but it's been a long time since there was something I could actually use.

I appreciate the fact that these programs are free, but it would be so much nicer if there were less off the wall converters, animated desktops and such and more main line useful software... I know that's a contradiction in terms, since what is useful to one may not be useful or desirable to all

Today's giveaway is an excellent and very handy software, especially if you own a website because movies (animated backgrounds, animated gifs, avatars etc...) usually attract more attention, increase customer retention and as a result of that they may improve your website SEO ranking dramatically (oy yeah, BigG brother likes videos).

And it's very easy to use since to create a new animation you only need a picture, over which you can easily add whether effects, animals and other objects with a few mouse clicks.

THUMBS UP!!

But 38 bucks?? Hmmm...let's see....


BEST (and BETTER) FREE ALTERNATIVES

* Muvizu (==> My Personal First Choice)
Can create amazing 3D animations with 3D characters for FREE.
Supports automatic lip-synching for any language with a lightning fast rendering technology for quick results.

http://www.muvizu.com

See also:
http://www.slidego.com (==> can create superb Powerpoint web animations in HTML5 format, so as to share them on any portable devices out there)
http://www.powtoon.com (==> FREE even for business purposes)
http://www.blender.org/features-gallery
http://www.rw-designer.com/image-editor

To create professional movies out of pics for FREE:

http://windows.microsoft.com/en-US/windows-live/movie-maker-get-started
http://www.photofilmstrip.org/2-1-Features.html
http://www.ezvid.com

But how about making compelling animated (web)cartoons for your website for FREE:

http://www.webcartoonmaker.com

==> ALL FREE & ALWAYS UPDATABLE TOOLS <== Enjoy!!

So 38 bucks?? LOL!!!

I'm in for another $10 for 40 animated animal pictures - the toolbox items make it easy for the kids, but you can also import your own gif animations (make sure they have a clear background).
Seems like a bit much for 40 animals... but since it will install in all 3 programs, and I get the Animation Maker license.

They gave this away a couple years ago, but a lot of people had trouble with getting it to work. The programs are all working great in Windows 7/64bit - seems like I now have 3 nearly identical programs, with different outputs.

If you are adding movement to water in a picture, notice that there are options with most brushes, the options (gear icon) help with direction, amplitude, etc. You can make some realistic looking water flow with combinations of the wave, stream, water and even the drift brushes. I use the stream brush more than once with different settings in the same picture, and change the roughness in the water as it passes between rocks.

@ mitsukiwi:
In "add animation", middle column: "stationary objects" (yes, this is a bit strange…) just above "electric discharge".

Thanks so much to GAOTD for this program. It is so much fun and I lost mine when I replaced my computer. I was so excited to see that smoke had been added on the changelog but have not been able to find it. Can someone advise or is this not the full version? Thanks for any help!

No idea why this get so many negative ratings, it's a great and fun program if you're interested in making gifs and animations. If you got it the last time it was given away here be sure to get this new version, it has lots of updates. Thanks to everyone involved in today's giveaway!

Here is a pack of 20 animated GIFs I made with DP Animation Maker (and sometimes finalized, for transparency and smoothness, in a graphics software):
http://ahp.li/463c3fd3962c7c33ad31.zip
(homemade: no additives)

OKAY....can someone please enlighten me on the difference between this program DP Animation Maker 2.2.5
AND the recent program Animated Wallpaper Maker Version 3.2.5

They appear to come from the same place...are they different programs???
And...can someone that is managing your website please go to your website and correct the obvious spelling errors so you don't look so much like an amateur organization...8(
(you misspelled animation...OH Noooooooooo)
Maybe then you could get more people interested in this very cool software...8)