-- NEW -- NEW -- NEW -- NEW -- NEW -- NEW -- NEW -- NEW --

gifanim.datatype >= V2.2 can now create GIF Animation streams

-- NEW -- NEW -- NEW -- NEW -- NEW -- NEW -- NEW -- NEW --


DataType for displaying GIF Animations

-- Features are:
* Implements a GIF Animation stream encoder.
  Using the included "DTConvert", you can convert any animation to GIF
  Animation streams, like
  IFF ANIM          -> GIF ANIM
  MPEG Video/System -> GIF ANIM
  CDXL              -> GIF ANIM
  and so on...
  The only requirement is that for the source file an animation.datatype
  subclass must exists in the system, nothing more.

  The encoder supports creation of interlaced and transparent animations,
  too.

- CyberGFX output (16/24 bit truecolor)

- Supports local colormaps

- Supports sound.
  Any sound (loaded with a sound.datatype subclass) can be attached to the
  animation.

  If you want, you can read-out this animation+sound as an IFF FILM stream
  (using DumpDTAnim (Aminet:gfx/conv/DumpDTAnim#?.LhA)) and make a
  playback using film.datatype.

- Dynamic loading of frames (disk-based) or caching the whole anim in memory.




-- Changes since V2.2:
    V2.3
      - Fixed a couple of holes in the descriptor code which may caused
        endless loops or - more worse - crashes in the past.
        Thanks to Guillaume Ubbelohde (950947mercure.umh.ac.be) for
        reporting the bug.

      - The descriptor now checks if the given gif stream is a
        multi-picture gif stream or not, nothing else !
        Syntax checking/version checking etc. is NOT done, this is the
        job of the decoder (e.g. the class library).

      - The error checking in the decoder has been improved a little
        bit. Still not perfect, but...

      - The decoder now explains most errors in a console window.

      - Implemented a NOVERBOSE option (as requested by many people),
        which turns all error messages OFF.
        Be carefull with this option !!!

      - Minor code changes and optimisations.

    V2.2
      - Minor code cleanup

      - Removed REPEAT and NOREPEAT options/feature because this
        hack-like "feature" seems to be incompatible to GMultiView's
        repeat option.
        Problem fixed.

      - Added encoder prefs options to set GIF interlace mode, transparent
        and background pens.
        See "gifanim.datatype.doc" section "preferences" for details.
        Currently untested...

      - Major speedup in the encoder part (~ three times faster).
        a) The encoder now writes any incoming bitmap in an chunkypixel
           array and operates on it instead of doing ReadPixel for
           each pixel.
        b) Minor other changes in the encoder section...

      - The decoder now treats 0x00-chars in the chunk id position as
        padding bytes and does not prompt any sytax error any more.
        Now the "slidbar.gif" created by "GifBuilder 0.2" works...

      - Introduced the option STRICTSYNTAX which prints additionally
        syntax errors (like the 0x00 padding bytes above...).

      - Added Installation script "Install DataType".
        It would be very nice if someone has the time to write a
        1:1 CBM Installer version of it...


----

Bye,
Roland


P.S.:
Following was cut from an aminet "weekly-uploads" mail:
| Please rate all the programs you
| download. To do so, send to aminet-serverwuarchive.wustl.edu :
| RATE <path> <num>
| where <path> is the file you want to judge and <num> is a mark from 0..10
| with 10 being the best. You can rate several programs in one mail, but
| don't rate your own programs. Example: RATE dev/gui/mui23usr.lha 8

 PERMSSN    UID  GID    PACKED    SIZE  RATIO     CRC       STAMP          NAME
---------- ----------- ------- ------- ------ ---------- ------------ -------------
[generic]                  645    2169  29.7% -lh5- d682 May 24  1998 gifanim_datatype/class_iprotos.h
[generic]                 9257   26832  34.5% -lh5- fe44 May 24  1998 gifanim_datatype/classbase.c
[generic]                  309     705  43.8% -lh5- 917d May 24  1998 gifanim_datatype/classbase.c.info
[generic]                 1851    6030  30.7% -lh5- 96e6 May 24  1998 gifanim_datatype/classbase.h
[generic]                  299     701  42.7% -lh5- 3fb7 May 24  1998 gifanim_datatype/classbase.h.info
[generic]                  471    1454  32.4% -lh5- 4357 Mar 23  1998 gifanim_datatype/classbase.i
[generic]                 2435    7453  32.7% -lh5- 6b81 May 24  1998 gifanim_datatype/classdata.h
[generic]                  302     701  43.1% -lh5- e12f May 24  1998 gifanim_datatype/classdata.h.info
[generic]                  822    2795  29.4% -lh5- 0eb8 Jul  3  1997 gifanim_datatype/classinit.asm
[generic]                  734    1336  54.9% -lh5- ce66 May 24  1998 gifanim_datatype/descriptor/descriptor
[generic]                 1780    6186  28.8% -lh5- 879d May 24  1998 gifanim_datatype/descriptor/descriptor.c
[generic]                  305     702  43.4% -lh5- 6be8 May 24  1998 gifanim_datatype/descriptor/descriptor.c.info
[generic]                  141     181  77.9% -lh5- c17b May 24  1998 gifanim_datatype/descriptor/descriptor.lnk
[generic]                  429    1429  30.0% -lh5- f91b May 24  1998 gifanim_datatype/descriptor/descriptor.map
[generic]                   73      82  89.0% -lh5- 9ec4 Mar 23  1998 gifanim_datatype/descriptor/GIF
[generic]                  281     467  60.2% -lh5- 4a97 Mar 23  1998 gifanim_datatype/descriptor/GIF.info
[generic]                  814    1438  56.6% -lh5- c48a May 24  1998 gifanim_datatype/descriptor/GIFANIM
[generic]                  280     467  60.0% -lh5- 86d5 May 24  1998 gifanim_datatype/descriptor/GIFANIM.info
[generic]                  299     480  62.3% -lh5- 24e9 May 24  1998 gifanim_datatype/descriptor/SCOPTIONS
[generic]                  155     222  69.8% -lh5- 09bd May 24  1998 gifanim_datatype/descriptor/smakefile
[generic]                  253    1053  24.0% -lh5- 9e13 May 24  1998 gifanim_datatype/descriptor/smakefile.info
[generic]                20672   94197  21.9% -lh5- b2ba May 24  1998 gifanim_datatype/dispatch.c
[generic]                  310     705  44.0% -lh5- dc91 May 24  1998 gifanim_datatype/dispatch.c.info
[generic]                 6445    6445 100.0% -lh0- a7ee Mar 30  1990 gifanim_datatype/doc/compress.gif
[generic]                10172   31487  32.3% -lh5- ebea Nov 25  1990 gifanim_datatype/doc/gif.doc
[generic]                22396   85474  26.2% -lh5- f737 Nov 19  1990 gifanim_datatype/doc/gif89a.doc
[generic]                 4703   19384  24.3% -lh5- f4a6 Dec 14  1993 gifanim_datatype/doc/giftopnm.c
[generic]                 7460   24482  30.5% -lh5- 819c Jan 31  1994 gifanim_datatype/doc/ppmtogif.c
[generic]                 9543   32832  29.1% -lh5- 8770 Apr 13  1998 gifanim_datatype/encoder.c
[generic]                  313     710  44.1% -lh5- 6d35 Apr 13  1998 gifanim_datatype/encoder.c.info
[generic]                  996    2643  37.7% -lh5- 5ed3 Apr 13  1998 gifanim_datatype/encoder.h
[generic]                  304     704  43.2% -lh5- 4cb8 Apr 13  1998 gifanim_datatype/encoder.h.info
[generic]                  213     429  49.7% -lh5- d648 Jul  3  1997 gifanim_datatype/endcode.asm
[generic]                 4179    4179 100.0% -lh0- ee39 Jan 17  1997 gifanim_datatype/fish.gif
[generic]                14264   22660  62.9% -lh5- 86b3 May 24  1998 gifanim_datatype/gifanim.datatype
[generic]                11113   30793  36.1% -lh5- 9f16 May 24  1998 gifanim_datatype/gifanim.datatype.doc
[generic]                24206   48440  50.0% -lh5- e8ec May 24  1998 gifanim_datatype/gifanim.datatype.ld
[generic]                 2179   10205  21.4% -lh5- 5b5a May 24  1998 gifanim_datatype/gifanim.datatype.map
[generic]                  120     207  58.0% -lh5- f3e2 May 24  1998 gifanim_datatype/gifanim.datatype_rev.h
[generic]                  133     249  53.4% -lh5- eb27 May 24  1998 gifanim_datatype/gifanim.datatype_rev.i
[generic]                    2       2 100.0% -lh0- f794 May 24  1998 gifanim_datatype/gifanim.datatype_rev.rev
[generic]                  758    1907  39.7% -lh5- 8842 Apr 13  1998 gifanim_datatype/Install_DataType
[generic]                  294     529  55.6% -lh5- 11a0 Apr 13  1998 gifanim_datatype/Install_DataType.info
[generic]                 3105    9714  32.0% -lh5- 664a Apr 13  1998 gifanim_datatype/misc.c
[generic]                  308     702  43.9% -lh5- 391e Apr 13  1998 gifanim_datatype/misc.c.info
[generic]                 4565   16623  27.5% -lh5- 6f31 May 24  1998 gifanim_datatype/prefs.c
[generic]                  308     705  43.7% -lh5- a87b May 24  1998 gifanim_datatype/prefs.c.info
[generic]                 1237    4576  27.0% -lh5- b340 May 24  1998 gifanim_datatype/smakefile
[generic]                  312     712  43.8% -lh5- 9579 May 24  1998 gifanim_datatype/smakefile.info
[generic]                  932    2648  35.2% -lh5- 68eb Jan 16  1998 gifanim_datatype/stackswap.c
[generic]                64339   64339 100.0% -lh0- c3c7 Mar 23  1998 gifanim_datatype/Tools/DTConvert018.LhA
[generic]                 3900    9821  39.7% -lh5- aa15 Mar 23  1998 gifanim_datatype/Tools/DTConvert018.ReadMe
---------- ----------- ------- ------- ------ ---------- ------------ -------------
 Total        52 files  241716  591386  40.9%            May 26  1998