Hard Light Productions Forums

General FreeSpace => FreeSpace Discussion => Topic started by: Halcyon on September 14, 2011, 09:53:39 pm

Title: Converting FreeSpace head .ani files into gifs?
Post by: Halcyon on September 14, 2011, 09:53:39 pm
So. After spending a few hours researching this, I've found out that there are lots of ways to convert other things into FS .ani files like these (http://www.hard-light.net/wiki/index.php/Head_ani). But I can't find a way to convert the Ani files into, say, gifs.

Why? I always thought it would be cool to have some of the heads as forum avatars, or whatnot. But for the life of me I can't figure out how. So, is there a way to take the various ani's and turn them into gifs so I could use them wherever?

(Also, I think it would be a pretty cool way to spread FS across the internet. Having those as avatars would certainly interest some people out there).

Thanks in advance.
Title: Re: Converting FreeSpace head .ani files into gifs?
Post by: mjn.mixael on September 14, 2011, 10:00:12 pm
Use ANIVIEW (found on freespacemods.net) to save all the frames of the .ani as a .bmp sequence. Then use some GIF creator to make that into an animated GIF.
Title: Re: Converting FreeSpace head .ani files into gifs?
Post by: Halcyon on September 15, 2011, 09:00:22 am
Ok, I'll give that a shot. But first! A stupid question: where are the ani files?
I have FS2 installed and am looking in the data\cbanims folder, but nothing is there. No VP files, nothing.
Title: Re: Converting FreeSpace head .ani files into gifs?
Post by: mjn.mixael on September 15, 2011, 09:04:10 am
you'll need to open the retail VP 'Sparky_fs2' (you can use any number of VP programs found on freespacemods.net). They be under data/HUD in the VP.
Title: Re: Converting FreeSpace head .ani files into gifs?
Post by: Halcyon on September 15, 2011, 09:08:00 am
Pretty much every subfolder in the data folder is empty. I have VPView32 installed.
I can load up and play the game normally, so the files are there. I just can't seem to find them.

Doing a windows search for "Sparky_fs2" also comes up with nothing.
 :confused:
Title: Re: Converting FreeSpace head .ani files into gifs?
Post by: mjn.mixael on September 15, 2011, 09:15:30 am
Spark_fs2.vp is in your root freespace folder. Not in a data subdirectory. If you don't have it, you can't play FS2.
Title: Re: Converting FreeSpace head .ani files into gifs?
Post by: Halcyon on September 15, 2011, 09:20:45 am
Ah! Thank you, I found it. So yay! :)

Title: Re: Converting FreeSpace head .ani files into gifs?
Post by: Drogoth on September 21, 2011, 05:22:11 pm
Having those as GIF's would be cool, let me know how successful that ends up being, I might do it as well haha