Term | Definition |
Persistence of Vision | Ex: refers to the way our eyes retain vimages for a split second longer than they actually appear, making a series of quick flashes appear as one continuous picture. |
Frame-by-Frame Animation | Ex: what appears to be continuous motion is actually a series of many different frames. Each frame shows the same graphic with a tin amount of position change to simulate motion. |
Computer Assisted Animation | - The computer is used to make the animation process quicker and easier. It usually involves 2-D images that can be hand-drawn and scanned into the computer or drawn directly into the computer using graphics tablets. |
Computer Generated Animation | All images, objects and animation are created on the computer. Typically uses 3-D images. It adds two steps to the animation process. |
Path Animation | Ex: Also called vector animation. An object follows a path which is a line, or vector, inserted by the animator. |
Morphing Animation | A shortened term for metamorphosing. A technique in which one image is gradually turned into another |
Progamming or Scripting-Based Animation | Requires knowledge of a programming or scripting language. Created by using scripting languages such as JavaScript. |
Rollovers | Also called mouseovers. When the mouse is moved over an image, it changes to a different image so quickly that it looks as if the change has occurred in a single instant. They are created in scripting languages. |
Stop Motion Animation | Process of manipulating real-world objects and photographing them one frame at a time. Very popular method with the film industry until computer generated imagery became possible. Now used mainly in clay animation. |
Stage | The part of the animation program window where the animator's content is composed and manipulated. |
Frame | A single still image in a video animation. |
Keyframe | Shows where the key (most important) actions occur. |
Timeline | The part of the animation program window that organizes and controls an animation's content over time using layers and frames. |
Library | Used to store frequently used in graphics, movie clips, and buttons. |
Playhead | The vertical red marker in the timeline that shows which frame is the current frame when previewing an animation. |
Scrubbing | Dragging the playhead across the timeline in order to preview an animation. |
Tween(ing) | An animation process in which frames are created between the keyframes that are needs to create the illusion of movement. |
Compression | The process of reducing the space required to store data by efficiently encoding the content. |
MP3 | A standard format for music files sent over the Internet that compresses music. |
WAV | The standard format for sound files on Windows-based computers. |
Executable File | A program file that can cause an application to run on your computer when it is opened. |
Plug-In | A hardware or software application to run on your computer when it is opened. |
Standalone Player | A program that can work independently of a browser to play audio or video files. |
Bandwidth | The amount of data that can be transmitted over a network in a given amount of time. |
Streaming | A procedure for transmitting media files so they can start playing as soon as a computer begins receiving them rather than waiting for the complete files to download first. |
Streaming Rate | The rate in frames per second at which the movie is downloaded. |
Playback Rate | The rate in frames per second at which the movie plays. |