The video and movie recording industry has existed for a very long time, since the 1890s when the first movies were recorded. The earliest surviving stop-motion animated film was created in 1899 and more than a decade later, in 1910, the production of animated short films, typically referred to as "cartoons", became an industry of its own.
What is animation?
Animation refers to the rapid display of a sequence of images in order to create an illusion of movement. There are different methods of creating animation images - rotoscope animation, stop-motion animation and others. Actually, most of these traditional animation techniques become obsolete and are replaced with computer animation.
Computer animation
The computer animation is a technique of creating moving images with the use of computers. In order to create the illusion of movement, the computer animation software shows an image on the computer screen and repeatedly replaces it with a new image that is similar to the previous one, but slightly advanced in the time domain (usually at a rate of 24 or 30 frames/second). This technique is identical to how the illusion of movement is achieved with television and motion pictures. Also, there are other computer animation techniques like tweening, morphing, etc.
How to create animation for your website
If you want to add some motion to your website, you need to consider adding animated images, banners, videos or other elements. The most popular way of placing very simple animations on a website (blinking buttons, bullets, etc) is by using animated GIF images. Unfortunately, the GIF format has a restricted color palette which makes it unusable for more complicated animated graphics
For more complex and real life-like animations, all modern websites are using the Flash technology, which enables you to use embedded high-quality animated banners and menus. Also, by using Flash you can create fully animated Flash-based websites and applications.
Another useful way to add some simple quality animated effects to your site is by using JavaScript and Ajax. By using modern frameworks like MooTools, Slimbox and Prototype, you can add smooth effects, transitions and eye candies to your website.