Is it possible to make gif images and/or animations using photoshop elements 5? and how'd you do it?

i have photoshop elements 5 on my computer at home, and need to be able to create a moving image or animation... does anyone know, is this a possible task? and what procedure do i have to follow to create a successful result?Is it possible to make gif images and/or animations using photoshop elements 5? and how'd you do it?
(I just spent 20 minutes writing out instructions, clicked Preview and my answer disappeared!)





OK let's try this again....Yes, you can make animations with Elements.


If you're making blinkies (animations that just change color or blink on and off), make one layer, make as many copies of it as you need then, one by one, starting at the bottom of the Layers Palette, click on each layer and make the changes to it in the workspace.





If you're making an animation that moves, you have to make small changes to it on separate layers. How small? After you have some experience making animations, you'll have a better feeling for this. Until then, you're going to have to play it by ear and make changes after you preview your animation.





Size: Since animations only play in emails and browsers they don't have to be very big. My small blinkies are only 200 pixels wide but I made one that moves across about half the screen that's 925 pixels long. If you're animation is too big, a popup in the animations dialog will tell you and you can change the size in the dialog.





Important things:


1. The first layer in an Elements creation is the locked Background layer. Animations won't run with this layer in place. Right click on it and click on Layer From Background. Rename this layer Layer 1 by doubling clicking on the name on the layer.


2. Since some of my animations have up to 70 layers and the thumbnail pictures on the layers are too small to see anything, I give my layers descriptive names like Layer 37 Flag 15. The more layers you have the more confusing it can be as you move some of them around. For your first animation, try to keep it down to less than 20 layers.





Save often and save as a psd file to preserve your layers. After every three or four new layers, save. If you make major changes, use Save As and give the file name a version number: My Animation, My Animation 2, My Animation 3, etc. When you've finished with your animation, you can delete these early versions....BUT always save your final psd file ';just in case';.





OK, you've got some layers and you've saved them as a psd file and it's time to animate them. Go to File%26gt;Save For Web. Here's a screenshot of the Save For Web dialog that I did for someone else:


http://www.flickr.com/photos/22020217@N0鈥?/a>


1. First, check the Animate box. If you file is too big, you'll get a popup telling you. Use the New Size section to change the size and try checking the Animate box again.


2 %26amp; 3. Make sure everything up in the top section looks like mine. Usually checking the Animate box automatically changes the values in the other boxes.


4. Unles you want your animation to run once and stop, check the Loop box. Timing is trial and error. Start with 0.2 and, if that's too fast, try 0.5.


5. The Preview button - exciting! Use the dropdown to select what to use to preview. I usually just stay with Internet Explorer (the default). Click the Preview and watch your animation run. After you see what it looks like you can decide what changes you want to make. If it's too fast, change the timing. If it's ';rough'; or jumpy, you'll have to cancel and go back to the editor and make changes to your layers...maybe add a few more with smaller changes.





The first couple of animations, when you're not sure what you're doing, are the most difficult but after you get some experience with them, they're a lot easier to do.





Have Fun!