| A | B |
|---|
| SWF | A finished animation file format associated with Flash. |
| GIF | A graphic format commonly found online with support for 256 colors and transparency. Can display simple animations when viewed. |
| Timeline | A major component of multimedia authoring programs that displays the animation organized into a sequence of layers and frames. |
| Library | A major component of multimedia authoring programs that stores frequently used multimedia like graphics, movie clips, and buttons. |
| Streaming | A method of transmitting media files such that they can start playing as soon as a computer begins receiving them rather than waiting for the complete files to download first. Files transmitted this way are not stored for offline viewing. |
| Flash | A multimedia authoring program for creating animations, movies, and interactive content for websites. Created by Macromedia which is now part of Adobe Corporation. |
| Layer | A set of frames involving the same moving part in an animation. |
| Storyboard | A set of illustrations displayed in sequence to pre-visualize an animation, movie, or presentation. Has the appearance of a comic strip. |
| Frame | A single still image which when combined with others in sequence will produce a complete animation. |
| SVG | An open-standard XML-based file format for two-dimensional vector graphics that support compression and script-based animation. Under development by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C). Short for Scalable Vector Graphics |
| Morphing | An animation method in which an image is transformed into another image through reshaping and recoloring. Short for Metamorphosing. |
| Image Mask | An animation method in which an object is either hidden or revealed through the use of a covering object. Related to Cropping in Graphic Design. |
| Path Based | An animation method in which an object travels along a vector-based line to create motion. Same as Vector Animation. |
| Frame by Frame | An animation method in which each frame shows the same image with only a tiny change of position. All Traditional Animation uses this method. Example: Flipbook |
| Tweening | An animation method in which frames are automatically created between keyframes in order to simulate movement. |
| Stop Motion | An animation method using clay models, plastic models, or real world objects which are manipulated and photographed one frame at a time. Same as Claymation. |
| Scrubbing | Manually dragging the playhead across the timeline to preview an animation sequence. |
| Compression | Process for reducing file size by more efficiently encoding the data. Makes copying and moving the file faster. The trade off is a loss of speed during viewing. |
| Skew | To change an object's shape through stretching or squishing that violates its aspect ratio. |
| Blink | The most basic animation method in which objects appear and disappear. |
