How can GIF89a files animate in a mail doc?

[Denny_Mulqueen]

A person using a PC sends me an e-mail (using Outlook) with an animated GIF (GIF89a) that is opened on my Mac (using Macintosh Mail). The GIF animation works as designed.

If the animated GIF is dragged and dropped onto the desktop or into another Mail window, it does not animate. If it is dropped into a browser window THEN the animation does work as designed.

How are the HTML instructions to loop the series of GIF-stills to act as a "flip book animation" actually working in a "mail document" ? [The nature of a browser is to follow HTML instructions. An e-mail document does not have that nature.]

[Fed]

I think the Outlook default is to read html.
I set mine to plain text only for security reasons.
I'm unsure of Macs though.

[Denny_Mulqueen]

The Preferences has a "ON or OFF" selection that says:

"Display remote images in HTML messages.
Remote images require additional network access to display."

The "selection box" is checked ON.

What does the second line mean. Maybe that is the key.....

[Fed]

I'm using Outlook Express so things may well be different for you.  

[Denny_Mulqueen]

I can make animated GIFs with Photoshop (and Imageready) but I want to mail them to others like someone did to me. ("They" actually forwarded the GIF so "they" don't know how it works either.)



Like this Smiley ... what makes it move in a "mail" window?