Overcoming Resource Drain in LiceCap Animation

When working on a single-core CPU with limited RAM, choosing the right applications can make all the difference. I've recently noticed that large animations created using modern tools can quickly consume system resources if opened in QtWeb browser, which I've been using alongside Pale Moon due to its reduced resource requirements.

In my case, I was working on a project that involved creating blocky animations using LiceCap. However, I encountered an issue where the animation would drain all available RAM, page file, and CPU resources if played in QtWeb browser. This problem persisted regardless of whether transparency was enabled or disabled within LiceCap.

To troubleshoot this issue, I experimented with displaying the animated GIFs in different image viewers. Interestingly, Total Commander's Lister (where Imagine kicks in) provided a more seamless experience compared to full-fledged FS Image Viewer, which often struggled to render the animations correctly. This led me to suspect that the problem lay with Imagine rather than LiceCap.

Upon further investigation, I discovered that FastStone Image Viewer was able to render the animated GIFs without any issues, suggesting that the problem was specific to Imagine or perhaps an image viewer's inability to handle transparency correctly. Some programs offer an option to only draw pixels between frames, which might be relevant in this context.

In conclusion, it appears that the rendering issue is likely due to transparency problems within Imagine or my chosen image viewer. Further research and experimentation will be needed to pinpoint the root cause of this problem and find a suitable solution.

Licecap blocky animation