Whenever you load Serif Draw the Startup Wizard appears - choose Create an Animation.

The next window (Create an Animation) displays a list of page sizes, you can choose from the list or use Add Page Size to create your own layout. Please note that landscape is referred to as Wide, portrait is referred to as Tall.

The chosen work area will display.

The animation toolbar is displayed at the bottom left hand corner of the main window. Click on the toolbar below for a description of the various tools.

In this example we will create a text logo that continually changes shade and colour. First select the text tool from the left hand side of the screen.

Draw out your text box and enter your text. You can adjust the size by dragging or using the standard text options from the main toolbar.

Now select the Fill option from the toolbar on the left hand side of the screen..

The fill tool combines with a range of fill options which are accessed from the right hand side of the screen. There are a range of fill patterns, click in the box displaying Linear to explore them. Be sure to scroll down to the bottom of each window in order to see the full range of choices available.

You can adjust the way the object is filled by dragging the control boxes around the screen.

Making your animation now is relatively easy. Make sure you have the fill effect you want. Click on Clone Frame from the animation toolbar. You will now have an exact copy of your first frame. Either adjust the fill  or replace with another. Clone again and repeat the steps until you think you have enough frames. Check by clicking on the preview button from the animation toolbar.

Once you are satisfied with your animation you will need to save it. Selecting File and Save as will allow you to save the file as a Serif Draw file which will allow you to load it back into Serif draw only. This state of affairs is fine while you are developing your animation but eventually you will want to use it within a power point or web presentation. To allow your animation to be used in other applications you will need to click on the export button in the animation toolbar (or click File and Export).

The Export Optimizer window will open. This will allow you to save your file as an animated GIF file - the common file type for small animations. The settings are usually appropriate and you shouldn't need to alter them.

Click on Export and your file will be saved in the correct format.