LICEcap vs MakeAGIF

LICEcap captures a selected area of a Windows or macOS desktop and saves animated recordings as GIF or LCF files. During recording, the frame can be moved, recording can be paused and restarted, and an optional text message can be inserted when pausing. Shift+Space provides a global pause toggle. Capture settings include a maximum frame rate, a basic title frame, mouse-button recording and elapsed-time display. LCF is the native format; the maker says it offers higher compression than GIF, more than 256 colors per frame and more accurate timestamps. LCF recordings can play in REAPER, where they can be converted to GIF or another video format. LICEcap is GPL free software, and download packages include source code. Version 1.32 downloads for Windows and macOS are dated June 8, 2022. Listed Windows support spans XP through 11, while macOS requirements cover 10.7–12.x on Intel 64-bit or M1. The maker recommends a reasonably fast CPU and at least 1GB of RAM, especially for LCF encoding. Discussion is directed to Cockos Forums.

MakeAGIF is a web service for turning imported video into GIFs. The free account costs nothing and allows 10 seconds of video time. Premium Membership allows 20 seconds, which is also the listed maximum GIF duration. Exports can be watermark-free, and transparent GIF export is available. Video import is supported, but screen recording is not. The service is listed for use through a web browser, Chrome extension, or API. Its freemium model offers a free plan and a paid membership with a longer video-time allowance, though no Premium Membership price is listed. The listed features focus on making GIFs from video and exporting them in standard or transparent form. For someone choosing between the available allowances, the free account provides half the video time allowed by the stated maximum; Premium reaches that limit. MakeAGIF is web-based, with the browser, extension, and API as its listed access routes.