Have you ever browsed a product's website and been impressed with the animated movie on their home page which helps you understand what the product does? Have you ever wondered just how easy it is to make those movies, with effects such as moving text and animated characters?

The answer is "it's actually very easy". All you need is a subscription to one of the web-based systems that allow you to create such videos right from your browser and then either download them or export them to YouTube.

One such system is called Moovly and if you want to get started, the best thing is that there's a free account available which is perfectly adequate for any non-commercial usage. So fire up your imagination, head to their website and play at producing and directing your own short video. It's really quick, easy, and a fun way to produce impressive results.

You could even produce a movie instead of a Christmas card this year. Just upload it to Youtube and send all your friends and family a link to it.  Read More