if you look really hard on the net you can find any program. but thats another story and website. hehhe
but sometimes you can goto the local campus and get a educational version of programs for learning such as photoshop and such. they have unlimeted licenses for them.
the best place to find them is flea markets and grage sales. to get used copies of photoshop. the beginner doesnt need the latest anf greatest you can stil lern a great deal from a early version and save a lot of bucks.
roger.
kaolla to make an animated gif file goover to here and check out the graphical programs you can download here. i reccomend cnet.com for sharewares and freewares for beginners.
http://www.download.com/windows/?tag=hdr;snav
once there on the left nav choose graphics design software...then animation software... and the world is yours after that.
roger.