Adobe Labs is a testing ground to experience and evaluate new and/or existing products. You're able to download these experimental technologies that Adobe has in the works or give your two cents about the latest release of an existing software. All-in-all...its a great place to download free versions of the next Adobe Tool.
Currently, Adobe Labs is accepting requests for users to take part in Flash CS5 beta testing, codename “Viper”. This release will boast a couple of upgrades that I think will make the Flash environment even better. Here's the listing from the product page:
Applications for iPhone
New text capabilities via the Text Layout Framework (TLF)
XML based FLA files
Code Snippets panel
Flash Builder integration
Improved ActionScript editor
So a couple of these upgrades are not only important for me, but also to the students that take Flash training with us. First, transitioning from AS2 to AS3 can be difficult for those who aren't code savvy. With the addition of the code snippets panel, this will allow designers to have built-in functionality without getting knee deep into the code. Not sure if this is going to be as simple as the old behaviors panel, but it’s a start.
Second, CS5 features an improved Actionscript editor. Oh dang! Its about time that Adobe added code hinting for custom or imported classes, making your development a little less painful. It won't be as robust as Flash Builder(formally known as Flex Builder), but it should aid those who code in the Flash IDE.
Thirdly, during my visit to this year’s Adobe MAX convention, they showcased how the new and improved Text Framework provided InDesign-like capabilities into the Flash environment. With the ability of creating multi-column layouts and threaded text fields, Flash is bridging the gap between print and interactive design. This should be interesting to see how this is actually integrated into the text tool.
What I do hope for this new release of Flash is better stability. Flash CS4 is a great product, but it just doesn't seem to be rock solid on performance. Let’s cross our fingers.
So I stumbled upon this cool online flash magazine. There's no cost involved, just sign up and they will send you a notice when the next issue is ready for download. I always try to promote users to go out and immerse themselves into the flash community, so here's a great resource.
Adobe MAX is here once again, and I will be going this time. I'm really excited and hope to see a lot good friends that I've made the last couple of events and meet some new ones too. Inspiration, Sneak Peaks and Event Parties...what more can I say. How about some really cool session on Flash Augmented Reality. I've played with the FlarTookKit, but I'm interested in seeing some live demos and examples. My favorite right now is the Living Sasquatch. Check it out.
Click here to register, and we'll see you at the conference.
I just finished another tutorial for our resources section. In this tutorial, I'll take you though the steps to import images outside of your flash projects. These steps can also be used to import external Flash files. Check it out and let me know what you think.
Adobe has release an important update for Flash CS4. There has been a number a issue with the current release and those bugs have been squashed. Hopefully its a bit more stable. I'm headed there now to get my Flash updated.
Captivate is a great tool to create you software base tutorials or soft skills training. It allows you to screen capture, add narrations and even add assessments to grade retention. With its easy to use interface and simple tool, you can easily punch out your learning modules quickly and efficiently.
If you want to create advance interaction or manipulate the recording, you'll definitely need some more tools. In this short video tutorial, I will show you have to export you audio recording from Captivate and import them in to Adobe's new audio editing tool, Soundbooth. Adobe Soundbooth is a simple to use interface that allows you to create audio enhancements, noise reduction and apply effect in an easy to use format. Great for me, because I know very little about audio editing.
I had a chance to take a drive to Venice California to attend a free flash conference. Big names like Lee Brimelow and R Blank presented and shared their knowledge. Here's the run down:
The first presentation in the morning was Jennifer Shiman, Using Flash for your Indie Animation & Comic Book Projects. She gave us a glimpse into animated shorts. I was interesting to see how different Flashers organize their projects. All in all, it was a good presentation for those who are new to the flash interface and getting started with tweening.
The release of a new line of Adobe Design products wouldn’t be complete without a new version of the flash player. The nice thing though is that we don’t have to wait to test it out. Adobe has completed all the beta testing and is ready for download.
So what’s the big deal with this new release? Well that’s a very good question you asked…so check it out.
New 3D Effects
If you are familiar with Paper Vision 3D and its 3D libraries, then you’ll be pleased to hear that Flash Player 10 will have its own 3D packages. Now you can create and design in a 3D environment. Awesome!
Advance Text
Flash text has always been a problem child to the Flash Player. It’s gone from fuzzy looking text to crisp clean glyphs with the option to add columns. Yeah Text!
Generate Sound Dynamically
This is cool. Generate sound straight from the sound APIs built in the Flash Player.
These are just a few of the new features built into Flash Player 10. Visit the product page on Adobe’s website to get the full listing and to update your current player.
Video is big…Real Big. So with one of the most important and memorable moments of year, why is the 2008 Olympics in Beijing being broadcasted online using Windows Media?
Granted, I may be a little bias being part of Adobe, but the Flash Platform is the best way to deliver video on the web…in my opinion. I have just been knee deep with Flash Video, preparing for our Cross Media Seminar in September, that it surprises me that NBC went with a platform that isn’t widely used. They broadcast their other programs via Flash, so why not the Olympics. Go USA!!!
With Rich Internet Applications and dynamic driven flash apps increasing in numbers on the web, Adobe is driven to have these sites gain higher search results. Adobe released an article answering some frequently asked question concerning the Flash Players ability to have Google and Yahoo search bots scan their content.
Former Google employees launched Cuil.com this week, creating new competition for the number of search engines available today. Cuil, an ancient Irish term for "knowledge", boasts its ability to search an index of 120 billion sites with its newly built architecture and algorithms, topping the search giant Google. This new search engine has a sleek and clean design with up to three columns of results and handy tabs that display related topics. If that's not impressive, it also has popular feature of auto filling your input to display search term suggestions. Very nice!
With the little time I've spent playing with Cuil, I can see it being a strong contender against other search engines. So check it out and post a comment letting me know whatcha think.
June is an exciting month for Web Developers. Opera 9.5 has just been released, Firefox 3.0 scheduled for June 17th, and Safari 3.1 out for a little more than a month, we will have new tools to play with as far as development. The only popular browser that is losing in this race is IE with it latest version still in beta.
With these new browsers being released, I wonder if each one is focusing on becoming more compliant with CSS standards and accessibility, not just adding new bells and whistles. Only time will tell.
I usually take a couple of minutes a day catching up on current events, whether it is on new technologies, current events or even funny videos. I recently read an article about "The Most Memorable Web Videos of 2007" by People of the Web Team at Yahoo! news. Americans watched about 100 billion internet videos this year. Imagine that, more viewers than the population of the earth! Then I realized that there must be a reason why so many individuals are able to access this information easily and reliably. The Flash Player.
There has been a tread of sites that are migrating to the use of Flash as their platform of delivery. Is it because it's a light weight foot print, or is it because of its market penetration around the world. With the Flash Player being installed in almost 100% of computers, this makes it one of the highest adopted application in today's technology.
So as you surf the net for the next top story or memorable moment in history, take a second to remember the words of the following video:
I recently had a chance to test out the new version of Captivate. I've got to say it was a pretty decent upgrade, considering the fact that Captivate 2 didn’t even work on Vista Machines.
A couple new features for the new release include XML integration, randomizing quiz questions and a new Rollover Sidelet tool (Additional info is revealed when the user rolls over a specified hotspot). Though I didn’t get a change to play with the XML feature, I will soon enough, the other tool seems to be very useful.
I still was able to crash and burn Captivate, making it frustrating to work with the program for long periods of time. Always save is my motto, even if I don’t follow it all the time.
That time is upon us once again. The yearly Max convention has arrived and I couldn't be more excited. This years location of choice is the windy city of Chicago.
For those of you who aren't familiar with MAX, this convention is a place to geek out with other like minded professionals and gurus. Also, you get a chance to take a peek at the new applications and products that Adobe currently has in the works. And if that isn't enough for you, meet the product teams and ask them why they added or removed certain features from your favorite Adobe products.
The Lumenbrite Team will be there again this year, so maybe I'll see you there. We'll be sporting the new Lumenbrite gear, fancy.
The release of a new line of Adobe Design products wouldn’t be complete without a new version of the flash player. The nice thing though is that we don’t have to wait to test it out. Adobe has completed all the beta testing and is ready for download.
