Adobe has made the beta release of Flex 4 available, but surprise, surprise...it's no longer named "Flex". "Flash Builder 4" is now the official name of the product. The name change will either clarify some people's confusion over what Flex actually did or it will create more confusion as people who have never used the product try to figure out the difference between Adobe Flash CS4 and Flash Builder (aka "Flex").
Here is our humble effort to clarify the issue:
Flash (the traditional version, known officially now as Adobe Flash CS4) started out as a drawing program, then animation was added to it, then interactivity with Actionscript was added to it. The method by which you construct a Flash production is with the "timeline" the interface element in Flash which allows you to construct your presentation over time using a frames-based interface. The timeline is good for producing animations over time...not as good for programmers striving to create interactive Flash productions and applications using Flash for the web. They (programmers) had no experience with using a timeline, it is a totally new and unusual interface element outside the realm of their programming experience.
The solution to the programmer's conundrum with Flash was Flex: a product designed largely for "developers" (aka programmers) using an interface they were already familiar with. Both Flash and Flex output .swf files, the Flash file format that is supported by the Flash Player (the plug-in that needs to be installed in your browser so it can play back a .swf file).
Flex (aka "Flash Builder") doesn't allow you to create animations as does Flash, though you can take an animation created in Flash and play it back in your Flex (Flash Builder) production. Flex (Flash Builder) is optimized for creating highly interactive applications for the web, much of the same functionality can be found in Flash but with Flash you have to deal with that darn timelime and you don't have as many built-in components to help you create an interface for your Flash/Flex-based web application.
Got it? If not, email me and I'll try to clarify further: kdurso@multigroup.com
Showing posts with label Adobe Flash CS4. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Adobe Flash CS4. Show all posts
Monday, June 8, 2009
Monday, March 9, 2009
Adobe Product Glossary
As the principal of the Multimedia Resource Group (http://www.multigroup.com) an Adobe Authorized Training provider in Silicon consequently, we often get questions from people about which product they should buy and use.
We put together this Adobe Product Directory and Glossary together to give people
a simple overview of Adobe Products.
This list is still a work in progress. Note this glossary is not complete but it does list most major Adobe products; all definitions are our interpretation of the major features and purpose of each product.
Adob
Adobe Flash
Adobe Flash is a program for creating animations, presentations and interactive productions for the web.It can be used for everything from animated banners, to online training, to interactive games, to creating entire web sites and more. Flash files (.swf) can contain graphics, sounds, videos, interactivity (buttons that do something when clicked using Actionscript, the scripting language built in Flash.). A very popular technology on the web today. Flash files are played back though the "Flash Player" a browser plug in that most people already have.
Flash can also be used to encode and playback video files. All "YouTube" videos are encoded as Flash video files.
Adobe Flex
An application or framework that allows you to output swf files that are played back using the Flash Player. Flex is available as an application from Adobe: Flex Builder, or an open source application Flex 3 SDK. Much of the functionality of Flex is typically implemented using componenents (pre-build "widgets" that come with Flex). Actionscript 3.0 is also used in Flex as its scripting language (as it is in Flash). Flex also uses mxml, a custom mark-up language similiar to xml.
Flex files are used to create web applications that playback using the Flash Player, as does Flash. Flex has no animation capability but swf files created in Flash can be used in Flex. Typicallly, Flex files tend to be highly interactive web applications. Both Flash and Flex can be used to create web applications, though some applications may be more expediantly created in Flex.
Adobe AIR
Adobe Integrated Run time (AIR): desktop applications (doesn't play on the web) created in either Flex or Flash. Twitter Deck and Thwirl are AIR applications.
Adobe Dreamweaver
Adobe Dreamweaver is the industry-leading professional product for creating, maintaining and deploying web sites.
Adobe InDesign
InDesign is the industry leading product for producing page layouts for print: everything from a one page flyer, newsletter, magazine or book. InDesign files can be displayed on the web when output as .pdf files.
Adobe Photoshop
Photoshop is the industry leading product for creating and working with bitmap graphics for print or web.
Adobe Illustrator
Illustrator is the industry leading product for creating and editing graphics using vector shapes for output to print or web.
Adobe Fireworks
A product Adobe acquired from Macromedia created specifically to create graphics and related resources for the web.
Adobe Captivate
Captivate is an eLearning tool allowing you to create online present ions, as well as software demonstrations and simulations with or without interactivity.
Adobe Contribute
A product that allows people with no knowledge of the tools and techniques needed to create web pages to manage and update web sites.
Adobe Acrobat
An application that allows you to create pdf files from various sources for print or web. The resulting files may include forms, interactivivity and a variety of different media.
Adobe FrameMaker
An application typically used to create and mange long documents such as books.
Adobe Cold Fusion
A server technology and scripting language (Cold Fusion Markup Language; cfml) used for the creation and support of dynamic web sites.
Training, Consulting and Development
The Multimedia Resource Group offers training, consulting and development services using all of these products, call or email us for more information: training@multigroup.com; 408-315-8720.
If there is an Adobe product that you need more information about, whether it's on this list or not, feel free to email us with your question: training@multigroup.com
As the principal of the Multimedia Resource Group (http://www.multigroup.com) an Adobe Authorized Training provider in Silicon consequently, we often get questions from people about which product they should buy and use.
We put together this Adobe Product Directory and Glossary together to give people
a simple overview of Adobe Products.
This list is still a work in progress. Note this glossary is not complete but it does list most major Adobe products; all definitions are our interpretation of the major features and purpose of each product.
Adob
Adobe Flash
Adobe Flash is a program for creating animations, presentations and interactive productions for the web.It can be used for everything from animated banners, to online training, to interactive games, to creating entire web sites and more. Flash files (.swf) can contain graphics, sounds, videos, interactivity (buttons that do something when clicked using Actionscript, the scripting language built in Flash.). A very popular technology on the web today. Flash files are played back though the "Flash Player" a browser plug in that most people already have.
Flash can also be used to encode and playback video files. All "YouTube" videos are encoded as Flash video files.
Adobe Flex
An application or framework that allows you to output swf files that are played back using the Flash Player. Flex is available as an application from Adobe: Flex Builder, or an open source application Flex 3 SDK. Much of the functionality of Flex is typically implemented using componenents (pre-build "widgets" that come with Flex). Actionscript 3.0 is also used in Flex as its scripting language (as it is in Flash). Flex also uses mxml, a custom mark-up language similiar to xml.
Flex files are used to create web applications that playback using the Flash Player, as does Flash. Flex has no animation capability but swf files created in Flash can be used in Flex. Typicallly, Flex files tend to be highly interactive web applications. Both Flash and Flex can be used to create web applications, though some applications may be more expediantly created in Flex.
Adobe AIR
Adobe Integrated Run time (AIR): desktop applications (doesn't play on the web) created in either Flex or Flash. Twitter Deck and Thwirl are AIR applications.
Adobe Dreamweaver
Adobe Dreamweaver is the industry-leading professional product for creating, maintaining and deploying web sites.
Adobe InDesign
InDesign is the industry leading product for producing page layouts for print: everything from a one page flyer, newsletter, magazine or book. InDesign files can be displayed on the web when output as .pdf files.
Adobe Photoshop
Photoshop is the industry leading product for creating and working with bitmap graphics for print or web.
Adobe Illustrator
Illustrator is the industry leading product for creating and editing graphics using vector shapes for output to print or web.
Adobe Fireworks
A product Adobe acquired from Macromedia created specifically to create graphics and related resources for the web.
Adobe Captivate
Captivate is an eLearning tool allowing you to create online present ions, as well as software demonstrations and simulations with or without interactivity.
Adobe Contribute
A product that allows people with no knowledge of the tools and techniques needed to create web pages to manage and update web sites.
Adobe Acrobat
An application that allows you to create pdf files from various sources for print or web. The resulting files may include forms, interactivivity and a variety of different media.
Adobe FrameMaker
An application typically used to create and mange long documents such as books.
Adobe Cold Fusion
A server technology and scripting language (Cold Fusion Markup Language; cfml) used for the creation and support of dynamic web sites.
Training, Consulting and Development
The Multimedia Resource Group offers training, consulting and development services using all of these products, call or email us for more information: training@multigroup.com; 408-315-8720.
If there is an Adobe product that you need more information about, whether it's on this list or not, feel free to email us with your question: training@multigroup.com
Sunday, March 1, 2009
Flash CS4 Top New Features
If you're still deciding whether to upgrade or not, or just perversely curious: A list of major new features in Flash CS4. Keep in mind the Flash CS4 is the first version of Flash to be retooled under the Adobe umbrealla. (Flash CS3 was released as an Adobe product but was designed at Macromedia.) In my opinion it represents the most significant change in Flash since it was released. For many people the first three features listed below will be reason enough to upgrade.
Inverse kinematics with the Bones tool
Perhaps the coolest new feature in Flash: Create chain-like animation effects with a series of linked objects, or quickly link a single vector shape into interconnected "bones" that swivel and move using the new Bones tool. This is a boon for creating all kinds of animations from "character" animations (think cartoons) to scientific simulations. Here's an example: http://www.onemotion.com/flash/spider/ Be sure to click on the spider and drag him around.
Motion editor
Allows you to precisely control numerous parameters of an animated object including rotation, size, scale, position, filters, and more. Refine easing control with graphical displays. Again another major improvement for designer and animators as Flash begins to add some sophisticated animated controls a la After Effects.
Motion presets
Allow you to jump-start tart your project with sophisticated prebuilt animations that can be applied to any object. Essentially Motion Presets are a a library of various animated effects you can apply to an object (symbol) to animate it. Even if you don't use it on a regular basis it can safely stimulate your own creative animation juices. Select from dozens of presets or create and save your own animated effects that you may have created or tweaked with the Motion Editor as presets. These are easy to use and you can also share presets with others.
Object-based animation
This is the new way to tween (animate various properties of an object): applies tweens directly to objects (symbols) instead of to keyframes. Automatically generates an animation path and allows you to modify the path. This is the new look of “tweening” in Flash, quicker then the previous version; automatically changes the object into a Movie Clip symbol and extends the timeline 24 frames; it also automatically produces the second keyframe for you. Cool new feature, and if you want to revert to the "classic style" of tweening, you can.
3D transformation
Animate 2D objects through 3D space with new 3D translation and rotation tools, which allow you to animate along the x, y, and z axes. Apply local or global transformation to any object.
Authoring for Adobe AIR (Adobe Integrated RunTime)
Deliver interactive experiences to the desktop with new integrated capability to publish to the Adobe® AIR™ runtime. http://www.adobe.com/products/air/
If you use Twitter, you probably know TweetDeck, and TweetDeck is an Adobe Air application. Flash CS4 allows you to create AIR applications as does Adobe Flex. More on Tweetdeck: http://www.tweetdeck.com/beta/
XFL support
No, Flash is not supporting some renegade offshoot of the National Football League. XFL support however is aiding and abetting incestuous relations among the Adobe clan (gasp!) allowing you to take content from Adobe InDesign, or After Effects, save it as an .xfl file and import it in Flash and retain "file integrity". Will try to come up with some examples of this and will post more info...later. In the meantime: http://help.adobe.com/en_US/InDesign/6.0/WS2DECDF40-B6DA-40b6-804F-2703D6C6A460.html
Procedural modeling with Deco and Spray Brush new
Turn symbols into instant design tools. Apply symbols in a variety of ways: Quickly create kaleidoscope-like effects and apply fills using the Deco tool, or randomly spray symbols across any defined area using the Spray Brush. This is beefs up the designer tool chest in Flash, similar in functionality to the symbol sprayer tool in Adobe Illustrator.
Metadata (XMP) support
Add metadata to SWF files using the new XMP panel. Quickly assign tags for enhanced collaboration and better mobile experiences. (XMP is an RDF-based framework of Adobe Systems Incorporated that supports the embedding of metadata in application files.
More information on XMP is available here: http://www.adobe.com/products/xmp/overview.html
H.264 support
Flash now allows you to create and playback High Definition video, in addition to the other video formats previously supported.This is a big deal if you're a video geek, and with the cost of HD camcorders dropping we'll all soon be video geeks.
Inverse kinematics with the Bones tool
Perhaps the coolest new feature in Flash: Create chain-like animation effects with a series of linked objects, or quickly link a single vector shape into interconnected "bones" that swivel and move using the new Bones tool. This is a boon for creating all kinds of animations from "character" animations (think cartoons) to scientific simulations. Here's an example: http://www.onemotion.com/flash/spider/ Be sure to click on the spider and drag him around.
Motion editor
Allows you to precisely control numerous parameters of an animated object including rotation, size, scale, position, filters, and more. Refine easing control with graphical displays. Again another major improvement for designer and animators as Flash begins to add some sophisticated animated controls a la After Effects.
Motion presets
Allow you to jump-start tart your project with sophisticated prebuilt animations that can be applied to any object. Essentially Motion Presets are a a library of various animated effects you can apply to an object (symbol) to animate it. Even if you don't use it on a regular basis it can safely stimulate your own creative animation juices. Select from dozens of presets or create and save your own animated effects that you may have created or tweaked with the Motion Editor as presets. These are easy to use and you can also share presets with others.
Object-based animation
This is the new way to tween (animate various properties of an object): applies tweens directly to objects (symbols) instead of to keyframes. Automatically generates an animation path and allows you to modify the path. This is the new look of “tweening” in Flash, quicker then the previous version; automatically changes the object into a Movie Clip symbol and extends the timeline 24 frames; it also automatically produces the second keyframe for you. Cool new feature, and if you want to revert to the "classic style" of tweening, you can.
3D transformation
Animate 2D objects through 3D space with new 3D translation and rotation tools, which allow you to animate along the x, y, and z axes. Apply local or global transformation to any object.
Authoring for Adobe AIR (Adobe Integrated RunTime)
Deliver interactive experiences to the desktop with new integrated capability to publish to the Adobe® AIR™ runtime. http://www.adobe.com/products/air/
If you use Twitter, you probably know TweetDeck, and TweetDeck is an Adobe Air application. Flash CS4 allows you to create AIR applications as does Adobe Flex. More on Tweetdeck: http://www.tweetdeck.com/beta/
XFL support
No, Flash is not supporting some renegade offshoot of the National Football League. XFL support however is aiding and abetting incestuous relations among the Adobe clan (gasp!) allowing you to take content from Adobe InDesign, or After Effects, save it as an .xfl file and import it in Flash and retain "file integrity". Will try to come up with some examples of this and will post more info...later. In the meantime: http://help.adobe.com/en_US/InDesign/6.0/WS2DECDF40-B6DA-40b6-804F-2703D6C6A460.html
Procedural modeling with Deco and Spray Brush new
Turn symbols into instant design tools. Apply symbols in a variety of ways: Quickly create kaleidoscope-like effects and apply fills using the Deco tool, or randomly spray symbols across any defined area using the Spray Brush. This is beefs up the designer tool chest in Flash, similar in functionality to the symbol sprayer tool in Adobe Illustrator.
Metadata (XMP) support
Add metadata to SWF files using the new XMP panel. Quickly assign tags for enhanced collaboration and better mobile experiences. (XMP is an RDF-based framework of Adobe Systems Incorporated that supports the embedding of metadata in application files.
More information on XMP is available here: http://www.adobe.com/products/xmp/overview.html
H.264 support
Flash now allows you to create and playback High Definition video, in addition to the other video formats previously supported.This is a big deal if you're a video geek, and with the cost of HD camcorders dropping we'll all soon be video geeks.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)