Flash

I found the Flex 2 docs didn’t really contain an example of using the pixel data getPixels() puts into a ByteArray. I wanted to take the pixels in that ByteArray and have them explode or move around in a controlled fashion not obtainable with a simple Convolution Matrix or DisplacementMap. I’m not going to go through all of that, but just a quick example of getting data back out of a ByteArray and displaying it again as a copy. Normally copyPixels() would be the better option for this specific task, but this as I say gives the opportunity to move the pixels around indepentently in 3D for example. ...

The aim of the Y design awards is to recognise leading creative talent demonstrated through the use of digital technology. This year the awards are focussed on the recognition of great design with the use of Flash technology – in celebration of Flash’s 10 year anniversary. The competition is aimed specifically at the Uk design/agency community and already there is great interest from some the likes of Saatchi and Tribal DDB. The grand prize, which is a people choice award voted for online, is a trip for the lead designer to the next international Flash conference. ...

What an awesome suprise when I got to work. For any Little Britain fans out there… “I looove the cake” 😉 Thanks to Robin and to Adobe! Only problem is it’s too nice to eat.

I was just asked by a friend, “if code on the timeline in Flash 8 is no different from AS1 because it isn’t inside a class file [therefore not type-checked or anything else that typically differentiates AS2 from AS1], what is AS3 code on the timeline in Flash 9?”. I didn’t have a simple answer. That code will still be runtime checked etc, it certainly isn’t AS1 or AS2. The reason we can’t define what it is exactly is probably due to the nature of the language. ...

Come and join us this time at my place of work for the July London Flash Platform Usergroup (LFPUG) meeting for some really great presentations, and of course free beer and pizza. Covered this month: Development Techniques for Localizing Flash (19:00 – 20:00) – Dave Williamson There is no avoiding it. More and more projects require some level of localisation. Clients want their micro site deployed across Europe, banners to support the whole of EMEA, and global intranet applications that take in the whole of the planet. Not only that they want them built to the same timelines as their HTML emails. Find out the easiest tricks to make those hellish localisation issues…… not so hellish. ...

Time to catch up. I’ve been at AKQA for a little while now and I’ve enjoyed it thoroughly so far and I really feel a strong commitment to the team. My first project went live the other day, www.nikerunning.com, even though it’s aimed at runners (of course!) I hope you enjoy it even if you are not. My favourite sections are the shoe selector and technology section. I’m no photographer, but after this I’ve started to appreciate good photos; you can hit the home button to get 3 different scenes for the home page, I wish I’d gone on shoot for the coastal one! ...

Well, I’ve been using Zinc for quite some time now so I know it pretty well and I’m very keen to give the new version a test run and see that any old bugs have been quashed forever, so here’s a thank you to MDM for the free copy. 🙂 Zinc 2.5 now supports Flash 9 (which includes AS3 and Flex 2 apps), I’m yet to look into how this is implemented, but with 2.5 we saw the commands becoming synchronous, which was a big relief from the asynchronous commands we had in all the swf wrappers a little while back. Also bundled for the first time is an SWC, this should also mean intrinsics for all of the classes (previously intrinsics were downloadable seperately and were a lone effort by one of the team in the forum), this should ultimately keep FDT/Flex Builder 2 happy. ...

Just a quick warning to people using ExternalInterface. When you are calling Javascript functions that open new windows your Flash movie will lose all mouse interaction (no rollovers etc) and the button you pressed to open the popup will stick on its “over” state. This is only in Firefox, (and possibly only when the popup contains a Flash movie, tbc). Other than that ExternalInterface has been performing superbly, it greatly simplifies the communication between Flash and Javascript and works very well with unFocus HistoryKeeper (for back/forward button nav in browser). ...

I’m very pleased to announce I’ll be presenting at Flash Forward Austin in September. I’ve only been across the Atlantic once to visit Chicago, so I cannot wait to check out Austin especially with the City Limits festival straight after the conference. I will be presenting on my favourite topic, Flash Lite (2). Hopefully you’ve already clicked the link above to check out the lineup, all I can say is that I’m going to enjoy going to the other presentations as much as giving mine 🙂 and the conference runs from the 16th to the 18th. ...

This is cool, Hayden Porter on the Flash Lite Yahoo Group just posted the following link to a blog that is reviewing Flash games for PSP on a weekly basis. PSP Homebrew has been seriously hampered by the last few updates, with no real mod-chip out there yet, it’s been the case that homebrew is for the hardcore (even I upgraded so I could play the latest games). Either way, Flash for PSP fills some of that void with free games to download: ...