Month: April 2007

FiTC: Notes from The Art of Encoding

John Winkelman

The Art of Encoding
Derrick Ypenburg
www.focusonmedia.com

video properties that affect encoding
-color/movement
-edits/transitions/effects
-frame rate
-display size
-sound ranges
-interlacing
-image quality
-smoothness of playback
-audio quality
-transitions/effects

IMPROVING ENCODED VIDEO QUALITY
-2 pass vs. single-pass encoding
-preprocessing filters
-advanced compression settings
-de-interlacing
-keyframes — not like Flash — snapshot of video which subsequent frames use as basis for compression
-smaller display size — 320 x 240 is about as small as you should need to go
-dropping frame rates — the fewer frames, the more room for detail in each frame

3RD PARTY SOFTWARE
-Flash video encoder is okay, but not great
-Sorensen Squeeze is GREAT
-ON2 FLIX is really good too

CODECS
-Spark Pro
-On2 VP6 Pro
-Squeeze Pro

FEATURES
…etc.

Files for this session available at www.focusonmedia.com/fitc2007

FITC: Notes from Adobe Keynote Session

John Winkelman

(Notes from Flash in the Can conference)

Ryan: “They’re trying to sell me something which I have no choice but to buy.”

MIKE DOWNEY
Flash player adoption rates:
FP7: 75% in 12 months
FP8: 94% in 12 months
FP9: 84% in 9 months

PaperVision demo
-rhino
-xwing obstacle course

Flash Player 9:
-now has full-screen video support. Not full-browser — FULL SCREEN
-10 million downloads a day

CS3 is now shipping
All CS3 products now have a standardized interface

Flash CS3:
-timeline is now in its own panel
-can now import Photoshop files into Flash IDE
-selectively import layers from PS
-multiple options for importing text from PS
-jpeg compression engine is now using the Fireworks engine

-Can now (natively) import Illustrator files into Flash, rather than needing third-party library

Robert Penner stuff
-timeline animations can now be exported as Actionscript/XML.
-this can be done per-layer
-Actionscript class which interprets the outputted XML is included with Flash CS3

TED PATRICK : FLEX
-Flash CS3 can be used to build Flex components
-timeline and “states” integration
-event integration
-download MPX plugin to allow Flex app export from CS3
CTRL+ENTER export of .swc export (.swc == flex component version of .swf)
-a flex component can be ANYTHING

KEVIN TOWES : FLASH MEDIA SERVER
-intelligent streaming
-can detect bandwidth
-can detet player version
Akami — “tour of California” video — streaming 60 gigabytes per second through the media server
-awesome demo of LIVE ENCODING! No Delay! Real-time encoding of webcam feed into .flv ready for streaming.
-standard flv playmack component has been significantly improved
[demo of live video inside flash movie]
-media server can record live video as it happens and save it to the server.
-mention of photobucket.com, which has a tool which allows you to assemble the stuff you have up on photobucket.com into a .flv, rearrange, add effects and titles, etc.

APOLLO
-Deploy Rich Internet Applications as desktop applications.
-Company called “effective UI” created a desktop app for eBay.
-Apollo runtime includes: —Flash player —WebKit HTML engine (the one used in Safari)

-DEMO: Apollo RSS reader — Built using AJAX (the Yahoo! library). Cool stuff!
-Apollo currently available in public alpha www.adobe.com/go/apollo
-plugin coming for Dreamweaver and Flash to natively publish Apollo apps.

ADOBE MEDIA PLAYER
-sneak peek of Alpha build
-RSS-aware
-a lot like the Democracy player
-fully skinnable
-RSS feed can deliver colors, background, ads, content, thumbnails, the whole bit.
-demo of Reno 911 clip, pulled from RSS along with Background image and embedded ad.
-seems to have been built with Apollo…?

MORE APOLLO STUFF
-allows file I/O
-local data storage
-custom chrome
-system notifications and alerts
-multi-window support
-drag/drop
-copy/paste
-apps can run in background
-network API
-hypothetical example: eBay app. You bid on a product, tell the app to run in the background, then get a window alert if someone out-bids you.
-finetune.com? findtune.com?—sneak-peek at desktop player built in Apollo

TED PATRICK
-preview of Flex Builder III
-Flex is for building Applications; not so much about websites or experiences.
–sliderocket.com — Flex-based, online presentation creator

-BUZZWORD: online competitor for Microsoft Word

“Moxie”: Code-name for Flex III SDK and Builder — lots of work being done to make Flex “back-end neutral”; should work equally with all middleware

technologies

FITC: Notes from Based on a True Story session

John Winkelman

(Notes from Flash in the Can conference)

“Based on a true Story”, by Hoss Gifford, www.flamjam.com

Engaging speaker but (by his own admission) a disorganized wanker.

Did cool work for “Liberated Theatre” in London (http://www.liberatedtheatre.co.uk/chorus.htm)

narrative is what provides meaning and context for your work

“You don’t hire an artist and tell him how it should be done. You hire him for what he does”

[interesting project: environment which changes based on the time of day as pulled from the computer on which the project is running]

FLASHTERBATION

www.newbirth.org

site created by

www.sharperfx.com

[BOOK TO FIND: The Long Tail]

the context in which we apply our skills, rather than the specifics of our skills, is what gives us our job titles

Flash animator + big screen = film-maker
Flash animator + DVD = multimedia presentation creator
etc.

FITC: Notes from AdverGaming session

John Winkelman

(Notes from Flash in the Can conference)

Flash 8 AdverGaming Development- Sam Rivello. www.rivello.org

casual games — extremely simple gameplay — allow gameplay in short bursts — 2d, abstract graphics — generally mouse-based

Trial-purchase business model
-try
-buy
-[subscribe…?]
right now: $6b online gaming
2009 — est. $9.8n billion annually

consumer type — 29% casual = $2 to $3 billion a year

Bejewelled is the “crowning achievement” in casual games

the more abstract a game, the longer its shelf life —up to a point

flash games — extremely low development overhead, compared to PC/Console games.

[look up code for surrounding/lasso-ing with a mouse]

how long should the game be played? length of visit
how often should the game be replayed? number of visits

design game to be update-able — keep it fresh

8 weeks seems to be the standard lifetime of a (version of a) casual game

-proposal — just put in enough info to get them to accept the idea. Not so much that the idea appears inflexible . don’t get bogged down in the details.

-pitching the game can be more difficult than building the game

“high frequency gameplay” : Won’t play long, but will play frequently.

-are you measuring number of gameplays, or length of gameplays?

-remember to explicitly point out what is NOT in the game

-Make sure you are specific about WHO OWNS THE CODE!!!!
-review rounds
-payment schedule
-secure assets
-begin programming

-work directly with ONE POINT of client contact

-agree upon a maintenance contract/schedule — update game on a regular schedule — new questions, new power-ups, that kind of thing. Keeps eyes coming back

-DO A POST-MORTEM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

FITC: Notes from BumpTop session

John Winkelman

(Notes from “Flash in the Can” http://www.fitc.ca conference)

Bumptop: Pushing the desktop metaphor, by Anand Agarawali

http://www.bumptop.com/

-computers are still in the “cave painting” era of user interfaces

-making it pretty doesn’t make it different or better

-bumptop — new paradigm — gesture based

-mimics the physical paradigm of “stuff on your desk”
-mimics physics without being bound by physics
-rigid body simulation
-the laws of thermodynamics do not apply
– “works for applications at all levels of the interface hierarchy” vis. return a google search as a group of icons of screenshots of the result pages

-user-tested: intuitive, takes advantage of spatial memory.
-feels more realistic than the current “desktop” metaphor

-TONS of buzz — video up on youtube, Dugg twice.

also showed us this thing; kind of a virtual overlay of the real world:

http://www.dgp.toronto.edu/~ravin/ — Presentation #60, “Interacting with dynamically defined information spaces using a handheld projector and a pen.” Some of the other stuff on this page looks pretty cool, too

FiTC: Notes on Joshua Davis session

John Winkelman

(Notes from Flash in the Can conference)

Making Flash components (Actionscript 1) to create generative/controlled chaos art.

Components are encapsulations of code which allow a more user-friendly way of updating things on the stage, so non-nerds can basically have powerful rendering and animation tools available without having to learn a lot of code, or rely on snarky developers.

How to print the output of a Flash movie:
MAC — save PDF as PostScript

EXPORT FLASH SCREENSHOT AS .EPS

-instructions here:
http://diary.joshuadavis.com/2006/05/29/bmw-estoril-portugal/
instructions about 75% down the page
-no gradients
-no alpha transparencies
-no bitmapdata
Saves (from Firefox) to C:Program FilesMozilla Firefox with no file extension
Add “.eps” file extension to file, then open in Illustrator, or something

  • does not seem to work for bitmap-type files, like that matters for vector art.

OR, just download the PC postscript drivers from Adobe (I haven’t tried this one)

JD says “word” a lot. Also, “rockin'”

3 frame Movieclip as button without using actionscript
1. make MC
2. label three frames “_up”, “_over”, “_down”.
3. MovieClip automatically responds to mouse action as if it were created as a button. No ActionScript needed.

Example of springs and damping for “bounce” effect

Useful tool: http://colorstripping.joshuadavis.com/
-generates string color palette from a .gif

EXPORT VIDEO OF ACTIONSCRIPT ANIMATION FROM FLASH

-DIRECTOR
-import desired Flash movie (.swf)
-add .swf to director timeline
-property inspector: END FRAME: 600 (for 20seconds at 30fps)

File-export->all frames->quicktime movie format->

Basically takes a bunch of screenshots of the desktop then compiles them into a Quicktime movie.

Go to Eric Natzke talk — dynamic animation dude.

-be sure to replace Flash 6 plugin (inside of Director) with Flash 8 plugin for good stuff. Search on MM site for appropriate download/plugin

FOR PRINTING: Make sure hairlines are larger than .25. .25 is often too fine to be printed—

Flash 9 can, in theory, do all of this without all of the hoops to jump through

Ideas come from getting out in the world — NOT looking at the stuff other people do or staring at a computer.
Take photos, find patterns, trace with WACOM.

Using drawings in conjunction with Actionscript. Don’t go all Actionscript because it loses that warm, hand-drawn feel.

“I am successful because I make stuff for ME, not because I make stuff for YOU. You hire me for MY stuff, not YOUR stuff”

VERY inspiring speaker.

Experiment all the time, save all of your experiments. You never know when something, years from now, will be useful.

Flash in the Can, Part 1: Outwitting Fate

John Winkelman

Awoke at 3:00am from a restless three hours to get a jump on the day. Left Grand Rapids around 3:30 in rental car (a Mazda) made necessary by the sudden death of my Saturn (stabbed in the back with an SUV). Hit the highway out of town and headed East.

First part of the trip was uneventful. Saw many interesting things, such as tail-lights, head-lights and…pavement. Passed within a few miles of the Ryan Lee ancestral home. Learned many interesting things about Ryan. Drank coffee concentrate to stay awake.

I-69 turned into I-94, and I-94 turned into 401 as we crossed the border. Passed USA-side toll gate with no difficulty. Bridge over the border was beautiful, with a false dawn turning the eastern horizon a opalescent gray. Stopped to present bona-fides at Canadian bridge.

Canadian gate was guarded by something much like a Marine, complete with buzz-cut, piercing blue eyes, and a bullet-proof vest. Proof of American citizenship was demanded. We each handed over our Michigan drivers’ licenses. Dialogue follows:

Guard: I need to see proof of American Citizenship.
Me: Like what?
Guard: Birth Certificate or Passport
Me: Here’s my passport.
Ryan: Here’s my social security card.
Guard: That does me no good.
Ryan: That’s all I have.
Guard: Where are you going?
Me: Toronto.
Guard: Why?
Me: Conference for work.
Guard: For how long?
Me: Until Tuesday.
Guard: Pretty long for a conference. What kind of conference?
Me: Web development.
Guard: What’s that?
Ryan: You ever look at the internet and see animations and —
Guard No! Do you have any alcohol or firearms?
Me: No —
Guard: Dead bodies in the trunk or weapons of Mass Destruction.
Me. Um… no.
Guard: Where did you say you were going?
Me Toron —
Guard: For what?
Ryan: A conf —
Guard: WHO ARE YOU REALLY?????
Me: …
Guard: I need to see proof of American Citizenship.
Ryan: But —
Guard: I can order you to turn around and not come back until you have proof.
Me: b-b-b-but—
Ryan: Why—?
Guard: All right. Go ahead. If I see you again, I’ll kill you.
Me. Thank you sir.

Silenced reigned for the next few miles. The eastern sky slowly turned blue.

A word about the stretch of 401/402/whatever between the Michigan border and the ‘burbs of Toronto: Nothing there

7:00am: We are below a quarter tank. Time to think about refueling. Take the first exit with a “petrol” sign. Find the gas station. Closed. Hit the highway again. Find another exit promising “petrol”. Find, I kid you not, an “Esso” station with old-style, static-electricity generating metal pumps. Closed. Hit the road again. Realize that we haven’t seen a living human being since crossing the border. Suspect zombie activity. Hit yet another exit. Find yet another gas station closed. Notice that the highway is kind of a pink, fleshy color. Voice hypothesis that the highway is made out of zombies. Realize I am working on three hours of sleep in the last 48 and no food in the last 12.

7:45am: Heading into a glowing ball of fire the apparent size of a prize-winning pumpkin. Ryan has been pushing the car for the last several miles. We see a sign for London and make jokes about a wrong turn. Find (finally!) a working gas station and real live humans! We re-fill the car and warn them of encroaching horde of zombies. When asked what they look like, we reply that we didn’t actually see them, so they must be Ninja zombies.

Back on the road. Hit the outskirts of human civilization. Make the mistake of not placing blind faith in Google Maps and end up back in zombie territory. Retrace our steps and rediscover civilization. Enter Toronto. Again fall from grace with Google maps and find ourselves in a Grand Rapids-esque endless loop of one-way streets. Increase speed to build up centrifugal force necessary to fling us in the right direction. Finally find the Hilton. Find a spot in the bottom of the parking garage, among the rats and albino alligators. Head to exit. Door is locked. Walk up ramp. Find another exit. Door is locked. Walk up another level. Find another exit. Open.

At this point the fates relented and the day achieved a semblance of normality. We were about an hour and a half late, so upon throwing stuff in our hotel rooms we headed for our respective seminars.

Notes on the conference itself will come later.

A Small Piece of Night

John Winkelman

A few weeks ago Cynthia and I went for a long walk through Seidman Park, a beautiful bunch of trails which cover a gamut of terrain, from marsh to ravine, to field and forest. Around the south end of the park we noticed that some trees had several odd-looking objects hanging from the branches. Curiosity drove me to pull one off and bring it home:

070419_promethia_moth_0

I suspected that it was a cocoon of some kind, and a few minutes of browsing the internet confirmed that it was the cocoon of a Promethea Moth (Callosamia promethea). I left it on a table in my house for a few weeks, then this afternoon, upon returning home from a truly whacky day, I discovered that it had hatched.

070419_promethia_moth_1

It was still shaky and soft and moving slowly, pumping its wings up to full size and letting the tissues dry and firm up. This made it quite easy to photograph.

070419_promethia_moth_2

I left it alone and went out. Upon returning a few hours later I saw that it seemed to be ready to be let out, so I took it to my back yard and set it on a low branch.

070419_promethia_moth_3

About an hour later I looked outside just in time to see a small piece of midnight flutter past a streetlight on its way to places unknown.

The saturniid moths, never all that common, are becoming increasingly rare due, in no small part, to light pollution. During mating season they orient themselves by the light of the moon, and with so many bright man-made lights out in the world, the moths get confused as to where they should fly, and so miss one another. When your entire adult life lasts a week, getting stood up for a date is a deeply tragic affair.