Updates have been sparse lately as I have been catching up from traveling, emails and also working with my very good friend Scott Baust on an exciting project. Scott and I have been working on refining and preparing the dynamic Text To Speech to Flash software I originally worked on with Mike Chambers, so that we can offer it to the public. We hope to have some announcements very soon including a FAQ, pricing, and how you can implement this soluton on your site, etc. In the meantime, take a look at what Scott has implemented into his html based site (LinuxDig.com) where the entries from his blog can also be read back to you dynamically. Currently they are served back simply as MP3's since his sites focus is not specifically about Flash. We also wanted to offer a solution that can serve Flash and HTML users/developers in the broadest possible manner. Part of the new solution is a very fast caching mechanism. Now as long as any request has been made at least once, it will then be served up almost instantaneously on repeat requests. We are working to line things up so that we can offer this as a service and not just software for those of you who would prefer not to get your hand dirty with code. Stay tuned for more information.
Sad to announce, but due to an unfortunate production mishap, my bio, name and credit information was accidentally left out of the first printing of the recently released Flash MX Bible. I contributed a chapter on Pocket PC's and working with Flash, specifically an introduction for folks wanting to get their feet wet with Flash and Pocket PC's, but I am not credited anywhere in the book. Make sure to go ahead and snap up some copies now, as they are sure to be collectors editions. :) The second printing should fix this errata and put in place my proper bio info, contact information, etc. The book is still a wealth of information and great work about Flash MX, even if it is sans my info, so check it out.
Flash Communication Server MX Article on Wired.com
Lisa DelGado, reporter for Wired, who attended the FlashForward conference has written an article covering Macromedia's new Flash Communication Server MX. She has a lot of interesting quotes and thoughts from folks who were at the conference. Lisa makes reference to parts of Robert Reinhardt's (lead co-author of the Flash MX Bible) session at FlashForward where he discussed and demonstrated the new product and its use.
Happy to announce that an article of mine was published today by InformIT (http://www.informit.com/) entitled The Tip of the Flash MX Iceberg which covers how to integrate a webcam feed into your Flash site. The article actually needs some updating as I wrote it about a month or two ago, and at the time their was no public announcement about the Flash Communication Server MX which I alluded to in the article. It was actually finally announced and released last week during FlashForward, so expect an addendum or follow up article to cover that in more depth in the next update. I wish I could have covered it in the original article, but thats how these things work sometimes with release dates and publishing deadlines. One thing to note, the great example of the power of the Flash Communication Server MX, is the Dream Domain by Randommeda that I reference in the article, well they actually won the Technical Merit category, congratulations! Lots of things can happen in a few weeks time. Let me know what you think about the article and if it's helpful, or anything you might like to see covered in the follow up.
Updates have been sparse as I just got back from FlashForward 2002 this past weekend and only had a day or so to catch up on things before turning around and heading back to New York for MacWorld. Ill be posting some updates and coverage later tonight. Hang in there!
I still have a bunch of info to post about FlashForward, but a really good friend of mine who runs the site Linuxdig.com just posted a very interesting article about VMWare. The article goes into more depth and a sample install and issues, but VMWare basically allows you to run concurrently, multiple operating systems on one host PC. I thought it would be of interest to folks who are short on physical machines and want to experiment with running servers like Cold Fusion MX for Linux while still having an authoring environment for Flash MX on something like Win XP on the same box and running at the same time. This could be very useful for testing and configuring services for those on a budget or for folks who just love to tinker.
Starting Monday July 15th, the long awaited Flash MX Bible from Robert Reinhardt and Snow Dowd will be available. I finally met Robert in person at FlashForward and he is a really friendly, generous guy. From what I know of the book it should be a hit. I actually contributed a small chapter covering a beginners intro to Flash workflow on the Pocket PC, resources, general info. I also touched on how to get Flash content onto Pocket PC's and the options available to you. I specifically covered some options for Mac users since they are often left out in the cold. The Flash MX Bible is huge weighing in over 1300 pages, so it should have something for everyone.
I just finished posting all my photos from FlashForward. You can post comments and view them here. I unfortunately lost about 10 photos due to a defective compact flash card...grrr... I just picked up a Canon Elph Powershot 220, and apparently it is the camera of choice of Flash users. I counted at least 15 people at FlashForward who own them or recently purchased one. Phillip Torrone has also made his photos from the conference available.
If you were at FlashForward you might have seen the limited edtion stickers and posters I put together of all the authors of Flash Enabled and even a few devices. We handed them out at the New Riders authors book signing. They ended up all over the place and throughout New York. The sticker concept is based on Shepard Fairey's infamous Andre the Giant Has a Posse sticker social phenomenon experiment which is described and explained on his site and in his manifesto available at OBEYGIANT. Shepard has been doing some really great stuff for some time now and I am a big fan. I still have my frst Andre sticker I found and peeled off a pole in Miami, Florida back around 1990. I have seen them across the country in every city I have ever visited. I also have a weird Kevin Baconish relation to Andre, my grandfather built part of his house near Rockingham, North Carolina many years before his death. Anyway, I thought by turning the phenomenon back around on itself it would be interesting, so props to Shepard Fairey are in full effect. If you weren't at the conference, check the stickers out here. Warning, its a 620k .swf file, but that is so you can feel free to right click and zoom in to print out your own high quality copies of your favorite author. In fact, Phillip Torrone (#12 if your collecting) is running a contest where he is giving away an HP Pocket PC if you print them out and do something crazy with them. Take a look at http://www.flashenabled.com/ for more info on this wacky contest.
I made it back from New York Saturday afternoon and have been trying to catch up on some sleep and emails, almost done both, so expect some updates Sunday. I have lots of items to cover, photos to post, people to thank, articles to write. I had a great time in New York and met a lot of very cool folks. More to come soon...
Macromedia Flash Communication Server MX Available
I had to take a break from my travels to make sure this got posted. Take a look at this Press Release which has all the relevant links, info, etc. Macromedia's home page has info highlighting this new product that enables real time video streaming, collaboration, communication, multi-way video, audio and text messaging services all with the Flash 6 Player. Get ready for some very cool apps to start popping up. Tonight in New York there is going to be a big event that Macromedia is putting on to announce, demonstrate and show off this new product. If your interested now, go check out the development center they already have online. Thier is a trial download available today along with pricing information, FAQ, etc. available here. More on this when I get a chance to post from FlashForward in New York tomorrow.
So I am going to be tied up for the next week or so due to a whole bunch of cool stuff. First off Happy 4th of July to you all. :) Secondly, I'll be at FlashForward 2002 in New York next week from the 10th-12th of July. If you would like to meet or ask me questions, or just hang, make sure to come by the New Riders book signing while you are there. I'll be there signing copies of Flash MX Magic and Flash Enabled along with the rest of the other authors on the New Riders roster. I'll also be handing out goodies on a first come first serve basis. Plus New Riders always has beer and food for everyone. I'll try to make some updates while there if time allows. The following week is MacWorld at the Javitz center in New York, Ill be hanging through the weekend so I can check out what Steve Jobs and Apple have up their sleeves. Should be fun!
Are you interested in developing Flash content for Pocket PC's, Phones, PDA's and other devices? Well look no further than Macromedias new Mobile Development Center located conveniently in their popular Designer & Developer Center. If you haven't picked up a copy yet of Flash Enabled definitely take a look at this new area as there are several excerpts from chapters in the book and you wont find them anywhere else on the web. There are also some great articles and examples from several of the authors of the forthcoming book: Flash: the Future This book is made up another great bunch of guys doing some cutting edge Flash device development. Macromedia is really getting serious with the device stuff, time to get on board folks, the train is leaving the station.
Interview with Me About Flash MX Online at InformIT.com
I was recently interviewed by InformIT.com regarding my thoughts on Flash MX. The article is titled, "Why Rob Hall Gets Excited About Flash MX". If you are a stalker or considering becoming one, and want to glean a little bit more info about me to plan your kidnapping, take a look here at the "Authors" section of the InformIT site for the link. InformIT is also currently featuring a link to my Flash based version of this site. I am honored to be listed directly underneath the interview with Hillman Curtis a great designer, author and Flash developer. Speaking of other New Riders authors, a few more links down on that Authors page is a similar interview with Matthew David about Flash MX. I look like I have verbal diarrhea compared to Matthew's terse answers. :) Keep an eye out on this section of InformIT.com for an upcoming article I wrote on integrating webcam feeds into Flash MX. It should be out near the middle to end of July.
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