Category: Flash Lite

Tricks for tween on mobile devices with Flash Platform

In this quick post I’d like to share with you my experience about Tween on Flash Platform projects delivered on a mobile devices.
I started work on mobile since Flash Lite 1.1 so I grew up with mobile, I lived all the Flash mobile evolution and now, on tablet and smartphone, I had some good tricks to share with you, I really hope that those tips could help you during your developer life.
OK, let’s start:

  • Use quality property of stage
    This is a really good technique to use when you have to improve performance of your project, when you need to make a fluid tween before launch it, set stage quality to low and when tween will finish set stage quality to high or best.
    Avoid to use this technique when you have vectors (textfield for example) on the stage because you could have a worst result.
  • Use cacheAsBitmap and cacheAsBitmapMatrix
    If you have vector object that you’d like to animate in your project remember to cache them and then animate; remember also to set your application with GPU acceleration and you can see a really good performance with this technique.
    Avoid to cache objects that you need to remove from display list, it will be so expensive for your memory.
  • System.gc() works!
    I tried in few sample to use it on Android and I saw a good result, so the “old” tip to call System.gc() twice in a try/catch statement works on mobile device too (only on AIR apps)
  • Take care with multiple animations on iPad and iPhone
    On iOS devices we don’t have AIR runtime so LLVM translate our AIR project for us in Native Binary so it could help if you move few objects per time in particular if you have big objects to move like a background or something like that
  • Greensocks tweens are the best
    I tried tweener and other tween libraries for AS3, but the best one for me are the Greensock tween library, in particular on iOS devices.
  • Last but not least, remember to test your animation on the device because you could see “funny” results
    Sometimes happen that on your computer everything works well but when you port your content on a tablet or smartphone everything works not so well.
    Before hurt your head, remember to test a lots of times your mobile content on the device, it could save your projects!
Finally I suggest to take a look at dev center mobile development zone of Adobe site because you can find many tutorials and helpful tips on mobile development.
That’s all folks for now, I hope you enjoy those tips.
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Flash Camp Milan review

Yesterday in Milan we had the Flash Camp about Mobile topics and then we had the Flash Camp Party at NH Hotel… really wonderful time.
Like you know, in Italy it’s not so easy to organize those kind of events because usually people don’t move to another city like other foreign countries but Flash Camp had a great success.
This camp was organized in the same place of WhyMCA the mobile revolution, an italian conference focused on mobile topics.
We had 50/60 people per session and I’m glad to say that my session had 80 people so I’m happy about this little success.
All the sessions surfed in deep about CG, design patterns, video optimization for mobile, flex on mobile and so on, so I was really excited to take part in this event.
My session was about Design Pattern for Mobile, I talked about 3 design patterns: Singleton, Observer and Presentation Model.
With a couple of samples (that you can download from this link) and few slides I made an application that run with the same base code on tablet and smartphone; this is an hot topic now on mobile world in particular on Flash Platform side.


In next few weeks I’ll make a post about Presentation Model to share my thoughts about this argument and how to use it in your project , but if you want to start with this topic, take a look at this great post on RIArockstars.

Finally I’d like to thanks the Flash Mind, Adobe Flash Platform User Group Italy, to give me this opportunity, WhyMCA staff for the amazing organization, other speakers of Flash Camp for great time spent together and people that came to talk with us during the Flash Camp and to the beer party too.
I leave also a link to some photos took during Flash Camp in Milan.

mPresenter: new tool for speakers

I become speaker 4/5 years ago, after 30/40 talks in Italy and around the globe and tons of lessons like instructor, after study how to prepare slides for presentations, after a couple of courses about public speaking and so on, finally this January I started to think about how can I help speakers during own presentation?

When I answered to this question I started to think about mPresenter.

mPresenter is composed by 2 different applications: a mobile application and a desktop one.
Obviously everything is build with Flash Platform: AIR 2, Flex 4 and AIR for Android.
The mobile one allow you to manage your presentation, pointing or drawing on slide, changing them.
Also, it allows you to read notes added in each slide during preso composition.

AIR application allows speakers to make own presentation: moving slides in right position, adding notes to a slides and zooming on it.
You can easily drag and drop images from your OS to mPresenter and create the perfect presentation.
We are working to add new features on this software but for now you can see a preview video on youtube.
I really love if you can give us your feedbacks and suggestions to improve this software and become a really useful utility for all speakers.
We believe in you!

Flash Platform Geeks: new community is born

And YESSSSSS!

In this hot summer, I’m really glad to announce Flash Platform Geeks, a new Flash Platform community made in collaboration with Peter Elst!
Flash Platform Geeks is dedicated to all flash platform lovers like us!
Soon you can see online our website, our forum and so on, I’m really excited about this new adventure

It will be crazy, totally insane and if you go to Flash on the beach this year, believe  me, when I say that you’ll remain astonished!

So please, start to follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Flickr too!
See you around guys and thank you in advance to spread the word and follow Flash Platform Geeks

Directly from Barcelona: MWC 2010 impressions

I’m here in Barcelona at 3GSM world congress, crisis is arrived here too.
There isn’t Nokia stand, only few evening party, there are less people than last previous editions so really, I hope that 2010 could be a new year with new opportunity for everyone because this is NOT the mobile world congress and this is NOT a good scenario to see.

Come back home and start to talk about Adobe news… first of all, my favorite one: Adobe AIR 2 on mobile!

Yes finally is arrived or better, finally I’ve seen it! We really don’t know when will be released we only know that it runs on Android, probably on NVIDA Tegra II, probably on Symbian devices and for sure on Blackberry; so a new market opportunity will be open with Blackberry adoption.
And WIN mobile?! They said to wait 2/3 weeks and there will be a press release about that, meanwhile I see Window phone 7 and it looks nice, not bad but I’m interesting to know how will be integrated with Flash Platform.

Flash Player 10.1 on mobile devices will implement AVM 1 and AVM 2 so probably there will be retro-compatibility  with Flash Lite contents, I say probably because I’d like to test it before to say: “YES It’s alive!!!”.
But I’m sure that AS3 contents will run so well if they will be optimize for mobile; I’m scared that AS3 developers approach this new opportunity like Flash Lite one where everybody know AS2 was automatically a Flash Lite developer, but believe me it’s not the same thing also with Flash Player 10.1 and AIR 2 on mobile.

Both mobile technologies will be the same of desktop one so we don’t lost any API and it’s great announcement, finally could we start to work in a real platform experience!? I think so!

And Flash Lite?! So now we have a new versione Flash Lite 4 that you’ll can use with Actionscript 3 and will be distributed on S40 and low powerful devices.

I asked also about distribution and probably we will find FP 10.1 and AIR 2 directly with a firmware upgrade of own phone; for now we don’t know there will be OTA distribution also.

So finally, I see great Adobe technologies… but for the future, because when will be release there will be more time to wait to have a great distribution so if you think that will solve all your mobile problems, I think that you’ll wait few months again.

Today is my last day here, I’ll try to grab more information about those news and if you go to FITC in Amsterdam next week, see you there mate!

I’m just come back from 3GSM World Congress

Here we are!
Yesterday I came back from Barcelona (what a wonderful city!), I was there for 3GSM World Congress invited from Adobe to show our latest Flash Lite contents made in collaboration with Mutado, an Italian creative and interactive company.
It was amazing for us and I’d like to thank you Adobe people to give us this opportunity, thank you guys!

Adobe stand was amazing I love it so much and also Adobe announced lots of new stuff from new Flash Lite player delivery to new challenge that allow developers to win $30.000!

Flash Lite challengers is a contest that will finish at the end of May and we’ll know winners in the middle of June.
Main prize is $30.000 for the best Flash Lite application, but there are also categories prizes from games to applications, it’s a great opportunity to show your mobile content and win!
More information about this challenge on Adobe site

Another great news is that now, we have a new way to distribute our Flash Lite contents, in fact if a device goes trough a Flash Lite content on the web browser or download a Flash Lite application, if this device doesn’t have installed Flash Lite 3.1, it will be downloaded from web and installed on the device.
More information about this new way to deliver your content on Labs site.  

Also Adobe and Nokia give us a new opportunity to invest in mobile projects with Open Screen Project fund ($10 million), in fact this fund is created to help companies and developers to join in mobile Flash world!
More information about it in open screen project site. 

Finally I put a review on mobile.actionscript.it about new Flash Lite devices like Palm Pre or Nokia N97, so feel free to comment it (and take a look about our new mobile website).

 If you want to see a quick tour about 3GSM feel free to take a look on my Flickr account.

3GSM World Congress 2009

Hi All,

it’s long time that I don’t write down a post.
In last months I changed lots of things, new fellows, new tutorials, new customers and big projects to develop with AIR and Flex.
So lots of things to do!

This year I’ll be at 3GSM World Congress for the second time, so if you will be there, please feel free to tell me, maybe you can drop me an email or add a comment under this post!
I’ll arrive at 15th and I’ll come back 20th February, so 5 amazing days in Barcelona.
If you don’t come, don’t worry I’ll post about this great event when I’ll be there and… there is a special surprise for anybody that follow this blog, so stay tuned and take a look at this blog in next few days.

Flex Builder compile Flash Lite projects, is it a dream?

Today was last day at 360Flex Europe, I spent great time there!

Talking with 2 Flex team guys, they said to us that if you’d like some new features in Flex 4, only make a feature request to Adobe jira system.
So I said: “One of the most cool feature that you could implement in next version of Flex Builder, it could be to compile Flash Lite projects and maybe Flex Builder could interact with Device Central.” They said me: “It’s first time that ask me this implementation“.

So I make a feature request for next version of Flex Builder, I think it could be so interesting working with Flex IDE and when I compile a Flash Lite project open directly into Device Central.
What do you think about it? If you’d like this feature too, vote please!

Make comments and we could create a great discussion about it.

To all Attendes of 360Flex Europe

Hi All,

360 Flex Europe is behind the corner, 10 days more or less and… it starts!
So to all attendes of this big Flex event I made the mobile application with Flash Lite 2.0, you can find the same things of Atlanta version but with another graphics and the final 360Flex schedule!

I hope to see you at the event.
Enjoy

UPDATE
Actionscript.it, italian Adobe UG, organize Birds of father event during 360Flex on Monday 7 from 6PM to 9PM, where attendes could ask any questions about 360Flex sessions, Flex and AIR, so please take a look at event page (it’s in italian) and register to the event!

PS: I’m making the sys files in next few days! Stay tuned!

UPDATE II
Thank you again to chall3ng3r to make sis files!  Download file for Symbian 2nd edition and for Symbian 3rd edition

See you next week at 360Flex Europe guys!

360 Flex Atlanta mobile application

Today 360|Flex starts in Atlanta, if you are an attendee or a speaker I make the “official” 360 flex mobile application in Flash Lite 2.

In this app you can find 3 sections:

  • speakers
  • schedule
  • twitter

In the last section (twitter) you can read last post in your twitter and write one in your account.
I use SWX API to create this mesh up, very cool API made by Aral Balkan (thank you man!) that allow to make mesh up of twitter, flickr and so on.

Download zip file and put swf and XML files in your Flash Lite 2 phone….Enjoy!

Obviusly you can have one for Europe event… stay tuned!

UPDATE:

I must say THANK YOU to chall3ng3r that made for me .sis files with SWF2GO, his software that allow to create file for S60 phones.
Thank you man!
Now you can download also .sis file for S60 3rd edition and 2nd edition