FLASH: Remote - was RE:Reaction to SW 7.0.2

[Nigel Randsley-Pena]

Flashers,


OK, let's refocus a bit here. I've changed the thread so we can

concentrate on the remote and how it relates to Flash based work. This

is going to be a bit long but I do think the subject is of interest to

list members.

SW 7.0.2 introduced some new abilities and also some new elements. One

of them is the Remote and it's big brother the Shockmachine, available

as an optional non free add-on.

The basic idea behind the remote is to allow offline storage of shocked

and flashed media, while also allowing some degree of control over

direct online playback of same media via the added functionality of

play, pause, ff rev buttons.

For Flash based content published as normal the remote will not trigger

and save functionality will be disabled. To allow a Flash movie access

to remote's functionality we have to alter the html, as I've already

explained in another previous post.

Problems with adapting new functionality are always normal and when we

add the option of offline saveability to content that is produced for

online viewing it is quite reasonable to expect that some things have to

be thought out in advance.

Warren Ockrassa and Robert Koberg brought this up and it is quite a

valid point.

Quoting Warren, "That is, if *any* flash file refs *any* external docs

(GetURL, anyone?) as part of its operations, and the user -- offline --

activates something which causes a GetURL to be called -- this concept

of saving locally and playing back offline, I think, becomes suddenly

very important."

And also Robert "I have been converting a HTML rendered online store

(driven by ASP) into a flash rendered online store.  that was what I was

thinking about. How does that work offline?".

We have two distinct and very valid examples here. So how do we enable

saveability in both cases ?

OK, first point, using get url, or load movie, or referencing external

files.

Let's understand how the remote works. The user is viewing a Flash movie

that indicates it is saveable and the user likes it and wants to save

it. He clicks the save option and download starts. Now how does the

remote know what to download ? The developer tells it what to download,

that's how, via an xml text based file that instructs the remote what to

save and how to save. So if a particular Flash movie is going to be set

to offline viewability then we have to prepare it for such. If it needs

to do load movies or get url or any other such things then use url's

that are relative to the base flash movie, and not absolute url's and

include in the xml description all necessary files. By the way this is

valid for Director files also as can be seen if you save the realpool

game available on shockwave. It will save two dcr's under a dir

structure adapted to it's needs. So in this case correct planning is all

that is needed.

As for Robert's example. By it's very nature an online store is an

online only situation. So what added functionality can offline

saveability bring into this scenario ?

I don't think Robert's client would want to have his whole store

viewable offline, but he might like to allow potential customers to be

able to download a full or partial catalogue of products with prices and

even include an option to fill an order form that could be sent. This is

doable. How ?

Well it does need the proper tools, and Generator is one of them. Robert

doesn't explain if he is using a Flash4 based solution or a Generator

based solution, but if offline viewability is one of the client's wishes

then Generator is a must have. So if the user wants to have a full

offline catalogue then it would be quite easy to have Generator go into

the database and generate the proper swf file that would then be

saveable for offline viewing. Adding offline order preparation is also

quite easy. A less efficient solution based only on Flash 4 could also

be found if the need arose but I think that it would be more of an

exercise in style than a proper real world solution.


So main points that I think are important here. For Flash based content

the fact that a user has the new 7.0.2 player or an older version 4 or 3

player does not impact on the users experience while viewing the Flash

content, nothing will change.

If we want to use the added functionality that 7.0.2 brings then plan

for it. Start by defining what you want to be remote controllable and /

or saveable. Build your movie with that objective in mind so that if the

movie need's to access external files all url's will be relative and not

absolute.

Add the new tags to your html and publish.


Nigel


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