Confirmed: Apple’s “Magic” Trackpad works with AIR 2.0

by Serge Jespers on 29. Jul, 2010 in AIR

Yesterday I saw a Tweet from Ralph Hauwert who was wondering if Apple’s Magic Trackpad would work with AIR 2.0. You probably already know that AIR 2.0 supports multitouch and gestures. The trackpad on a recent MacBook Pro supports gestures and these work nicely in AIR 2.0. So… My hunch was that the “Magic” Trackpad… I’m sorry… I just have to put that in quotes. With all these magic products I’m starting to wonder why Steve doesn’t have a show in Vegas yet ;-))) But back to my hunch… My hunch was that the “Magic” Trackpad would also just work.

Earlier today I happened to be walking past the Apple Store in Ginza, Tokyo and I went in and bought one. When I got back to the hotel I updated the trackpad drivers through Apple’s Software Update and paired the trackpad with my MBP. I already had DestroyTwitter running and tried the three-finger swipe on it. Oh… In case you didn’t know… the latest version of DestroyTwitter has support for the swipe-gesture to switch between different canvases. The “Magic” Trackpad worked perfectly with DestroyTwitter. I also tried some of my demo applications and they all worked as expected.

Now that I’ve used it for a while I think I like the “Magic” Trackpad. Especially in “lean-back-mode”. I can definitely see this replacing my mouse on my Mac Mini back home. I have it connected to my TV and use it to watch video content from the web.

So… To summarize: The “Magic” Trackpad does work with AIR 2.0. (Note: Like the trackpad on a MacBook, the “Magic” Trackpad only supports gestures. So no raw multi-touch points).

Now go build some cool touch-enabled apps (and send ‘em to me when you’re done)! Flash on!

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Submit your app/site for the MAX Awards

by Serge Jespers on 26. Jul, 2010 in MAX2010

“Aaah… I won’t bother with submitting my app/site… I never win anything…”. I bet some of last year’s winners thought exactly that but they went for it anyway… and won! The Adobe MAX Awards is a global awards program that recognizes the best uses of Adobe software for creating expressive applications that enable people to engage with ideas and information anytime, anywhere and on any device.

You can submit your application/site until August 13th, 2010. The top three finalists in each of six categories will be invited to showcase their work at MAX 2010 in Los Angeles.

There’s really nothing you can lose here. So… Submit your app/site today!

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Monetize your AIR applications with Melrose

by Serge Jespers on 22. Jul, 2010 in Flash Platform

Melrose – the monetization service previously known as Shibuya – is now live on Adobe Labs.

If you were at MAX last year you probably remember the demo I did in the keynote on day 2. With literally just a couple lines of code you can add a complete license manager and payment solution to your AIR application. You can even create time and feature based trials.

Melrose works exactly like all the other application stores out there. We don’t charge any monthly or yearly fees but we do take a percentage of your earnings (obviously there is no charge for free apps). In return we’ll provide a safe and secure way to monetize your AIR applications. That means you don’t have to worry about things like credit card processing and hosting your license manager logic. Your private dashboard will tell you how your application is doing. You can view charts on number of downloads of your apps, number of trials, number of purchases, revenue, number of activations, and trial to purchase histogram (i.e. conversions from trials to purchases).

Developers and publishers in 47 countries can use Melrose to distribute and monetize AIR applications.

Melrose is still in private beta but you can already sign up today. You can find all the necessary info on the Melrose Labs page.

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Adobe/Intel App Lab: Join us online

by Serge Jespers on 21. Jul, 2010 in Events

Adobe and Intel are hosting an event later today in San Francisco around AIR development and distribution. Obviously not all of you live close to the bay area, but the event will be broadcasted live via Connect. You can follow it on http://my.adobe.acrobat.com/applab.

I heard through the grapevine that we may even launch a few new things on Adobe Labs after the event… So join the Connect session and keep an eye on Labs ;-)

I know this event is in the middle of the night for us here in Europe but it will be worth it.

Agenda: ( Time in PST. Check this link for the time in your location. )
5:30 PM – Flash Platform Services Overview (Adobe)
6:00 PM – Intel AppUp Center Business Model and Opportunity (Intel)
7:00 PM – Technical Deep Dive (Adobe)
8:30 PM – Staffed Open Lab (Adobe and Intel)

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Upcoming events in Asia: FXUG Osaka, FXUG Tokyo & Mobile Monday Taipei

by Serge Jespers on 14. Jul, 2010 in Events

I am so looking forward to this trip! I’ve been lucky enough to be able to visit Tokyo a few times in the past and it really is one of my favorite cities in the world. On this trip I’ll also visit Osaka and Taipei.

Flex User Group Japan Tour 2010
This tour (11 locations in total) has been going on a for a few weeks now and I will be joining the tour for the last two events. On July 24th we’ll be in Osaka and on the 28th we round up the tour in Tokyo. There are some amazing speakers lined up for both events. Registration is free but required.

I absolutely do not speak any Japanese but I’ll try to learn a few words before the events ;-) If you want to have an idea on what that would sound like, check out this video and don’t laugh too hard ;-)

For registration and more info, check out http://tour.fxug.net/2010

Mobile Monday Taipei
As I am in “the neighborhood” I am also travelling to Taipei, Taiwan where I will be speaking at Mobile Monday on August 2nd. More info will be posted soon on http://www.mobilemonday-taipei.com

Even though it’s a really long trip I’m really looking forward to it!

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Flash on Android summer camp (in Belgium)

by Serge Jespers on 09. Jul, 2010 in AIR, Flash Platform, android

The summer is always a good time to learn about new technologies or brush up on new features in the technologies you already use.

Belgian training center Oak3 is organizing a 2 day Flash on Android Summer Camp on August 9th and 10th. On the first day you’ll learn everything you need to know to get development going, either from Flash Professional CS5 or from Flash Builder 4. The second day you will be assisted and guided in creating an app so you’ll be on your way for further mobile Flash Platform experimentation.

I’m going to pop in on the second day to see what you guys are building and to answer any questions you may have.

For more information and registration check out the Oak3 website.

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Stripgenerator: Online cartoon generator

by Serge Jespers on 08. Jul, 2010 in Cool stuff, Flash Platform

I absolutely love how you guys keep sending me the coolest links to Flash based apps (Keep ‘em coming!). Stripgenerator is one of those apps.

Stripgenerator (built in Slovenia) just got a fresh new update that adds a bunch of new features, new graphics, and a new interface. The Flash based application is incredibly easy to use. You set up the frames you want to use, drag and drop characters, add items, add the text balloons and you’re done. After you click “Publish” you can easily share your cartoon with your friends and followers.

I built this little cartoon in literally 2 minutes. I know… It’s not very funny and I’m sure you guys will do a much better job at creating a cartoon with Stripgenerator. ;-) Have fun!

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Create your own online AR 3D storybooks

by Serge Jespers on 07. Jul, 2010 in Cool stuff, Flash Platform

Thanks to Flash augmented reality has become accesible to anyone with a browser and a webcam without the need to download anything extra. There are some pretty amazing examples and apps out there but this one is pretty unique.

ZooBurst is a new service where kids can write their own stories and create their own pop-up books. The 3D book builder is built on top of the Flash Platform and lets you add images, animations, speech balloons, and more in an easy to use interface. When you’re done creating your book you can share it on your blog or social network pages. The coolest part of ZooBurst is the reading mode. When you click on a book it shows you the 3D world you created. The real fun starts when you enable the webcam mode. In webcam mode you control the 3D view with an AR marker. It also allows you to use gestures to flip pages. Just wave your hand from right to left to flip the page.

Check out the videos below. Flash on!

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Multi-screen medical device simulation

by Serge Jespers on 06. Jul, 2010 in Flash Platform, mobile

Christoph Ketzler, who works at Innovation Mecom, was one of the developers behind this great example of how Flash simplifies multi-screen development.

Innovation Mecom developed a simulation for training and marketing of Carina, a medical device. The application is built on top of the Flash Platform using ActionScript3.0 and simulates all the functions of the actual device. Because they chose the Flash Platform the same application can run in the browser, as a standalone application and on multiple devices. Check out this video for a demonstration of the app running on a variety of devices.

Flash on!

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European flat fee for data coming soon

by Serge Jespers on 01. Jul, 2010 in Industry

Earlier this morning Vincent Van Quickenborne (Belgian minister for ICT, telco, economy and reform) moderated a debate with Neelie Kroes (Vice President of the European Commission responsible for the Digital Agenda for Europe). Vincent Van Quickenborne was asking his Twitter followers for questions he should ask her. I asked what her plans were for the outrageous data roaming charges in Europe. Her answer sounded like music to my ears:

This is fantastic news!

Most of the European carriers are owned by only a handful of big telcos (like France Telecom, Vodafone, …) and this should be a no-brainer. But they obviously make a lot of money from roaming and if no one tells them to change their price structure, they won’t. Now that Neelie’s on the case it looks like data roaming across Europe may soon/finally become affordable.

PS: It’s great to see Neelie Kroes on Twitter!

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