What are you talking about? HTML5 and CSS3 can do that extremely easily.
Flash is not required at all.
Of something like this? Show me an example.
-video with a transparent background, text and animation passing behind video
-Video with cue points, certain points in video triggering animation
-Rendered, non standard fonts displayed at an angle
-Ambient sound running seperate from the video, being triggered by events in the video
For straight video clips Flash is not needed and HTML5 is the only way. For something like this though, you need some kind of plug-in (Flash, Silverlight, QuickTime). I'd like to be proven wrong, but I don't think HTML5 is there yet....
Speaking of which, who here is a pro with HTML5 and CSS? What tools on the Mac are recommended for beginners wanting to create interactive content suitable for iPad consumption?
Are you kidding? This little demo is probably worth 10x worth of advertising for this magazine. This clip will be widely seen and commented on.
I'm not kidding, but if releasing viral video demos was their goal then they succeeded. But you don't need an iPad to do that. I think the topic is about effective publishing on the iPad not viral advertising. Although you do make an interesting point.
It's true. Especially if you think about the fact that the only "interaction" is essentially just hitting the NEXT button. They created a BEAUTIFUL presentation, really nailed the SIN CITY aesthetic, but again, other than a movie trailer website, I couldn't imagine why someone would sit through something like this.... SI's demo was much more interesting.... data and video content getting pulled in live.... customizable layout...truly interactive...
And yes its probably expensive to shoot this article today, but the cost will plummet as the tools are mass produced and the software automates the skills.
Costs for something like this do not plummet, because the cost is not in the tools; it's the concept and imagery — and the talent required to create it — that makes this expensive. There is no cheap way to produce professional cinematic imagery, 3D environments, and animation. And you can't automate it, either.
I don't think publishers get it. This "motion graphics->pause->read->continue" model is so dated! I want my information fast and easy to consume! If your visuals don't convey the information then get them out of my way! This is the same old formula that was used on CDs and DVDs back in the 90's. Yeah sure you can download it instead of mail it but in the end it's still boring! And you come out feeling like you waisted a bunch of time. Plus, by the time it makes it through production the content is dated. Have any of these producers read a blog lately? Blogs are where it's at and they will explode with the iPad!
My 21st century/web 3.0 definition of "interactive media" is an open socially interactive medium used to convey and share information. But, most importantly sharing opinions. It's not flashy buttons and motion graphics contained in a closed system. Yuck! The only way flashy buttons and motion graphics work today is if they convey the information and also provide a way to convey information. Ever play Halo?
We have all gotten over the "shiny" effect of digital media back in the 90's. Now we all want to opine with it and receive our 15 nanoseconds of fame! Twitter anyone?
P.S.
I bet the content creators of this demo are still waiting to get paid.
Good points about the friction from "interactive" cut scenes. They do look like the interactive CD stuff from the 90s.
But I disagree that the primary purposed of digital content ought to be to enable comments. If that's the case, you don't really need "content" at all, beyond a few lines of deliberately provocative text.
Of course, that may be what you're championing, but a culture of nothing but crude provocations serving as the stimulus for a bunch of Twitter level yammering is a culture well on its way to collapse. A complete democracy of voices is just white noise.
I'm a little worried that we seem to be confronting a generation who thinks more than a few seconds of anything but pandering to their inflated sense of incipient fame is "boring" and "a waste of time."
Of course they're for beginners. While you can't just start at the apex, HTML, CSS, & JS are the foundation of web design and if you want to be a real web designer/developer you will need to learn all three in their full implementation (to varying degrees depending.)
That said, yup, hand coding, no tools for the latest versions yet. And that is the one big thing holding back adoption. It may be a while before we get usable tools. Adobe is certainly reverse motivated to produce them.
I don't think publishers get it. This "motion graphics->pause->read->continue" model is so dated! I want my information fast and easy to consume! If your visuals don't convey the information then get them out of my way! This is the same old formula that was used on CDs and DVDs back in the 90's. Yeah sure you can download it instead of mail it but in the end it's still boring! And you come out feeling like you waisted a bunch of time. Plus, by the time it makes it through production the content is dated. Have any of these producers read a blog lately? Blogs are where it's at and they will explode with the iPad!
Dead-on assessment I think. As with each new tool introduced, there's a time period where artistes (and wanna-be's) go hog wild in the 'wouldn't it be cool if?' direction without giving necessary thought to 'how would this content be best served?'
There was nothing in this demo that seemed tailored for a touch interface...if I imagine a mouse pointer instead of the finger avatar they used I would have believed this was lifted directly from the 90's.
Green Screens?! Really?? Dozens of photographers, designers, models, director, producer(s), computer graphic people, on top of story writers... man that is a lot of payroll going on for a story! I wonder what they will charge for subscription? To hell with Flash or not! I wonder what they will charge for their advertisers to help offset this "new media"? I wonder how much I will have to pay for the advertisers products when I go to my store so that the advertisers recoup the increased expenses incurred so some "magazine" can charge ad rates so that the magazine can go all Hollywood with their production to have for the iPad?! If stories like this are going to be hyped, I wonder what the difference in cost is between the "new media" versus the old print media?
Good points about the friction from "interactive" cut scenes. They do look like the interactive CD stuff from the 90s.
But I disagree that the primary purposed of digital content ought to be to enable comments. If that's the case, you don't really need "content" at all, beyond a few lines of deliberately provocative text.
Of course, that may be what you're championing, but a culture of nothing but crude provocations serving as the stimulus for a bunch of Twitter level yammering is a culture well on its way to collapse. A complete democracy of voices is just white noise.
I'm a little worried that we seem to be confronting a generation who thinks more than a few seconds of anything but pandering to their inflated sense of incipient fame is "boring" and "a waste of time."
I wouldn't say I'm championing anything but reiterating what we are doing right now in this forum. The Twitter world is more sophisticated than you give it credit for. The reality is that people are making connections. They are communicating and any communication is better than none. On the surface it may seem trite but substantial communication does take place. Try investigating the food blog/twitter scape. People take it very seriously and provide enormous support for each other both technically and emotionally. Also, none of these social media mediums are an island. They all work together each serving a different purpose.
That said, yup, hand coding, no tools for the latest versions yet. And that is the one big thing holding back adoption. It may be a while before we get usable tools. Adobe is certainly reverse motivated to produce them.
There are no tools for the current HTML4 either. Dreamweaver's WYSIWYG is useless for anything except the most rudimentary of web pages. Forget about anything dynamic like Ajax. In my opinion the most important part for web dev shops is good php, asp, rails, sql chops because anything remotely complex is going to require it.
I don't think publishers get it. This "motion graphics->pause->read->continue" model is so dated! I want my information fast and easy to consume! If your visuals don't convey the information then get them out of my way! This is the same old formula that was used on CDs and DVDs back in the 90's. Yeah sure you can download it instead of mail it but in the end it's still boring! And you come out feeling like you waisted a bunch of time. Plus, by the time it makes it through production the content is dated. Have any of these producers read a blog lately? Blogs are where it's at and they will explode with the iPad!
...etc.
While I agree in many ways, I think you may be over influenced by more recent media developments. Everything comes and goes and everything that has come, will go, to some degree. But everything that has come and gone also influences to some degree. Blogs and Tweets and social media are not really new, nor are they the future, they're just the latest instantiation of old school communication. History is a succession or recycling of diaries, letters, e-mails, blogs, tweets, etc. A constant churn.
Blogs and tweets won't cut it here any better than over the top "interactive crap." We're talking about paid content here. they're not just paying for timeliness. People are paying for wisdom, introspection, thoughtfulness, and a clearing away of clutter and noise. The more recent forms of communication have been exceptionally cluttered and noisy, but people still like to sit down with a magazine (electronic or no.)
i read dozens of books and scores of magazines every year. I think the iPad is going to increase that, i see a huge step forward in publishing.
The possibilities are staggering. The medium is engaging. Not just for adults, for children, this is amazing. Text books, interactive training... it's going to be fantastic.
Scoff if you'd like at the iPad, I really think this is a big step forward.
Personally...
My primary reason for buying digital magazines is to read, and though all of this geewizness is fun to look at (for the first 20 seconds), I find the ZINIO approach much better suited to the task at hand.
Hopefully, that's the direction that my favorite publications will be going, with an occasional bit of 'interactivity' when appropriate.
Yep looks like Flash. I can think of only a few ways to do effects like that.
1. Flash
3. Flash complied as an App from CS5 Pro
3. App with embedded video (After Effects, Motion, Shake, Maya etc.)
From the looks of it they are sparing no expense so it will be interesting to see how much the subscription costs.
In one of the videos it mentions use of post production to do most of the video effects.
You could use something like Maya or Blender 3D to the 3D manipulations and animations.
I believe you could do most of this with the Motion and Final Cut components of FCS.
For the interactive text scrolling (at whatever angle) this can easily be done within the iPhone/iPad SDK and the simulator.
The text is merely on a transparent upper layer which can recognize and react to touches while a video plays on an underlying layer. For example, the app gets callbacks from a scroll touch-- it needs to scroll text at an angle so it simply computes the angle and adjusts the position of the transparent layer to compensate.
The key here, is that magazine is read, and interacted with, on the device without the use of Flash.
While I agree in many ways, I think you may be over influenced by more recent media developments. Everything comes and goes and everything that has come, will go, to some degree. But everything that has come and gone also influences to some degree. Blogs and Tweets and social media are not really new, nor are they the future, they're just the latest instantiation of old school communication. History is a succession or recycling of diaries, letters, e-mails, blogs, tweets, etc. A constant churn.
Blogs and tweets won't cut it here any better than over the top "interactive crap." We're talking about paid content here. they're not just paying for timeliness. People are paying for wisdom, introspection, thoughtfulness, and a clearing away of clutter and noise. The more recent forms of communication have been exceptionally cluttered and noisy, but people still like to sit down with a magazine (electronic or no.)
True, but at some point they will want to share there opinion about what they read and that is where the internet shines. Now we can shout to a larger more focused audience than you would at your local beatnik corner or your Dear Abby column. Plus, you wouldn't think this but people are starting to actually fallow through and experience physical face time with things like conventions, retreats, and seminars.
Comments
What are you talking about? HTML5 and CSS3 can do that extremely easily.
Flash is not required at all.
Of something like this? Show me an example.
-video with a transparent background, text and animation passing behind video
-Video with cue points, certain points in video triggering animation
-Rendered, non standard fonts displayed at an angle
-Ambient sound running seperate from the video, being triggered by events in the video
For straight video clips Flash is not needed and HTML5 is the only way. For something like this though, you need some kind of plug-in (Flash, Silverlight, QuickTime). I'd like to be proven wrong, but I don't think HTML5 is there yet....
While this interactive magazine is gorgeous, it seems oxymoronic to have posted it via Flash when the iPad doesn't support this codex.
codec = A device or algorithm capable of encoding and/or decoding a digital data stream or signal.
codex = An ancient manuscript text in book form.
Just so you know
Speaking of which, who here is a pro with HTML5 and CSS? What tools on the Mac are recommended for beginners wanting to create interactive content suitable for iPad consumption?
HTML5, CSS3 and JS are not for beginners "."
There are no tools, it is all coded by hand.
You can use Opacity to generate canvas tag code.
Also http://code.google.com/webtoolkit/ may be of interest
Are you kidding? This little demo is probably worth 10x worth of advertising for this magazine. This clip will be widely seen and commented on.
I'm not kidding, but if releasing viral video demos was their goal then they succeeded. But you don't need an iPad to do that. I think the topic is about effective publishing on the iPad not viral advertising. Although you do make an interesting point.
This isn't Twitter. You don't need to update everyone here on your every decision.
I have received your tweet. Thank you for updating me.
Do not use Vimeo. Please confirm. [ Over! ]
The 1990's Interactive CD - Reborn!
It's true. Especially if you think about the fact that the only "interaction" is essentially just hitting the NEXT button. They created a BEAUTIFUL presentation, really nailed the SIN CITY aesthetic, but again, other than a movie trailer website, I couldn't imagine why someone would sit through something like this.... SI's demo was much more interesting.... data and video content getting pulled in live.... customizable layout...truly interactive...
And yes its probably expensive to shoot this article today, but the cost will plummet as the tools are mass produced and the software automates the skills.
Costs for something like this do not plummet, because the cost is not in the tools; it's the concept and imagery — and the talent required to create it — that makes this expensive. There is no cheap way to produce professional cinematic imagery, 3D environments, and animation. And you can't automate it, either.
I don't think publishers get it. This "motion graphics->pause->read->continue" model is so dated! I want my information fast and easy to consume! If your visuals don't convey the information then get them out of my way! This is the same old formula that was used on CDs and DVDs back in the 90's. Yeah sure you can download it instead of mail it but in the end it's still boring! And you come out feeling like you waisted a bunch of time. Plus, by the time it makes it through production the content is dated. Have any of these producers read a blog lately? Blogs are where it's at and they will explode with the iPad!
My 21st century/web 3.0 definition of "interactive media" is an open socially interactive medium used to convey and share information. But, most importantly sharing opinions. It's not flashy buttons and motion graphics contained in a closed system. Yuck! The only way flashy buttons and motion graphics work today is if they convey the information and also provide a way to convey information. Ever play Halo?
We have all gotten over the "shiny" effect of digital media back in the 90's. Now we all want to opine with it and receive our 15 nanoseconds of fame! Twitter anyone?
P.S.
I bet the content creators of this demo are still waiting to get paid.
Good points about the friction from "interactive" cut scenes. They do look like the interactive CD stuff from the 90s.
But I disagree that the primary purposed of digital content ought to be to enable comments. If that's the case, you don't really need "content" at all, beyond a few lines of deliberately provocative text.
Of course, that may be what you're championing, but a culture of nothing but crude provocations serving as the stimulus for a bunch of Twitter level yammering is a culture well on its way to collapse. A complete democracy of voices is just white noise.
I'm a little worried that we seem to be confronting a generation who thinks more than a few seconds of anything but pandering to their inflated sense of incipient fame is "boring" and "a waste of time."
HTML5, CSS3 and JS are not for beginners "."
There are no tools, it is all coded by hand.
You can use Opacity to generate canvas tag code.
Of course they're for beginners. While you can't just start at the apex, HTML, CSS, & JS are the foundation of web design and if you want to be a real web designer/developer you will need to learn all three in their full implementation (to varying degrees depending.)
That said, yup, hand coding, no tools for the latest versions yet. And that is the one big thing holding back adoption. It may be a while before we get usable tools. Adobe is certainly reverse motivated to produce them.
I don't think publishers get it. This "motion graphics->pause->read->continue" model is so dated! I want my information fast and easy to consume! If your visuals don't convey the information then get them out of my way! This is the same old formula that was used on CDs and DVDs back in the 90's. Yeah sure you can download it instead of mail it but in the end it's still boring! And you come out feeling like you waisted a bunch of time. Plus, by the time it makes it through production the content is dated. Have any of these producers read a blog lately? Blogs are where it's at and they will explode with the iPad!
Dead-on assessment I think. As with each new tool introduced, there's a time period where artistes (and wanna-be's) go hog wild in the 'wouldn't it be cool if?' direction without giving necessary thought to 'how would this content be best served?'
There was nothing in this demo that seemed tailored for a touch interface...if I imagine a mouse pointer instead of the finger avatar they used I would have believed this was lifted directly from the 90's.
Good points about the friction from "interactive" cut scenes. They do look like the interactive CD stuff from the 90s.
But I disagree that the primary purposed of digital content ought to be to enable comments. If that's the case, you don't really need "content" at all, beyond a few lines of deliberately provocative text.
Of course, that may be what you're championing, but a culture of nothing but crude provocations serving as the stimulus for a bunch of Twitter level yammering is a culture well on its way to collapse. A complete democracy of voices is just white noise.
I'm a little worried that we seem to be confronting a generation who thinks more than a few seconds of anything but pandering to their inflated sense of incipient fame is "boring" and "a waste of time."
I wouldn't say I'm championing anything but reiterating what we are doing right now in this forum. The Twitter world is more sophisticated than you give it credit for. The reality is that people are making connections. They are communicating and any communication is better than none. On the surface it may seem trite but substantial communication does take place. Try investigating the food blog/twitter scape. People take it very seriously and provide enormous support for each other both technically and emotionally. Also, none of these social media mediums are an island. They all work together each serving a different purpose.
That said, yup, hand coding, no tools for the latest versions yet. And that is the one big thing holding back adoption. It may be a while before we get usable tools. Adobe is certainly reverse motivated to produce them.
There are no tools for the current HTML4 either. Dreamweaver's WYSIWYG is useless for anything except the most rudimentary of web pages. Forget about anything dynamic like Ajax. In my opinion the most important part for web dev shops is good php, asp, rails, sql chops because anything remotely complex is going to require it.
Come on now, you know, you just know that the ads ARE the content.
chano
I don't think publishers get it. This "motion graphics->pause->read->continue" model is so dated! I want my information fast and easy to consume! If your visuals don't convey the information then get them out of my way! This is the same old formula that was used on CDs and DVDs back in the 90's. Yeah sure you can download it instead of mail it but in the end it's still boring! And you come out feeling like you waisted a bunch of time. Plus, by the time it makes it through production the content is dated. Have any of these producers read a blog lately? Blogs are where it's at and they will explode with the iPad!
...etc.
While I agree in many ways, I think you may be over influenced by more recent media developments. Everything comes and goes and everything that has come, will go, to some degree. But everything that has come and gone also influences to some degree. Blogs and Tweets and social media are not really new, nor are they the future, they're just the latest instantiation of old school communication. History is a succession or recycling of diaries, letters, e-mails, blogs, tweets, etc. A constant churn.
Blogs and tweets won't cut it here any better than over the top "interactive crap." We're talking about paid content here. they're not just paying for timeliness. People are paying for wisdom, introspection, thoughtfulness, and a clearing away of clutter and noise. The more recent forms of communication have been exceptionally cluttered and noisy, but people still like to sit down with a magazine (electronic or no.)
i read dozens of books and scores of magazines every year. I think the iPad is going to increase that, i see a huge step forward in publishing.
The possibilities are staggering. The medium is engaging. Not just for adults, for children, this is amazing. Text books, interactive training... it's going to be fantastic.
Scoff if you'd like at the iPad, I really think this is a big step forward.
Personally...
My primary reason for buying digital magazines is to read, and though all of this geewizness is fun to look at (for the first 20 seconds), I find the ZINIO approach much better suited to the task at hand.
Hopefully, that's the direction that my favorite publications will be going, with an occasional bit of 'interactivity' when appropriate.
It could form the basis of a motion-comic series though.
Yep looks like Flash. I can think of only a few ways to do effects like that.
1. Flash
3. Flash complied as an App from CS5 Pro
3. App with embedded video (After Effects, Motion, Shake, Maya etc.)
From the looks of it they are sparing no expense so it will be interesting to see how much the subscription costs.
In one of the videos it mentions use of post production to do most of the video effects.
You could use something like Maya or Blender 3D to the 3D manipulations and animations.
I believe you could do most of this with the Motion and Final Cut components of FCS.
For the interactive text scrolling (at whatever angle) this can easily be done within the iPhone/iPad SDK and the simulator.
The text is merely on a transparent upper layer which can recognize and react to touches while a video plays on an underlying layer. For example, the app gets callbacks from a scroll touch-- it needs to scroll text at an angle so it simply computes the angle and adjusts the position of the transparent layer to compensate.
The key here, is that magazine is read, and interacted with, on the device without the use of Flash.
*
While I agree in many ways, I think you may be over influenced by more recent media developments. Everything comes and goes and everything that has come, will go, to some degree. But everything that has come and gone also influences to some degree. Blogs and Tweets and social media are not really new, nor are they the future, they're just the latest instantiation of old school communication. History is a succession or recycling of diaries, letters, e-mails, blogs, tweets, etc. A constant churn.
Blogs and tweets won't cut it here any better than over the top "interactive crap." We're talking about paid content here. they're not just paying for timeliness. People are paying for wisdom, introspection, thoughtfulness, and a clearing away of clutter and noise. The more recent forms of communication have been exceptionally cluttered and noisy, but people still like to sit down with a magazine (electronic or no.)
True, but at some point they will want to share there opinion about what they read and that is where the internet shines. Now we can shout to a larger more focused audience than you would at your local beatnik corner or your Dear Abby column. Plus, you wouldn't think this but people are starting to actually fallow through and experience physical face time with things like conventions, retreats, and seminars.