Here it…comes! SlideShowPro version 1.2.0 — a free update for all 1.0 purchasers — is now available for download in the Users section.
What’s new? A number of cool things. First and foremost, support for Event Listeners. Flash developers can now detect and respond to component events, and also retrieve raw gallery data. That means you’ll be able to display captions outside the component, use Macromedia components to load specific albums and images within SSP, and whatever else you can think of. To get you started, I wrote a new tutorial on how to use a ComboBox component with SlideShowPro. For more information about what events you can work with, see the updated User Guide in the download.
What else? New public methods for loading albums and images with ActionScript outside the component. Image Pause overrides in the XML. Option to use direct links in your XML’s image elements instead of using the “lgPath” and “tnPath” constructors. Watermarks. Code hints. Bug fixes. Etc., Etc.
To read everything that was updated, check out the version history page.
Other than that, I also updated the layout / content of the front page with more information about SSP, including the “Black Matte” demo pushed up front and center. In the weeks ahead I plan on revamping the “Examples” section to show the variety of ways SSP can be modified.
So with that, enjoy! A lot of time went into this update, and I hope that the expanded functionality offers everyone lots of new options when working with the component.
I had every intention of getting version 1.2.0 out the door this week, but it now appears that won’t be happening. Not from a lack of development, but from continually finding smarter ways to implement something, or from working in a feature request. I want to cram as many updates and changes into 1.2.0 as I possibly can, and there’s too many things left on my to-do list, plus beta testing, for it to be released this week. It’ll be released as soon as it can be.
In case you haven’t heard, Flash Player 8 solves one of the biggest issues affecting those new to developing Flash content — progressive JPGs. Ever since SlideShowPro was released back in February I’ve troubleshooted countless movie issues that were the result of users trying to dynamically load JPGs saved with the “progressive” option turned on. Why Macromedia limited themselves to just one type of JPG I’ll never understand, but they finally got it right in Flash Player 8 with full JPG support, plus support for GIF and PNG.
So what does this mean for SlideShowPro users? It means that when Flash 8 is available you’ll be able to publish Flash 8 movies containing SlideShowPro and dynamically load JPGs, GIFs, and PNGs just the same as the non-progressive JPGs you currently are. Sweet.
Burton Snowboards is using SlideShowPro (customized with a classic red, white and black color palette) on numerous pages at their redesigned web site. SSP is also being used at their sister-site Gravis Footwear in an editorial role to show photos alongside stories. Quite snazzy.
I’ve received a number of emails asking if SlideShowPro will be compatible with Flash 8 when it is released, and the answer is yes. Actually, SlideShowPro is already compatible — no updates will be necessary. I know this because I’m a beta tester for Macromedia, have been actively testing SlideShowPro against beta builds of Flash 8 for the past few months, and everything has worked as expected.
There’s lots to be excited about in the new version, so check it out if you haven’t done so already.
I fully intended to release an update to SSP sooner than this, but my work on the 2005 PGA Championship got completely in the way. Now that it’s over, I plan on getting 1.2.0 out the door either by the end of this week or next week. Things to look forward to include a handful of new Event Listeners (so you’ll be able to “listen” to SSP and respond to many events however you like), some important bug fixes in regard to using ActionScript to manipulate its dimensions and other properties, an XML override for “Image Pause” so you can customize how long an image displays outside of the component, plus a few other things. Expect an email soon.
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