SlideShowPro for Lightroom 1.1.1 Released

By Todd Dominey | Posted Wednesday, February 13, 2008 at 4:14 pm

This release brings the Lightroom version up to the 1.7.1 release of SlideShowPro for Flash, and includes a few Lightroom-specific fixes and updates. To read more about what’s in 1.1.1, check out the version history.

SlideShowPro for Flash 1.7.1 Released

By Todd Dominey | Posted at 4:08 pm

Purely a bug fix release that addresses a number of issues found in the initial 1.7 release of SlideShowPro for Flash. To read more about what’s in 1.7.1, check out the version history.

Director API Public Alpha

By Brad Daily | Posted Tuesday, February 12, 2008 at 5:21 pm

We’ve had a great response to the Director API since we announced it a few weeks back. To make things easier, we are turning the 1.2 alpha of Director into a public affair. So, any interested Director users who want to try out the API can do so and discuss it via the forums. To get started, read this post in the newly minted Director API forum.

Export/Import Parameters Command (Beta) now available

By Todd Dominey | Posted Friday, February 8, 2008 at 2:01 pm

One of the things that’s always driven me crazy about the Component Inspector panel in Flash is that it doesn’t provide a way to save settings. There’s simply no built-in way to copy the parameters of one instance of SlideShowPro over to another in a separate FLA, or share your settings with another user. So, I decided to experiment with creating my own parameter copying utility, and before I knew it had built just that.

Using the JSFL engine in Flash CS3, I’ve built a couple of commands that make the exporting/importing of parameter settings fast and easy. Parameters are exported as an xml file, which can then be imported back into Flash, parsed, and assigned to a separate instance of SlideShowPro. You can even share the XML file with someone else, and they’ll be able to take a default, new instance of SlideShowPro and convert it (size, color, behavior, everything) to an instance that’s identical to yours.

These will also make upgrading to new point releases easier. The scripts are purposely written so that any parameter in SlideShowPro that matches one in an imported configuration file are modified, and any that do not are left alone. This way you’ll only have to modify new/changed parameters between point releases.

Last but certainly not least, an exported parameter file can also be used with the “standalone” version of SlideShowPro for Flash that comes with the extension download. So you could technically build your slideshow in Flash, export a parameter file, use that file with the standalone version, then update the parameters in the XML whenever you need to change something (without returning to Flash and publishing a new SWF).

Both scripts require Flash CS3 (simply not possible in earlier versions, sorry), and will be included as part of the extension installation when they’re no longer beta. If you’d like to try them out, download here (login required). Note: commands no longer beta and are now part of the SlideShowPro for Flash installation package.

SlideShowPro for Lightroom 1.1 Released

By Todd Dominey | Posted Tuesday, February 5, 2008 at 4:23 pm

Hot on the heels of SlideShowPro 1.7.0 going final, the 1.1 build of SlideShowPro for Lightroom has also been finalized and is now available for download in the Account Center. This release packs in everything from the 1.7 build of SlideShowPro, plus these Lightroom specific features:

• New “Header” area to display a logo (with link), gallery title and gallery description
• New “Wet Floor” effect
• 4 template groups, each containing 8 variations for landscape/portrait, dimension and aspect ratio (32 options total).
• New inputs to directly assign an audio file and caption
• New Director formatting panel

To read all the details on this release, see the full version history.

Thanks again to the Lightroom beta testers for their assistance and feedback.

SlideShowPro for Flash 1.7.0 Released

By Todd Dominey | Posted at 4:10 pm

The final release of SlideShowPro for Flash 1.7.0 is now available for download in the Account Center. This release went through about three weeks of beta testing, where a handful or problems / optimizations were made thanks to the numerous SlideShowPro for Flash users who helped kick the tires.

So, what’s new in this release? Here we go…

• Volume control in the media player (for both audio/video)
• Navigation can now be positioned on top
• Media player can now be positioned on top
• Auto-start option for videos (toggle off/on). When off, you can assign a preview graphic, and a “play” button is displayed over the preview.
• Media RSS support
• “Content Format” option to control the size of imagery (full screen or normal) SlideShowPro Director publishes, or are grabbed from a Media RSS feeds containing multiple image options should format imagery for.
• New album preview style: “Banner”.
• New “Crop to Fit All” option to fill the whole component area (instead of content area)
• Preloader and timer can now be aligned to any of the 8 clockwise points.
• Preloader and timer can now be positioned inside the content area or inside content (latter looks best with ‘floating’ style imagery)
• Two new preloader styles — “Spinner” and “Pie Spinner”
• Control knob for media player video scrubber
• Multiple XML files from different sources can be combined/loaded as one gallery using OPML
• Completely revised caching system for better bandwidth consumption
• Padding controls for captions, albums and the gallery

Additionally, the download archive comes with something new: a “standalone” version of SlideShowPro for Flash in SWF form that’s accompanied by an editable XML file (for modifying parameters). This allows developers who do not own Flash to modify and use SlideShowPro for Flash.

If you want to read the whole nitty gritty, check out the whole version history here.

SlideShowPro for Lightroom 1.1 beta now available

By Todd Dominey | Posted Friday, February 1, 2008 at 8:51 am

Now that SlideShowPro for Flash 1.7 is nearly final, a beta version of SlideShowPro for Lightroom 1.1 is now available for download. This release incorporates all the fixes, updates, and changes in SlideShowPro for Flash 1.7, plus adds a number of Lightroom-specific fixes, updates and new features.

The most notable change in SlideShowPro for Lightroom 1.1 is a collection of default templates (shown left). There are four styles, each containing a number of aspect ratios and resolutions to choose from. These make it incredibly easy for new users of the product to get the look / size they want quickly, with all the presets for image export size and slideshow dimension taken care of.

Also of note is a new built-in effect that has proven very popular among SlideShowPro for Flash users — the ubiquitous “wet floor” effect. The reflection can be toggled on/off, with extra controls for reflection depth and intensity.

Last but certainly not least, and by popular request, an optional header element has been added above SlideShowPro that displays the gallery title and description, plus a container to load a graphic that can be anything you want (most will probably incorporate logos or some kind of branding). The graphic can also be assigned a URL, so you can use the image to provide a link back to your main web site, or whatever else you want. The header includes complete controls for padding, spacing and alignment.

If you’re a SlideShowPro for Lightroom user and would be interested in trying it out (and providing feedback), download here.

SlideShowPro for Flash 1.7.0b4 available

By Todd Dominey | Posted at 8:20 am

In what will likely be the final beta before going final, beta 4 of SlideShowPro for Flash 1.7 is now available for download. This release fixes a few little things that were in the previous beta, and nothing else. If you’re a user of SlideShowPro for Flash, feel free to download if you’d like to kick the tires.