Macromedia Director

[Droopy]

Is there anyone who uses Macromedia Director for internet-media ? Or just for Cd-rom development ? What do you think 'bout the program ? Are there any other programs for cdrom-development ?

Cya around, guys !

[Mr ilind]

ah droopy

i have the same question

greetz

[Nicky]

You can use Director for the Internet but it is mostly geared towards CD-Rom production. Another program which is also aimed at this market is Authorware, although I personally find Director to be a superior product.

[flux]

Hi there!

Director used to be mainly for CD-Rom or desktop applications, but there are some reasons why it CAN BE the best solution or the web mainly for the folowing cases:

- bitmap animations / games
- multiplayer games
- 3D games / animations

The main disadvantage of using shockwave for the web is the bulky download (compared to the Flash Plugin, the Shockwave plugin is HUGE), and the fact that less people have this plugin installed compared to the Flash plugin (which is implemented in the new browsers)

[Nicky]

Flux, do you not think that for most people, what they want to achieve for the web can be done in Flash and not Director? I prefer Director, I think it is much more complex than Flash and also easier to learn, but Flash will let you achieve a lot of what Director does and cheaper and quicker.

[flux]

Originally posted by Nicky
Flux, do you not think that for most people, what they want to achieve for the web can be done in Flash and not Director? I prefer Director, I think it is much more complex than Flash and also easier to learn, but Flash will let you achieve a lot of what Director does and cheaper and quicker.

I definately agree with you here: most people use Flash for website intro's, (parts of) websites, (simple) games and vector animations (cartoons). nothing beats flash in these fields (maybe except for HTML in some cases).

I always start from the following: FORM FOLLOWS FUNCTION: or me, it's the functionality that makes most decisions on what tool I use. If no special interactivity needed, no streaming music is needed, or if the targeted user is surfing with a 56k modem, Director or Flash is out of the question and HTML will be the technology used.

If the site needs vector or text animation and/or streaming music, and if my target user is surfing the web with a version 4+ browser, then I will probably choose for flash.

If I need a bitmap only game, 3D or online interaction between multiple users and if filesize isn't a critical point, my choice will go to Director, because of its 3D and Multiplayer features, and it's native bitmap file format.

[Nicky]

I haven't played around much with Director's 3D capabilities but they loko impressive. You still have to have access to a 3D program such as Studio Max thougha s Director will not really let you create 3D environments, just control them.

[bbolte]

I would love to see some more Director and Flash articles on Sitepoint. There is a severe lack of quality Director sites on the web. Most of them are old and outdated and the forums suck. It also appears that Flashkit my be going down the tubes, at least in the last month. I know the site is going through some changes and would hate to see it go...

[flux]

Originally posted by bbolte
I would love to see some more Director and Flash articles on Sitepoint. There is a severe lack of quality Director sites on the web. Most of them are old and outdated and the forums suck. It also appears that Flashkit my be going down the tubes, at least in the last month. I know the site is going through some changes and would hate to see it go...

http://www.were-here.com has an excellent Director board and imho the best Flash board on the Internet; It's true that Director (but also Illustrator) tutorials/forums are really difficult to find compared to Flash and Photoshop.

[Nicky]

I'm a member of Were-Here but the forums are sooo big, takes me hours to get through them.

Maybe we can convicne FLux to write something eh?

Anyone who wants to write any Director/Flash articles or tutorials please email me.

[werehere]

Originally posted by Nicky
I'm a member of Were-Here but the forums are sooo big, takes me hours to get through them.

Maybe we can convicne FLux to write something eh?

Anyone who wants to write any Director/Flash articles or tutorials please email me.

That is funny... I don't think they are much larger than sitepoint's forums!

[Nicky]

You got three times as many memebers!

[werehere]

Originally posted by Nicky
You got three times as many memebers!

Ok, maybe that is true!

I really was impressed at how large this forum has become over the past little while. Last time I visited here it was small, and now it is a huge resource. Great going Sitepoint team!