by Macromedia
Platform:
Windows 98 / 2000, Mac OS 9 and below
(4)3 used & new from $99.95
(Visit the Bestsellers in Web Effects list for authoritative information on this product's current rank.)
Review & Description
Without Flash, Web surfing would be a much less dynamic experience. And any Flash developer can tell you that without Macromedia Director, Flash presentations would be years behind the brilliant productions peppering the Web today. Director 8.5 Shockwave Studio introduces a powerful new set of 3-D authoring tools, unleashing a whole new dimension for multimedia Web developers.
Employing 3-D graphics technology developed at Intel, developers can import 3-D graphics with textures and animated elements (from 3D Studio MAX, for instance), and apply creative new ways to animate objects and text--from spinning icons to Superman-style logo fly-thrus--on three axes. A Particles System debuts a range of special effects: smoke, water, fire, explosions, you name it. With customizable lighting and camera effects, this package delivers the goods on the 3-D development front. Naturally, the 3-D presentations are fully scalable, ensuring that viewers with systems ranging from chug-a-lugs to the latest gigahertz blazers can enjoy the show.
For e-commerce, online game, and animated entertainment developers, the upgrades are more than worth the bucks--especially given the wonderful collection of new production capabilities. Director 8.5 offers support for XML data, allowing for even more dynamic Web pages, and the new Shockwave Multicast 3 tool dishes up server-side scripting and UDP support. This strong community-building tool now supports twice as many simultaneous users--up to 2,000 at once.
A true gem of a new feature is the seamless support for RealVideo and RealAudio directly within Shockwave content.
Director 8.5 is topped off with an improved publish feature that smoothly builds presentations for the Web, CD-ROM, or even DVD. For having such powerful new capabilities, Director's interface remains surprisingly intuitive. Though many of the advanced effects may thwart impatient newbies, earnest novices won't have too much trouble creating professional-looking presentations. And once the pros get warmed up with this necessary upgrade, expect to see some brilliant new Web-based 3-D games and animated movies hitting a browser near you. --Eric TwelkerDirector 8.5 Shockwave Studio is an essential and exciting upgrade for Web authors who need the latest 3-D capabilities, Flash, and RealMedia support. Version 8.5 of Macromedia's Director has strengthened the product's position as a flagship multimedia tool.
The sheer depth and power of Director 8.5 does not hinder beginners, who will find that the streamlined interface and library of drag-and-drop behaviors allow them to produce impressive results quickly. The more experienced user will find that--with more than 800 new commands covered in well-written documentation--Director's Lingo scripting language provides good detail and control over interaction and delivery.
Director's new 3-D capabilities are based on Intel technology, and are geared toward delivering the goods regardless of the user's connection speed. It does this by employing technology that automatically changes the detail of 3-D objects depending on the user's bandwidth and the speed of his or her computer.
Although Director doesn't really help you create 3-D models--you must import these from other third-party applications using the new W3D format--once in place, key frame and bones-based animation are employed to bring these models to life. In addition, there are a number of presupplied 3-D behaviors, particle effects, and an option to render with a flat, cartoon-style look. All these factors combine to give Director some powerful new moves that will undoubtedly be of enormous interest to 3-D developers.
Director 8.5 supports two other important Web technologies that further add to its versatility. RealMedia is now supported, allowing the author to rotate, scale, and skew clips while they are playing. Flash support has been updated to version 5, and, with its improved integration, you can now control Flash media within Director by using Lingo.
Other new and extremely useful features of Director 8.5 Shockwave Studio include support for XML data and better multiuser server support. This includes new server-side scripting and an increase in the number of concurrent users to 2,000, which will enable rich and immersive multiuser experiences.
Game developers and specialists in Web-based interaction will undoubtedly benefit from these new features, which now make Director an essential choice for multiuser, interactive, and online experiences. --John BloorMacromedia Director 8.5 Shockwave Studio, the solution forinteractive rich media and 3-D for the Web, also includes a new version of the Shockwave Multiuser Server and support for both Macromedia Flash 5 and streaming RealMedia content. The combination of Macromedia Director 8.5 with the Intel Internet 3-D graphics software will provide developers with flexible, extensible, and robust 3-D content creation tools. The studio is integrated with existing 3-D solutions to ensuredevelopers do not have to abandon their 3-D authoring software of choice, but rather are enabled to import that content into Director.
The 3-D capabilities of Shockwave Player are optimized to take full advantage of the high-performance Intel Pentium 4 processor, while still running well on basic systems. The Shockwave content is efficiently delivered to Web desktops through sophisticated compressionand streaming capabilities. Director 8.5 can also create simulated natural effects such as smoke, fire, water, dust, sparks, vapor, and explosions. Macromedia Director 8.5 Shockwave Studio is integrated withindustry-leading 3-D technology solutions to ensure that existing 3-D developers can immediately publish their content to the Web for free, using an established pervasive platform.
In addition to the new 3-D authoring capabilities, Macromedia Director 8.5 Shockwave Studio includes a new version of the Shockwave Multiuser Server and support for both Macromedia Flash 5 and streaming RealMedia content asassets in Director movies. The Shockwave Multiuser Server 3 now enables faster communication and gaming with multiuser Shockwave content. Scripting capabilities allow developers to simplify development of multiuser content with reduced network traffic, improved security, and optimized database access. The server can also handle up to 2,000simultaneous users, double the amount supported in the previous version. Read more
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