Some Random (Animated) Dude #1 - Plethora
22.09.06 @ 2:05 pmFor quite some time I have had people ask me why my header was a SWF rather than just your standard image. It definitely was a big waste up there as a JPG or GIF would do just as good of a job with more compatibility. Frankly, it seemed like P.J. was just a big dummy... However, I had plans for that header, and it is only now that I am actually putting those plans in motion (pun shamelessly intended).
Many of you probably do not know it as I do not write about it often, but my bills get paid with Flash. The majority of work I do (albeit a slim majority) is, in one form or another, in Flash and it is about time that I actually start showing some of it. My header is now going to be a place where I have some fun - I will be making new random animations/interactive pieces about one a month. Or at least that is the plan... I am going to keep this project wide open - the header may or may not be centered around the logo. When I get enough of these animations, I will eventually just display a header at random. I think this will add a little kick to the site.
I promise not to make these animations annoying or distracting to the site. I am going to try to keep all of the motion within a 1 to 2 second window. Believe me, I know all too well how negative an impact Flash can have on a site/design if done poorly...If possible, I would like to offer up the code that was created for each piece. I will only do that if 1) the code is worthwhile to distribute and, 2) the code is at a good place to hand off. Unfortunately, rule #2 does not apply to this animation.
This animation was created by with the use of a particle generator class that I created for a different project. What is so nice about particle generators is that you can get that random animated look much more easily as it really is random. I decided to keep the animation fairly basic but that was what I wanted. My hope is that I can role out the two classes used later on when I have the chance to clean and document them.
Be on the lookout for new animations in the coming months. I think I will be just as surprised as you of what will be coming next.
actionscript, animation, dude, emitter, flash, particle generator, plethora random
September 22nd, 2006 at 2:36 pm
$0.00 in Comment Love for October
Cool idea!!!!! I was thinking that maybe you could have the dudes appear randomly but always have one appear in the same, static place at the forefront. So everytime your refresh the screen, one guy always remains the main visual while dudes appear behind him. Maybe that’s not possible?
Either way, I like the fun addition to the site. However, I did find it to be buggy in Safari at times…
September 22nd, 2006 at 2:57 pm
Thanks
This whole thing is going to be an evolving process - I am keeping it wide open for that very reason. I may very well draw back a bit to keep a stronger identity in the header, you bring up a good point.
As for buggy, let me guess - it runs slightly choppy on your Mac. Macs run notoriously slow on Flash animations and it always ends up being a major thorn in my side. I ran it on my iBook and it seemed to deal moderately well with it. Nevertheless, thanks for the heads up, I may tone it down a bit.
September 22nd, 2006 at 8:55 pm
$0.00 in Comment Love for October
PJ, that’s rad! I love it. Can’t wait to see more.
September 24th, 2006 at 10:23 pm
$0.00 in Comment Love for October
Good animation - is it possible to make the header so that if you click it, it takes you back to the home page?
September 25th, 2006 at 6:39 pm
Thanks for the kind words guys and gals. I don’t think I can make the header clickable because I could see there being interactive facets to new headers in the future that could require clicking. I don’t want to confuse people in the future by making the header link to the homepage sometimes and others having it do funky flash stuff.
Thanks again!
October 1st, 2006 at 10:59 am
$4.00 in Comment Love for October
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