Entered CNET Catalog: 11/29/2001
SKU: 0044431334006
Manufacturer: Adobe Systems
Manufacturer description
Macromedia Director 8.5 Shockwave Studio is the world's foremost authoring tool for creating interactive multimedia. Developers rely on Director to create attention-grabbing business presentations, advertising kiosks, interactive entertainment and educational products. Macromedia Director 8.5 Shockwave Studio and the new Shockwave 3D Player enable you to develop magnetic destination content and interactive media on the Web, CDs and DVDs and corporate intranets. Build dazzling 3D entertainment, interactive product demonstrations and online learning applications. The studio includes a new version of the Shockwave Multiuser Server, Havok physics engine for 3D game behaviors, support for Macromedia Flash 5, and the ability to stream RealMedia content. In addition, through a joint effort with Intel Corporation, 3D support is now included, ensuring that developers can continue delivering the most magnetic Web experiences with the market-leading rich media creation solution. Macromedia Director 8.5 provides developers with an extensible, robust 3D content creation and publishing solution. The 3D support in Director and Shockwave Player was jointly developed with Intel Corporation, and is built on the Intel Internet 3D Graphics software.Product summary
The good: Integrated support for 3D objects and behaviors; server-side scripting for multiuser server; support for RealMedia and many other media objects.
The bad: Priced too high for entry-level developers; Shockwave Player penetration lags behind Flash; CD-ROM output is not multiplatform compatible.
The bottom line: With the addition of 3D tools and RealMedia playback, Director belongs in the toolbox of every professional multimedia developer.
Editors' review
- Editors' Choice: No
- Reviewed on: 06/13/2001
The total package
With this single--albeit high-priced--tool, you can create standalone CD-ROM content, kiosk presentations, and Shockwave movies for the Web. The new Shockwave Studio lets you build true streaming 3D graphics, perfect for games, application interfaces, and product demonstrations. Shockwave Player isn't as popular as Flash Player, but we think that the new capabilities make it a worthwhile download for your users. Unlike the prerendered 3D content displayed in Flash, Shockwave 3D content displays in real time, based on actual object models. The built-in 3D system also allows for powerful bones animation (created in third-party applications), cartoon-style rendering, and even particle effects that mimic smoke or water. Because the 3D-playback technology in the Shockwave Player scales according to your hardware, you can still view the content on older machines, although it will be less detailed.
Director doesn't provide a 3D authoring environment of its own; instead, it integrates with established software to import models, textures, and scenes. Even if you lack the cash for a full-featured 3D program, you can still import models created by other developers, often available as free downloads on the Web. Keep in mind that Director recognizes files in only W3D and OBJ format; VRML, WRL, or DXF will not work. You can bring imported objects to life by applying behaviors and scripts from the Library. With prebuilt behaviors, you don't have to be a programmer to create basic animation effects. For the hard-core developer, Director 8.5 also offers new Lingo keywords that let you create and manipulate 3D objects on the fly.
Beefier back end, multimedia support
Director 8.5 boasts new support for XML data and an enhanced Multiuser Server. The Multiuser Server, a back end for live chat rooms and multiplayer games, now supports 2,000 simultaneous users and server-side scripting. Director also excels at combining multiple media types. It not only handles text, graphics, audio, QuickTime, and PowerPoint, but also incorporates streaming RealVideo and RealAudio, as well as 3D elements and Flash 5.0 movies.
Unfortunately, Director still doesn't export cross-platform CD-ROM content. To create executables for Windows and Macintosh, you have to shell out for two copies of Director--a Windows version and a Mac version. Multiple platforms automatically support Shockwave content on the Web, but cross-platform CD-ROM producers are out of luck (or just a lot more cash).
Director 8.5 looks like a must-have for any professional developer building interactive Web content. Despite the hefty price tag, Director remains a strong buy, especially for upgrading customers.
User opinions
Select a User Opinion to view: 1 2 3 4out of 4 user reviews
Really handy!
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Interface Flaws & Not For Programmers
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out of 4 user reviews
Best tool for creating interactive 3-D web content
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out of 4 user reviews
Strong yet complex tool to leverage presentations beyond static images & Powerpoint-grade stuff.
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