I'm in a New York State of Mind

What a change from the west coast! I flew the red-eye last night from LA to Newark to begin the east coast leg of this epic US adventure I've been on for over a week now. Arrived (very) early in the morning to brutal winds and a temp somwhere down in the "wickedly cold" region of the thermometer. I then started what could have ultimately ended this NY odessy before it had started - I picked up my Ford Taurus rental car and drove through New Jersey to get to the hotel! All I can say is thank the heavens above for GPS and talking directions! I changed the GPS directions voice to be "Australia Jill" and changed miles to kilometres, so I felt a little more like a friend was with me in the car on the "other" side of the road (not the "wrong" side as James has pointed out to me). But I didn't hit anything, kill anyone (inlcuding myself) or any of the squirrels I saw running across the roads, so I thought I did alright for an Aussie on the "other" side of the road.

So now I'm in the hotel which will be my home for the next 2 and a bit weeks, going though material for the work I'll be doing while I'm here. I'm going to be presenting for the Total Training Flash Lite Application Development DVD - into the recording studio for a whole new recording experience :) I've been prepared for a very full schedule over the coming weeks, but I'm hoping that it'll be a good resource for all those budding Flash Lite developers out there. Will post more soon as more details are released.

Bucket O Nuts

Something that I just thought was very funny. And I even had seen this before I left for the States, so I can't blame Las Vegas bending my sense of humour or anything :)


Click here if the video's not playing for you

New Article in Mobile Dev Centre

There's a new article in the Mobile and Devices Dev Centre from Stefan Wessels / Breakdesign (Sth Africa). I've had the privillage to meet Stefan at MAX and sitting in on his session - they're tackling Flash Lite in a different way to many others in the FL community so check them out.

New Flash Lite Contest on Adobe.com

The Flash Lite contest that we're supporting has been added to the Adobe.com website, as well as a direct link to the Moket Content Network information. This is some great publicity - thanks to Ed and George and the Adobe mobile guys for adding it :)

I got me a Chumby!

Yesterday I met the guy from Chumby at the Adobe MAX conference, and then last night attended the Birds of a Feather meeting for the Chumby device. Duane was very generous and gave me a Chumby for myself was very cool and I'm looking forward to getting home and building some widgets for it.

For those who don't know, the Chumby is a Flash Lite 2.0 enabled Wi-Fi device that is kind of an intelligent alarm clock - but so much more. It has direct "squeezable" and motion sensors that can be accessed by the Flash player, it has in built in web server, Wi-Fi connectivity, possible Bluetooth support and a touchscreen for user input. It's also completely open source (apart from the Flash Lite player) and the concept is for a device designed for the connected teen market, but in a anti-iPod form factor. Way cool and my kids are going to love it when I bring it home!

Mobile takes centre stage

This morning's MAX Keynote session was dominated by Flash mobile. Yesterday had more glitz and glamour about the show, but today was Adobe's big mobile announcement that Verizon Wireless, as of today, has Flash Lite 2.1 content available for purchase through the "Get It Now" content deck. This is a big things for Adobe and Flash Lite, and they have been really trying to push the angle that developers can make money through selling content. While it's not as easy as what they're making it out to be, it is a significant step forward for Flash Lite and a milestone for content developers in North America.

So, away from the nerdy stuff, there's so much happening here at MAX (although you never completely get away from nerdy stuff at a MAX conference). There are parties run by different groups and companies just about every night, and last night I wound up at the Myspace.com party at one of the nightclubs here in the hotel. Great to have a few drinks on the house from a company who's website I actually don't like :) and ended up hanging out with the guys from Smashing Ideas so it was a good night.

I have another session this afternoon on S60 Flash Lite games, and then there's the official MAX Party at the Palms Casino tonight ... more blogging and pics to come!

A real rock show for geeks

Well, MAX 2006 has proven to be the place where the mega-stars of the Adobe world are given the red carpet treatment. No, not me, but this morning's keynote session was more like a rock show than a developer conference. We started with The Blue Man Group doing their thing (which was v cool) followed by Kevin Lynch hosting the stars - Mike Downey, Ben Forta, etc. Considering I gave up U2 tickets to be on this trip, at least I saw some big video screen action.

Conference has been great on lots of levels and looking forward to the next few days. Let's just say there's some stories to tell once I leave this freaky town!

Oh ... and I found Elvis. He's been here the whole time.

US Adventure Part 1 - The sights and sounds of the Hollywood Hills

Here in the US and just got a moment to make my first travel post. So many things have already happend, it's hard to know where to start. Well, to begin with there was my memorable day in LA with my tour guide and host James Talbot (and his dog RJ).

After arriving at LAX from a 14 hour trip, James thought it would be good to go grab some lunch down at Manhatten Beach (nice) and then go for a leisurely stroll up in the Hollwood Hills to blow the cobwebs out. Plus of course I was trying to stay awake after the flight to get into the US timezone. He assured me it was just a short walk - but little did I realise that fitness-freak "Sargent Pain" Talbot's idea of a short walk was a 5km hike up steep ridges and through rough bush tracks. Granted it was a great view of LA, the Hollywood sign ... it's just I hadn't walked that far in one go for about 5 years, let alone along mountainous bush tracks. End result - Dale bringing his lunch back up on the side of the trail, much to the embaressment of myself for all the other joggers running past me at the time. Enjoyable? No. Memorable? Absolutely. Pictures are yet to be added here, but you'll see when I do that I kept a smile on my face at least :)

In Vegas now for the conference and meeting up with some friends for dinner. More on the early stages of Vegas next time!

On my way to MAX!

In the aiport lounge at the moment waiting for my flight to LA, and the start of my US odessey :) First stop is LA to meet up with my mate James "Kim Chi" Talbot and his dog RJ ... we're going to drive down to Las Vegas together and head to MAX for about a week of nerdy fun, Flash Lite sessions, networking and photo opportunities (I promised my wife I wouldn't get an Elvis haircut while in Vegas, but we'll see ...) Going to be a great trip and I'm looking forward to meeting so many of the Flash Lite community that I have been getting to know online. Regular blogging during MAX will be attempted but not guaranteed :)

Flash Lite Contest 2006

The Adobe Mobile and Devices User Group of Boston, Australia and Brazil have launched the second Flash Lite Contest.

The contest is open to anyone who is interested in developing content using Flash Lite 1.1, 2.0, 2.1 technologies for mobile devices, phones and iRiver PMP.

Use your imagination and experience to create your content. The application should be localized in English, but if you want to create it in another language feel free to do so. Please include any release note and instructions.

Prizes:

• Best Overall Flash Lite content: A Nokia of your choice (up to 500 US$)
• Best iRiver Flash Lite content: Adobe software of your choice (up to 2000 US$)
• Best Application: iRiver
• Best Animation: Adobe software of your choice (up to 2000 US$)
• Best Flash Lite Site: Adobe software of your choice (up to 2000 US$)

All submitted content will have the chance to be evaluated for distribution through the Moket Content Network

Flash Lite categories:

• Mobile phones: Applications /Animations: Wallpaper, Screensaver /Flash Lite 1.1 Web Sites
• iRiver:Flash Lite content for iRiver (games and applications)
  

Valid Flash Lite applications need to respect the following guidelines:

• Must run on Mobile Device and iRiver PMP
• Flash Lite content must be new and not publicly available before beginning of the contest.

The Flash Lite content will be judged using the following criteria:

• Usability
• User Experience
• Performance
• Uniqueness
• Functionality

The content will be judged by staff from the Adobe Mobile and Devices department and by the managers of the Adobe Mobile and Devices User Groups from Boston, Australia, and Brazil. (Judges are excluded from the contest)

Deadline
The deadline for submitting applications is 11 PM EST on February 28th 2007.

Submissions:
You must submit your Flash Lite content between 1st February and no later then 28th February. Flash Lite content must be in a zip file. Please include a readme file with instructions and anything you might think is relevant. Specify the Flash Lite version of the Flash Lite content. A developer/company can only submit one piece of Flash Lite content per category. So a maximum of 4 Flash Lite content can be submitted by a developer/company. For the Flash Lite 1.1 web site content, please submit a readme file with a link to the site.

To submit your Flash Lite content, please send it to all of the Adobe Mobile and Devices User Group emails:

• Boston: flashmobilegroup at gmail dot com
• Australia: ozmad at moket dot com dot au
• Brazil: brmad at i2tecnologia dot com dot br

Winners announcement:
The winners will be announced the second week of March 2007.

Rights:
You as the developer/company retain all the rights to your application/content and you are solely responsible for the Flash Lite content.

Online Help:
If you need help, or want to ask questions you can post on the following forums:

• Adobe Flash Lite 1.1 forum
• Adobe Flash Lite 2.0 forum
• Yahoo Flash Lite User Group
• u10do.com for iRiver

There are many Flash Lite developers always willing to help and give suggestions. The groups are also helpful to test your content on different mobile phones since people are willing to test applications on their devices.

Also check the Flash Lite capability database for performance statistics and the Flash Lite development Checklist (to be found in the Yahoo Flash Lite User Group).

Contest questions:
If you have any specific questions regarding the contest please email to the Adobe Mobile and Devices User Group of Boston, Australia and Brazil (email all) or post a comment on the above forums.

Back in the Studio

Last week I got to go back to my previous life ... I took two days off to go into the recording studio to track the drums for a new CD my wife Tanya is making. Before IT and web and mobile and stuff, I was a professional drummer, playing full time with my band and touring Australia. It's been a while since I have been in a studio like the one we went to (Studio 301 in Byron Bay) but it was fantatstic to get back there. It was my perfect day off - kids were in school, daddy goes to the beach and plays drums for 10 hours, loads of Nacho Libre references ... awesome! Here are some pics from the session ... hope to have something for everyone to listen to in the next couple of months. Caleb James, our producer, is the MAN in the studio, such a great guy to have in there when need to get the mojo flowing after 9-10 takes of the one song :)

So many microphones for so few drums ... all to capture the mojo of the moment ... NACHO!!!!!!

Feeling the moment in one of the tracks ... the fairy lights helped though.

Trying to convince Caleb to let me play guitar on the album as well - it didn't work

Obi Wan never told you what happened to your cashbox ...

The Force was not with him. He is Darth Idiot, a local who decided that it might be a good idea to rob some petrol stations early one morning. Rather than pull a Jedi mind-trick on the shop assisstant, he thought that simply showing up in his Sith t-short and shorts would provide all the distraction he needed.

One shop assisstant suggested later that he and his colleagues should come to work dressed as Luke Skywalker to make it more of a challenge for the Dark Lord of the Cashbox.

Read full story - http://www.news.com.au/story/0,23599,20544084-2,00.html

Distributing Flash Lite Content throught the "Moket Content Network"

Today, Moket launched an initiative for distributing mobile content for Flash Lite developers who are at the smaller end of the development food chain. It's been a topic of much discussion throughout the FLash Lite community - how to get your content out there earning some money. Well Moket has decided to use its powers for good rather than evil ... creating the Moket Content Network to act as a simple distribution mechanism for content through its growing global network. If you're a developer who has some great content but no way of getting it out there, then this is for you.

It's all pre-launch phase stuff at the moment. If you're interested in finding out how to get involved, read the email invitation to developers, or just email mcn@moket.com.au to get the ball rolling. The basic MCN website launches October 18, with future features being added as the network grows.

The Gig In A Rig

Feeling really good at the moment - next week I'll be heading back into the recording studio for the first time since 2004. My wife Tanya is recording a new EP and we're laying the drum tracks down in the great 301 studio in Byron Bay which will make my part sound awesome (assuming I play ok!). But UK artist Katie Melua has set a new world record for the deepest concert performance - 303 metres under the ocean on a gas rig in the North Sea. What a trip! I've played in some cool places before but nothing like that. Closest I've come was a scaffold rig that was about 15 metres high on the stage, with the drum kit at the very top!