Book Twist

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The last time I taught 486A (fall 2010), I did iPAD compatible web design. The iPAD compatible was added because there were so many web design courses on campus that compete with 486A… to the point where I was ready to give up.

Then I went for sabbatical in fall 2011, and hence, did not have to teach it last year. For this Jan (2012), there are now a pent up interest for that course, because quite a number of students had to postpone it due to my semester-long absence. Having been back from sabbatical, I had to offer both 486A and B in the same time slot to meet the need of those who did not have a chance to do 486A last semester. Moreover, I was also forced to consider if I wanted to return to the iPAD compatibility, or offer something more.

I sort of decided on offering InDesign, knowing that the eBook market has taken off (finally after many years of false start, thanks to iPAD), and perhaps InDesign could help teachers create instructional resources for handheld devices. I still haven’t met the class yet, because last Monday was Martin Luther King Jr Day. Guess what?

Apple has decided to move to iBOOK 2, and on top of that, releasing the iBook Author. Is this uncanny, or what?

Flash no more?

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If you live somewhere on planer Earth, you probably own either an iPAD, or iPOD. And if you live in Singapore, I will bet you also owned an iPHONE! For all it’s warts and blemishes, Apple’s products sell. And when Apple throws its weight behind HTML 5, many has predicted the demise of Flash.

Today, Flash may not have died, yet, but it looks to be on its way (as many developers anticipated). Adobe has just announced it is folding Flash mobile development. On top of that, its pushing for Adobe Edge (to be released in 2012) as its new HTML 5 development platform. One major tell-tale sign is when Adobe released (without warning) a specialized tool to instantly convert Flash to HTML 5 (as an unsupported beta product), you knew something is going on behind the scene. Why was such a tool even developed in the first place? Many suspect it is for Adobe to gauge the popularity of HTML5 and how many developers would be desperate enough for such a switch (even when the product is unsupported). I am guessing the number of download is overwhelming… judging by adobe’s decision to move ahead with HTML5.

By next year, you should have switched to HTML5. Even though Adobe still want you to use Air (along with Flash Builder/Flex for non-mobile browser). But will Flash Builder eventually give way to something akin to “HTML5 Builder”? We shall see.

Gaming on the Web

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Adobe is trying to revamp Flash 11 and Air 3 to make them more web-based game friendly. This time, with WebGL API. We will see how it goes.

Meanwhile, Unity3D is chugging along, and doing very well as a multi-device development platform, running on Wii, iPad, Android and desktops (PC/Mac).

Unity3d GDKMeanwhile, I should also check out Spongelab, an interactive game-for-learning company as mentioned in this Scientific American blog.

Visualization Tools

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Found a website that boast about a “Top 10″ list of visualization tools for social media.

Visualization is a technique to graphically represent sets of data that makes it easier to read and understand. Tools for visualization exist in search, social networks, online communities, mobile apps and desktop applications.

Top 10 Visualization Tools for Social MediaAlthough there is a poll at the end of the article where readers can vote their favorite visualization tool, the highest number of voter is only 7 persons… Meh!

New Neverwinter Nights research

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Came across a few research report involving the use of NWN in a NATO related research, conducted by Rik Warren and Janet Sutton of the Air Force Research Laboratory, Behavior Modeling Branch.

Abstract: (Warren 2008). In order to investigate the performance of mixed- versus homogeneous-culture military teams, the NATO RTO Research Task Group, HFM-138/RTG on Adaptability in Multinational Coalitions conducted an experiment using a complex, but very absorbing and immersive, computer-based role-play game using a modern urban search-for-contraband scenario. Game-play required planning, resource allocation, situation awareness, communication, and coordination for successful performance. This paper briefly describes the experiment and its results prior to discussing the lessons learned in conducting the experiment. It focuses on practical methodological and logistical implications for future research on culture and teamwork using computer games in general. It also considers deeper issues in hypothesis generation, scenario and task definition, experimental design, data analysis, and results presentation and communication.