I often heard disappointment and despair in regards to creating a website entirely based in Adobe Flash CS3.  One of the strongest opposition points to such a website were based on the inability to bookmark specific "locations" within such a Flash site. So i set out to figure out how to wipe away that stigma.

When it was all said and done, it was quite easy... it just took some intense pre-planning. The premise is simple:

• Import a sitemap
• Import any content relative to the pages
• Use Flash to DOM calls to control URL management
• Redirect incoming URLs to correct Flash content

As for the code and the specifics, I can't yet convince myself to pass it out to the masses. If you are nice and would like to ask for it, though, I may be willing to trade :)

For an example of Flash Bookmarking in action, visit the new Red Red Design studio website portfolio.

... so says a recent press release sent out by Ashland University...

"This year’s card featuring an interactive tour of ornaments adorning a Christmas tree was designed by Red Red Design’s Steve Knowlton, a 2007 AU graduate. “He’s a very bright, talented designer,” Box said."

Read the whole article here:
Ashland University Ecard Press Release

This year Christmas cards are huge for us.  After having to turn so many people away last year, we got on the ball this year and started making cards this summer.  Honestly, I am having a great time with all of this.  All of the cards are published out of Macromedia Flash CS3, but are published back a few versions so that the maximum amount of people are able to get ahold of these cards and view them.

We did two options this year, allowing people to purchase either the custom cards or the "personalizable" cards. The custom ones are built from the ground up, such as the 2007 Ashland University card, the 2007 EMI Music Publishing card, and the 2007 Student Loans Express card. Over previous years, we have also made the 2004 Ashland University card, which has over 7 MILLION VIEWS, and is getting about 500,000 hits a day right now.  Last year we sent out our 2006 Red Red Design card, and that is still going crazy on the hits.

The personalizable cards allow users to submit a message, greeting, logo and links that we incorporate into the card.  No, this is better than a Hallmark eCard, and we have put many hours in here to make them look very good.  Check them out here:

2007 - Bermuda Hospital

2007 - Allegany College

2007 - Nyack College of NYC

So after pounding my head against so many walls, embedding everything I could, and reading through the entire internet, I finally figured out why my Actionscript 3 components wouldn't work.  Turns out that little bugger of a wmode messed things up again. Apparently if the Flash is embedded in an HTML page with wmode set to transparent, it just decides to not show components.

Now before you scold me for using "wmode=transparent", I want to let you know that I was actually doing it for a real reason, which I may tell you either when I figure out how to do it otherwise or when you are on your deathbed.

I guess this means no radio buttons mysteriously overlapping HTML content.  Oh bother.

Ok, so I admit that some may find this entirely geeky, but my latest personal knowledge pursuit is endeavoring to merge typo3 and Flash.  Before I get too excited, let me fill you in on what that exactly means.

Typo3 is a content management system, and a rockin one at that.  A fellow in Europe, let's call King Kasper, sat down and wrote this unbelievable CMS.  Now I cannot claim that the coding he did was revolutionary, but the organization and structure of the system is really off the charts.  On, and Flash is what make those little games and banners on the internet.

SO a while ago, in the midst of my independent studies in university, I got bored and started mixing the two.  The real benefit to doing this is that flash looks sweet for interactive and motion websites, but it is not really very cool when it comes to updating content, especially if you are the customer.  Now I am in the midst of using Kasper's typo3 backend to organize content and generate XML feeds for site content.

THIS MEANS that I will soon be able to crank out sites that have very dynamic structure while still maintaining the super sweetness of flash interactivity.  TO see the start of the efforts, head on over to Red Red Design to see it in it's ever increasing Typo3+Flash greatness.

TTFN my BFF
Sir Knowlton