How far into your own digital navel can you gaze

"How far into your own digital navel can you gaze?"

"Each of us populates a personal tech-bubble of one. Solo-tech-travelers often are unaware that others occupy the same dimensions as them -- that's why they often bump into others, in their cars or on foot."

D. Pravaz from the Seattle Post writes about how personal technology is isolating us from the rest of the world, instead of bringing us closer together like the adverts say they do ... you didn't believe what T-mobile said did you???

The article is both entertaining and thought-provoking. If you are obsessed with your iPod, PDA and camera phone(s) take a look in Pravaz'z mirror.

Testing Post and ReadURL

Testing Post and ReadURL

I needed to test some cfm calls, so I built a little tool

Whilst working with Cold Fusion and Authorware this week I discovered the need of a simple tool to test calls to cfm pages. I also realised that this same tool could be useful for ASP, php and any other TLA server-side-scripting page.

So anyway, I built a simple tool that can be placed on your web server and used to test your calls to the database or whatever without having to build your full Authorware application. I posted the tool on my Downloads page

http://www.tomorrows-key.com/downloads.asp

It's (at the time of writing) the first question:-

---

Q. How can I easily test my calls to Cold Fusion, ASP, PHP or any other web pages that enable communications between Authorware and a server and/or database over the web?

A. I built this test application that lets you quickly test PostURL and ReadURL code in Authorware (Post and Get in HTML form terms). It displays the pure text of the return from the server, so if the server returns HTML or XML or plain text, you see the exact contents of the return without any formatting.

---

Use this page to send any comments or feedback you have about the tool. Remember, it's free and as-is, so I make no promises of perfection, but I will make changes based on feedback to fix bugs or make improvements ... time permitting of course!

You could always make changes yourself and send them back to me too :-)

Cold Fusion and Authorware PostURL

Cold Fusion and Authorware PostURL

I discovered today that Cold Fusion pages act strangely with Authorware and PostURL if no parameters are sent

I have been working with a client over the last couple of weeks, setting up a simple tracking system using Cold Fusion pages to handle the communication between the database and Authorware.

We hit an odd situation where one specific call to one specific .cfm page failed to return anything to Authorware, and instead opened a new web page containing the expected return.

After a bit of digging about I discovered that the cause of the problem was that this particular call sent no parameters to the cfm page, yet was still using PostURL. I had set up a function in Authorware that used PostURL for all the database calls, and for security and consistency I did not want to change that.

The ultimate workaround was to send the following parameter when none were actually required

true=true

So the final call to the cfm page became something like

result:=PostUrl(NetLocation^"call.cfm", "true=true", 5)

Scrolling RTF with hyperlinks

Have you ever tried to use scrolling RTF files with hyperinks?

Did you find that the RTF KO did not work as expected?

While teaching an Authorware class recently, one of my students pointed out that she had been unable to get the Insert RTF Object Hot Text Interaction to work correcly with scrolling RTF text. She asked if it were possible to get this to work using RTFObj.u32 functions.

After a little head scratching I came up with some working code that seems to do what she needed. You can try it out by downloading it from my web site

http://www.tomorrows-key.com/downloads.asp

Look for the question Q. How can I use RTFObj.u32 with scrolling rtf pages that contain hyperlinks?

Recorded Breeze presentations

Macromedia has released a number of recorded Breeze presentations

Something for everyone in this bundle of presentations

If you have never seen Breeze in action, you should take the time to look at at least one of the following presentations. Of course, you should look at them anyway if you want to get to know more about Macromedia's products.

Please note these are recordings of live presentations, lasting about an hour
each. Some of the presentations take a minute or two to get up and running.

1. Shape Tweening in Flash MX 2004


2. Cold Fusion 7


3. Cold Fusion Forms


4. Creating Raster Effects in Freehand


5. Fireworks Best Practices


6. Introducing the Flash Player Detection Kit


7. Troubleshooting FTP issues in Dreamweaver

Cold Fusion MX 7

Macromedia has released Cold Fusion MX 7

And it's the ost customer-driven version yet

Unlike most other Beta cycles, Macromedia has been pretty public with the development of Cold Fusion 7. It seems like for months, everywhere I have turned I have seen Macromedia talking about the next release of Cold Fusion, showing what they are developing with it, and getting customer feedback before the product was completed and released.

Check out the Cold Fusion 7 Product Page.

And the Cold Fusion Developers Center has links to getting-started tutorials and loads more great information.

Even the bar prices are a gamble

Here in Gulfport there are a number of Casinos

Last night we discovered even the bar prices are a gamble

Round 1, 3 drinks: Screwdriver, Bacardi and Coke, Heiniken, $4.75
Round 2, 2 drinks: Bacardi and Coke, Heiniken, $8.50
Round 3, 2 drinks: Screwdriver, Heiniken, $4.75
Round 4, 1 drink: Heiniken, $FREE!!!

I guess that's one way to get you to go to a casino more often :+)

Stress relief

Stress relief

Can you resist this?

Feeling stressed? See if you can resist coming back to this more than once in the next week ...

Controlling Flash sound

Control the sound in Flash files embedded in Authorware

Someone was asking recently on teh Macromedia forums ...

... about controlling the sound in a Flash file embedded in Authorware. I noticed that Joshua Burkholder has a sample posted on his website that controls the Flash sound volume:-

http://www.geocities.com/joshuaburkholder/


You should check his examples out for some other cool code snippets too.

Opening a running Authorware file

Have you ever saved your Authorware file running?

Isn't it annoying trying to troubleshoot a file that automatically launches itself?

There are two ways to prevent your Authorware file from automatically launching when you open it in the Authorware editor.

The first, and best known, is to locate the .rec file for the Authorware file and delete it. Before Authorware 7 you would find this in

C:\WINDOWS\AnW_DATA

Where n is the Authorware version number,3, 4, 5 or 6.

Authorware 7 uses the current user's profile directory, so on Windows XP you should find it here

C:\Documents and Settings\{UserName}\Application Data\Macromedia\Authorware 7\A7W_DATA

where {UserName} is the current logged-on user's logon ID.

But there is a simpler way. When you launch the file hold down the left mouse button. Thanks to Jamil Zainasheff from Macromedia for sharing that gem on the Aware List.

LMS testing

Local testing of LMS features with Authorware 7

Did you know Authorware 7 comes with an LMS emulator?

Use the LMS Emulator in conjunction with the LMS KOs, and access it through the Commands menu

Commands > LMS > Emulator

You see this dialogue:-



The opening screen points out, the emulator is a simulation of an LMS, not a full LMS. It uses the AICC-LAN protocol, and stores data in a local text file. Note that you can save time with the next step by loading values from a pre-defined default text file.



You can simulate your users' details and Lesson Location, Lesson Status, Score, Time and Lesson Data. These are the most fundamental fields utilised when tracking in an LMS.



When you are done setting up you can save your current settings to a default file, which can later be loaded back in via the Introduction screen shown above.

For full details on how to use this, see the technote Creating AICC and SCORM-Compliant Content with Authorware 7 on Macromedia's web site. The technote is written by Andrew Chemey who created the LMS KOs and the LMS Emulator.

Incidentally, if you like the free LMS KOs that come with Authorware 7, but find that they do not give you everything you need, you should consider purchasing the professional version of the KOs from AEC Consulting.

Memphis = rain

Memphis = rain

I went to Memphis today and all I saw was ...

rain, the inside of Burger King and the inside of the INS office.

As part of my goal of permanent residence and citizenship - make that duel British/US citizenship - I had to go to Memphis to get my fingerprints taken. 12 hours of driving for 10 minutes in the fingerprint lab .

So I can add Memphis to my list of US cities visited, but I don;t think it counts since I didn't get to visit Graceland or even Elvis Presley Boulevard.

Incidentally, apparently Elvis just racked up his 21st number 1 hit in the UK. And his third this year!

Controlling Captivate Movies

Controlling Captivate Movies

Jim Leichliter just posted the information we have all been waiting for ...

... on the Macromedia Authorware forum. I must confess that if I had taken the time to explore a Captivate movie I could have discivered this already, but ... well Jim is obviously a better man than I.

Here's what he had to say:-

In Authorware using the syntax:

CallSprite(@gotMovie, #GetVariable, "_root.rdinfoCurrentSlide")

Where "_root." can be prefixed to these listed variables:

rdinfoFrameCount
rdinfoSlidesInProject
rdinfoFPS
rdinfocurrFrame
rdinfoCurrentFrame
rdinfoCurrentSlide
rdinfoCurrentSlideInProject
rdinfoSlideCount
rdIsMainMovie
________________________
rdcmndGotoFrame
rdcmndResume
rdcmndPause
rdcmndPrevious
rdcmndNext
rdcmndRewindAndStop
rdcmndRewindAndPlay
rdcmndGotoFrameAndResume
rdcmndNextSlide
rdcmndInfo
rdcmndExit

The rdcmnd can control the Captivate movie by using the SetVariable syntax and providing a 1 (true) or 0 (false). For Example:-

CallSprite(@gotMovie, #SetVariable, "_root.rdcmdResume", 1)

will resume the Captivate movie after it has been paused.

Nice one Jim!!

Cognitive Impairment

Cognitive Impairment

We often talk about accessability for the disabled, like section 508 requirements, but what about cognitive impairment

I found a link to this article on cognitive impairment while poking around looking for something else - as you do.

It gives clear descriptions of the sorts of learning and comprehension difficulties you might encounter, and ways to make it easier for your users to absorb and understand your content. The methods described, and the code samples given, apply purely to web pages, as they are all HTML, CSS or JavaScript solutions, but we can easily apply the ideas and suggestions to our work in any tool.

This is one instance where I would like to reiterate my desire for the ability to control the look and feel of text in Authorware at runtime. Whilst we could fake the text changes suggested, it would be a lot of work. It would be great to be able to use code to dynamically highlight and/or underline text. In fact, if we were able to do this we might be able to modify some of the JavaScrip code tips supplied in the article above.

More on Authorware and XP SP2

More on Authorware and XP SP2

Get rid of the block on running local Authorware and other ActiveX controls

By now you should have read my other tips about running Authorware 7 web-packaged files locally. This one shouild help get rid of any lingering blocks on running files locally.

By default Internet Explorer in XP SP2 blocks all locally stored ActiveX controls and maybe some other stuff I don;t know about. This effects developers because we often need to test our work locally, and it kills things like Flash and Authorware. Actually it does not block them, but you do have to mess about with the little drop-down panel that appears at the top of the Explorer window as shown here.



If you don't want to see this any more, go to Tools > Internet Options and select the Advanced tab. Scroll down the dialogue until you see the option "Allow active content to run in files on My Computer". Make sure it is checked.

Oh I am in heaven!

Oh I am in heaven!

Finally, a decent Indian restaurant!!!!!

I have lived here in Mississippi since May 31st last year. 8 months. There are NO Indian restaurants here in Gulfport, or anywhere else on the Mississippi Gulf Coast so far as we have been able to discover. I am British. I am addicted to Vindaloo. I love Mexican food, but the Mexican restaurants here do not understand about HOT food, so it does not fill my craving. Can you imagine? 8 months without a decent curry.

OK OK I admit it, we found a great Indian restaurant in Pheonix when we were there on honeymoon, but still, it's been 5 months since then.

By the way, when I say HOT I mean that first mouthful causes your heart to jump in fear! Gimme a good Indian Vindaloo and I am a happy (if slightly sweaty) man :-).

So on Saturday Amy and I went to New Orleans (N'orl'ns to the locals) with friends to see HOTEL RWANDA, a very moving film in my humble opinion. It is terrible the way the world ignored the plight of so many innocents in Rwanda until it was too late. But enough of that, go elsewhere if you want political discussion or an in-depth film critique ...

After the movie we went for dinner. We had pre-planned to locate either Cuban or Indian food, having decided to find something 'foreign' that most of us had not eaten before. You can imagine (if you are British) how heartbroken I was (n't) to discover that the decision was for us to seek out Indian food.

We found a restaurant reasonably close to the theater (cinema to us Brits) called, with outcredible originality, The Taj Mahal. Anyway, the important bit was that it was a small restaurant (by local standards) with great food, great atmosphere, and 4 very happy customers.

Next time we go there I'll have to have a word with them about their "very hot" vindaloo though. I didn't even break sweat, let alone endure even a single moment of fear! Soon .... !!!!

Running Authorware locally

More on running an Authorware file locally

Authorware Web Player files prompt a message when played back locally

According to Macromedia Technote number 19503 Windows XP SP2 can cause local playback of Authorware web-packaged content to give this error message

"Enable active content

Enabling active content on your Local Machine may harm your computer. Do you want to continue?"

The technote explains how best to avoid the error message and allow your content to run. I'll add some more tips to help you run local content later.

eLearning Design Challenge

Ron Lubensky has posted the latest eLearning design challenge

There is a severe drought. Strict domestic water usage restrictions are in place.

This is the fourth such challenge Ron has posted in recent months. They have inspired some lively debate and I am sure this latest challenge will do the same.

Discuss how you and others would approach this challenge on Ron's site eLearning Design Challenge #4.

Useful Windows XP tips

Windows XP tips, tricks, tweaks and tools

My wife found this great tip site for Windows XP

"Index of Windows XP Tips

Repository of XP Shell, User Interface tips, extensive troubleshooting guides and utilities for home users, IT Professionals, helpdesk / onsite support technicians. Most of the resources here deal with the Windows registry."

I notice the home page of this site has even more tips. Well worth looking at if you have trouble with your machine, and definitely worth looking at if you like to tinker under the bonnet (that's under the hood for you American folks).

Here's one cool example of the things available - ToolbarCop. This is a utility you can install to help get rid of all those helpful annoying toolbars and 'extensions' that your nephew has installed while you were mowing the lawn.

"ToolbarCop is a browser extensions manager which can disable or eliminate the following browser add-ons selectively from Internet Explorer:

• Unwanted Browser Helper Objects (BHO)
• Toolbars (Tool Band)
• Standard Toolbar buttons
• Context menu Extensions
• Third-party download managers &
• Third-party Protocol Handlers and their residual entries remaining in the registry.
• Horizontal / Vertical Explorer Bars (side-search bars)
• Startup applications originating from RUN registry keys."

Authorware 7 books

Where are all the Authorware 7 books?

Good question - let's take a look at what's on offer

First, there is the manual that comes with Authorware. It's OK, but you should treat it as a reference book. It contains exactly the same information that is in the Help files, so it's mostly of use if you want to browse or if you prefer to use a book.

Secondly, Joseph Ganci, of Dazzletech has written some excellent Authorware manuals and training courses over the years. You can purchase courses from the Dazzletech web site. The scripting courses cover Authorware versions from 5.2 to 7.0, so you will find more than enough information to make you a skilled Authorware developer.

Shameless Plug Dazzletch is again presenting excellent training courses at EuroTAAC this year.

Finally, perhaps you want to add some additional scripting power to Authoware 7. You can with JavaScript. Maybe you already know it well having done other web development. Maybe you are a Flash > Authorware convert and you just cannot get out of the ActionScript mentality. Maybe you just prefer object-based code ... Whatever, JavaScript in Authorware 7 is a powerful new addition, and you may need help getting it to work for you. Ron Lubensky (did I mention he is a God?) has a great JavaScript Quick Reference for Authorware...

"Instead of having browser objects like document, window and navigator, JavaScript for Authorware has its own Authorware Object Model that relates to its icons. This quick reference is a Command that you can display while you author. Use it to learn and remind yourself about syntax and object usage. It is presented as an Explorer-style tree. There is even an option to install it into your Authorware 7.0 script editor snippets"


So far that is really it for Authorware 7 books. Maybe when we get Authorware 8 there will be some new books. Anyone willing to sponsor me and Amy to write one? ;-)