The geeks over at Automata Studios are this week’s guest on Adobe XD’s INSPIRE. Today's post is all about the challenges surrounding creating occasionally connected applications.

Check it out!

The geeks over at Automata Studios are this week's guest on Adobe XD's INSPIRE.  Today's post is from Branden, who writes all about the challenges of creating the Skit-Based pranks for the recently released jackassworld pranks application.

Check out the article at INSPIRE!

Starting next week, Branden and Keenan will be writing guest posts for INSPIRE, a publication from the Adobe Experience Design Team.  Specifically, we will be writing about the recently released jackassworld pranks application that we helped develop.  We will touch on the technical and non-technical challenges of developing the casual social game, as well as our ideas for the social gaming platform.

Be sure to head over to INSPIRE and check out the great content they have, and definitely check it out next week when we'll be featured!

Topics:

• Communicating between AIR applications and external SWFs
• Overview of the "fecal dynamics" engine - taking PNGs + sound effects + pixel bender and creating something really gross!
• The struggles of creating a truly occasionally connected application
• Using JSFL and custom components to create custom developer tools (we created a custom set of tools for creating the ragdolls used in the skit-based pranks)
• AIR, Flex, & FacebookConnect: How to authenticate your desktop application with Facebook using FacebookConnect

It's Out In The Open!!

For the better part of 10 months, Automata Studios has been working with Adobe's XD Team and MTV's Jackass to develop a casual social game using the Flash platform.  The application is called "jackassworld pranks" and is an AIR application that allows you to send rather juvenile pranks to your friends.  Here's a quote from jackassworld.com:

"...with a flick of your cursor you can toss poo grenades, pee balloons, and bags of puke at your dumb little buddies. You can have Dave England take a dump in the middle of their spreadsheet or Powerpoint presentation, send Party Boy over to bump and grind it out, or let Steve-O unleash an undigested beast—all right on their computer screen. And just wait until you see the fecal dynamics."

The Requirements:

Windows

• Intel® Pentium® 4 processor or faster
• Microsoft® Windows® XP with Service Pack 2 (Service Pack 3 recommended) or Windows® Vista Home Premium, Business or Ultimate
• 1 GB RAM
• 50 MB of available hard disk space
• 1024 x 768 display (1280 x 800 recommended)
• Internet connection required for installation and online services

Mac OS

• Power PC® G5 or multicore Intel® processor
• Mac OSX v10.4.11-10.5.4
• 1 GB RAM
• 50 MB of available hard disk space
• 1024 x 768 display (1280 x 800 recommended)
• Internet connection required for installation and online services

Check out the app here.

In the coming days and weeks, we will post several articles and blurbs about our experience developing the application, as well as the technical challenges we faced (they were numerous).  We'll also be doing a guest spot on Adobe's XD Inspire Blog next week, so check us out over there.

For now, enjoy the app.  It's time for me to take a vacation!

Branden will both be speaking at the free Flash conference LAFlashapaloozastock III in Venice Beach, CA on December 6, 2008.

To help keep the event free Branden will also be teaching a very cool course of his own titled "Creating Killer ActionScript Robots For Fun & Profit" on December 4th and 5th. It's going to be a two day romp through ActionScript 3 learning advanced programming techniques in order to make software robots with which the students will do battle! The course is $499 per student. If you're interested click the course title to find out more.

Branden will be giving his talk on "Brilliant Ideas that I've Blatently Stolen" at Flash on the Beach which runs from September 28 - October 1. Branden will be speaking on Monday, September 29 so if you are there, be sure to catch his session!

Automata Studios is proud to announce the hiring of Maureen Farrington (that's me!), project manager extrordinaire.  Branden likes to add the title "Producer" to describe my position since my job will consist of "making things happen" as I ease into actual code-producing duties.

This is my first foray back into world of hardcore IT after spending three years working in higher education for a local university.  Prior to that I worked for a colocation facility, hence the homecoming for me.  I'm especially excited to be at a place where interesting ideas are valued over maintaining the status quo.

Branden and Keenan do simply amazing work here, and I have learned something new each day I've been here for the last two weeks.  I am looking forward to contributing all I can to Automata.

Oh, and now that I'm here, this site is going to be updated more frequently.

The slides from Branden's presentation at FITC Hollywood 2007, Flash on the Beach 2007, and FITC Winnipeg 2007 - "The Nooks and Crannies of ActionScript 3" are now available for download. Enjoy - and if you have any questions or comments drop us a line.

• The Nooks and Crannies of ActionScript 3

Branden will be speaking this weekend at The FITC Road Show - Winnepeg 2007. This will be Branden's first time in Winnepeg and he's hoping to not lose any vital body parts to frostbite!

The notes from his talk "The Nooks and Crannies of ActionScript 3" will be available on the site soon.

Welcome to the new home of Automata Studios, we're glad to have you here.

Take a minute to browse around and check out some of the new features. We have some code examples and upcoming speaking gigs in the sandbox for you to play with, and for an aggregate list of our content, and a great place to pull an RSS feed some, check out our testing ground, Automata Labs.