Simile Widgets is a set of open source web widgets for visualizing data & content.

They are actually a spin-off from the Simile Project & improved over time by a community of open-source developers.

Currently, it includes 4 widgets:

Timeline

Timeline is for creating an interactive display of events within a timeframe.

It can be dragged or controlled with the mouse wheel & events can be clicked to see the details.

Timeplot

Timeplot is a DHTML widget for plotting time series easily.

On mouse-overs, it can display the values interactively (it works with the same data format that Timeline supports).

Runway

Runway is a Flash-based implementation of the popular iTunes-like coverflow.

The colors, fonts, reflection & transit,in values can be configured easily. Also, it can fire events to update the web page's Javascript.

Exhibit

It is for creating web pages with advanced text search and filtering functionalities, with interactive maps, timelines, & other visualizations.

You can find more details on a previously published WRD post on Exhibit.

SlickBoard is a pretty different tool, built by the developers of XML/SWF Charts, for creating:

• unlimited graphics
• attractive interface elements (buttons, menus, tabs, drawers, etc.), animated slideshows
• live dashboards (dials, gauges, ticker tapes, etc.)
• interactive presentations (drag, dock, etc.)
• dynamic web pages
• & more..

It works by describing the output with XML & passing it to the SlickBoard's SWF file, that's all.

The tool offers unlimited output variations with the flexibility & built-in features it has (like rotating/sliding/minimizing objects, form/menu/tab controls, advanced drawing capabilities, etc.).

Grimace is a free Flash-based component for displaying emotions through facial expressions.

It is developed in pure AS3, delivered as a lightweight SWF file & supports 6 emotions: joy, surprise, fear, disgust, sadness, anger (and their combinations).

The component can be integrated into any project using Javascript, Flex, Flash IDE or pure Actionscript.

The configuration of the Grimace is accomplished through external XML-based files, which allow full customization.

Some usage ideas for the component:

• visually displaying emotions in a chat application
• using it as a password-meter (a bad password can be "shocked", good one can be "joy", etc)
• online games (status of a player)

P.S. The component is only free for personal use.

JuiceKit is an open source software development kit (SDK), which integrates with Adobe Flex, for building "information experience" applications.

The SDK includes components for controls, visualizations & utility classes that are easy to implement & aesthetically pleasing.

To better define the SDK, some of the components it has are a treemap, US Map, "copying data to the computer's clipboard" & much more..

These components can be used independently, within other applications or assembled together to create full applications.

JuiceKit is very well-documented & there are few examples provided to show the things that can be created.

JPEGCam is an open source Flash + JavaScript library that enables you to insert a custom-sized Flash movie in a webpage that captures Webcam snapshots.

After capturing the snapshots, it can submit them to any server in JPEG format (download package includes sample PHP 5 code).

The webcam is activated with the Flash movie which includes a full-canvas camera control with no flash user interface elements. User can decide when to take the snapshot & click a button to do it.

Every control for displaying the Flash device configuration panel & taking snapshots is handled from Javascript which makes:

• controlling the user interface
• using your own buttons and layout

possible.

When we hear about a Flash CMS, there is mostly a prejudice that it may not be that functional.

FlashMoto CMS is a totally different one which is quite impressive & really works for managing Flash-based websites.

With the help of a good-looking & easy-to-use interface, a website is controlled just like a standard CMS but with the extras that Flash offers.

What does it offer in a snapshot?

Using FlashMoto CMS, it is possible to:

• add unlimited number of pages, update or delete them
• manage your website menu (with sub-menus)
• create image galleries & add-remove images to them
• create forms
• upload videos & music
• insert shapes or other Flash files

The content is created using a WYSIWYG editor. There is a media library where you can upload images, video or SWF files & use them in any part of the website with a few clicks.

It has a built-in gallery component for displaying a list of images and/or videos. This feature is specially useful for designers, photographers or anyone willing to present a portfolio.

Adding a standalone background music or embedding videos from popular services like Youtube, Vimeo is also a breeze.

Similar to HTML websites, websites created with FlashMoto CMS are indexable by search engines & every page has their own URLs + titles.

It also allows you to define the Google Analytics details & statistics of the website will be tracked (every page will tracked even it is a Flash website).

Read the rest of this entry »

Flash is a highly creative medium & ActionScript 3 is a powerful language.

On the other hand, it is mostly hard to speed up when working with Flash as AS3 can be quite time-consuming & there are things to do (planning & setup of Flash movies) before you can actually get anything done.

This is where HYPE comes in.

HYPE is a creative coding framework built on top of ActionScript 3 which aims to enable Flash developers of every level to creatively play & express themselves.

The framework is extendible as it is possible to write new classes & improve it.

There are lots of examples provided at the HYPE website which are worth checking out.

Photo Booth is a tiny open source Flash application that can capture images from a webcam.

The script is built with AS3 + PHP5 and can be instantly implemented to any website.

It can be a great add-on when asking users to upload an avatar or creating a web application around photos.

To see how it works, a demo can be found here.

In order to better understand this resource, let’s describe augmented reality first. From Wikipedia:

Augmented reality (AR) is a term for a live direct or indirect view of a physical real-world environment whose elements are merged with (or augmented by) virtual computer-generated imagery – creating a mixed reality

EZFlar is an open source ActionScript library that enables you to create such a media. Or, you can use the online generator.

How it works?

It simply inserts a pre-defined media inside a "pre-defined object" in another media.

There is an online generator provided. You’ll need a webcam & a printer to test it instantly:

• Select the media to be integrated (image, video, sound, URL, etc.)
• Print a special shape provided
• Display the printed sheet while the application records you through your webcam
• It will insert the "selected media" to the place where you hold the sheet.

It may look complicated, however, you can check this video or this one to see it working.

HydraFramework is a prescriptive development framework for quickly building Flex applications at every level.

The framework’s development methodology can be totally adopted or the core classes can be used in any way you see fit in projects.

It consists several projects:

• HydraFramework Core – an implementation of MVC (otherwise known as HydraMVC)
• HydraPlugins – for quickly adding prebuilt functionality into the core
• HydraComponents – a library of components built on the HydraFramework.

The framework is well documented & presents a demo.