Is Animate the Adobe Successor to Flash for Interactive Media?

[rickster56]

Adobe has now formally stated that it will no longer support Flash.  We have used Flash for interactive medical projects for years but now we want to be prepared for the coming trend.  Is Animate the Adobe successor to Flash for Interactive Media?

This is a fundamental question for developers whose time is valuable and advice in choosing a new platform would be of great importance.

If Animate CC is not, what product, community members, should we expect?

Richard

https://blogs.adobe.com/conversations/2017/07/adobe-flash-update.html

[ClayUUID]

Animate is literally just Flash with a new name. I guess you could consider it the successor to itself, if you feel the need to declare a successor.

And stop spamming multiple threads with the same question.

[rickster56]

I know that Animate is Adobe's product as the new Flash, but I was asking what might be right for interactive media, not animation.

I am not a frequent user of the forums but I was unaware that when the comments asks for tags that it was going to other boards.  Spamming was not my intention.  Sorry.

[rezun8]

depends on what kinda of interactive media your in need of.

Website?

Kiosk?

Banner Ad?

CD/DVD?

App?

[mark@headTrix · Accepted solution]

Animate CC works great for Interactive Projects. You can create all the artwork, interface, in Animate or import graphics from Photoshop or another app. You can create buttons, and program them with Actionscript or Javascript depending on your export settings.

So although its a great and powerful platform, not at easy solution for a beginner. Another easier option sort of based on Flash (Animate) is Adobe Captivate. It is an eLearning tool based on slides, and very easy to import or create buttons and artwork, and simple point and click programming. And it exports to SWF or HTML5 just like Animate does.

and as you get fancier, you can import animations or art from Animate into Adobe Captivate.

hope that helps!
mark

[Colin Holgate]

Having the name Animate does confuse things and makes it seems like it just took on the animation parts of Flash Pro. But no, it's the same thing. Almost anything you could have made in Flash Pro can be made in Animate.

[deans67202452]

When they say 'Flash' they mean Actionscript and the standalone player/plugin for browsers. This is what the vast majority of people understand Flash to be. Yes this will be discontinued and it will be replaced by a few things, mostly HTML5.

[Colin Holgate]

Only the plugin will end. ActionScript, SWFs, the standalone player, will all live on.

[deans67202452]

Oh they are keeping it? Weird. Would be easier for everyone if they decreased the bloat and cut it loose.

[ClayUUID]

Explain how it would be easier for "everyone". If you're a developer all you have to do is ignore it.

SWFs are still used for iPhone/Android apps and console/PC game UIs, so it's far from dead. It's just going away in the browser because "Graahhh Flash bad!" arm-waving.

[rickster56]

LOL  Clay, this was hilarious to read!  I am a huge Frankenstein's Monster fan. (Smoke, goood, fire, baaad.) ha ha

Thanks!

[deans67202452]

I guess because it is a dead end, it's not best practice to not use it, it's a bloated resource hog, it's not cross platform and no one in their right mind would learn it now.

They ended AS2 without little warning or fanfare, they could do the same with AS3 and the world would keep turning.

[ClayUUID]

Actually Flash player still supports AS2 perfectly well, and you can even still develop with it using CS6/CS5/CS4. So it hasn't been "ended" in any practical sense.

[rickster56]

Thank you, Mark.

We do use Captivate for quizzes and use Animate with modules that have many elements like point and click for a description as a learning tool in cardiac anatomy.

Learning the new features of Captivate has been difficult because many courses are for beginners and we are inetermediates but the versions come into play as well.  Many resources are still with Captivate 8.  That is the problem with new versions.  Everyone is trying to catch up to the technology.

Thank you for your post!

[Colin Holgate]

As far as I'm aware Captivate uses Flash Player to play back its documents. So, Captivate may not be the best alternative to cope with the day when Flash Plugin isn't around.

[mark@headTrix]

Captivate was based on the Flash plug-in, yes.... and you can still export to SWF. However, it also export to HTML5.

[Colin Holgate]

Great, thanks for the tip. I need to check with the Adobe Connect team too, that also uses Flash Player!