Week 6

General notes:

The content below might be a bit dated, but there may be some people still developing using Win XP.

Windows XP Service Pack 2 (SP2) has added additional security when viewing a web page.  By now you are getting pretty anoyed with having to acknowledge the security warnings when viewing pages that contain JavaScript or active content when previewing your work.

Here is a description of the problem and remedies:
Macromedia tech note 19578.

Add this line right at the top of your code:
<!-- saved from url=(0014)about:internet -->

However, remember to remove it before publishing to the web server.

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Here is a second solution that I found that seems to be better:

Permanently enable Internet Explorer to preview active content.

You can permanently enable Internet Explorer to view active content on local files. Doing so prevents the warning from appearing again. Note that completing this solution may allow malicious active content in files on your computer. Complete this solution only if you feel confident in your computer's security measures.

To enable Internet Explorer to preview active content:

1. Choose Tools > Internet Options in Internet Explorer.

2. Click the Advanced tab in the Internet Options dialog box, and then scroll down to the Security section.

3. Select Allow Active Content To Run In Files On My Computer.

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New problem has surfaced.  You may have now seen the "Click to activate and use this control" message on websites with embedded content in Internet Explorer.  Do a Google search on this.  Lots of hits on the topic.  Sounds like it has something to do with a patent dispute.

Here is an Adobe note on this topic. Here is an article on how to fix it.

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Demonstration how to retrieve multimedia content from a web site. (Do at your own risk).

The multitude of video/audio players has always been a problem.

• Windows Media Player
• Quicktime
• Real Player

The way most sites have gone now is to use only Flash objects.
If running an IIS server, the MIME type flv must be created in order for the server to serve up flv files.

FLV player for Windows.

How to create Flash video and add it to your website.

FlowPlayer - Flash video player for the web.

Get the previous FlowPlayer (zip) that works with these examples.

YouTube video downloader plugin for Firefox.  Get it through Firefox plugins.

YouTube Downloader (YTD) is a stand alone product.

Free YouTube Downloader is also a stand alone product.

SaveYouTube is a website that will save a YouTube file for you without needing to download software.

FlowPlayer is not needed anymore with Dreamweaver CS4.  Now to insert an flv, you can just go
Insert, Media, FLV...

Embedding

Dreamweaver allows you to embed almost anything.  You can embed flash objects, shockwave, Java, ActiveX controls, and much more.

Mitsubishi video with no player window border.
Mitsubishi video with small player window border.

Blockbuster video using FlowPlayer.

An example of some Java applets and some Flash that I embedded on a web page.

Lady Liberty is an example of a page that uses a Java applet.

Here is a cartoon site that make extensive use of flash.

Directions on how to create a playlist and stream mp3s.

Another tutorial on the same.

Lab 6

This lab is to test your knowledge of being able to add sound, embed flash, Java, etc.

Create a sub folder on your web server named "lab6".  Within "lab6" you will create a mini site.

Embed only ONE item per page.  So the mini site is going to be at least 3 pages.  Put a description on each page what you have embedded and the file size of the embedded item.

Keep video clips small as the storage on the server is limited.

This site must contain as a minimum:

• The embedding of sound (swf) (page 1)
• The embedding of Flash video (flv) (page 2)
• The embedding of a another technology of your choosing, flash, shockwave, java, or another swf or flv, etc. (page 3)

Use your imagination and creative skills. You may use advanced features if you desire.

The embedded objects MUST work in multiple browsers.  I will be testing with Internet Explorer, Firefox, Chrome, and Safari..

I want you to make you own Youtube or Vimeo video. You can do this by making a video from your smartphone or computer.  You then need to upload it to Youtube or Vimeo or other video hosting service.

Make a mini website, or integrate into your project website the video.

Make sure the video plays on all browsers (IE, Firefox, Chrome, Safari). Also check that it plays on a mobile device such as smartphones and tablets.

Assignment is due one week from when it was assigned.  50% penalty if late.