FAQ (Frequently Asked
Questions)
- What will the ISOinteractive Engine let you do?
- What is the CME?
- How can FLASH developers use the ISOinteractive
Studio?
- Will the ISOinteractive Studio work with Multi
User technologies?
- What is the difference between the Free demo CME
application and the ISOinteractive Studio?
- Does the ISOinteractive Studio or demo CME work
on a MAC?
- Can the full version of the CME Application (part
of the ISOinteractive Studio) export information in other formats
as well?
- How hard is Isometric interactive development?
- What functions do the behaviors perform?
- How do I use the Photoshop Isometric Patterns?
- Where can I get additional help?
What will the ISOinteractive Engine let
you do?
Basically it lets you find a path on a given map avoiding
“obstacles” you had set up prior to use it.
The Engine itself is the smallest portion of the product, the other
2 main components is the Collisions Map Editor (CME) and the behaviours
library.
What is the CME?
The CME (Collision Map Editor) is a program that lets you create
an isometric grid over a bitmap (max size 800x600) and block or
unblock cells on this grid to then use with a pathfinder. The CME
has two sections, one is for editing the grid and collisions and
the other is to test how the pathfinder works in your grid. The
pathfinder section is also divided in two sections, in one section
you can see the full path, debug it by showing how many cell the
A* as been looked for to reach the destination, and also display
the time it took. The second sections is to explorer the grid using
an avatar, where you will not see the path and also can’t
debug it but you can see how your final movie could look.
How can FLASH developers use the ISOinteractive
Studio?
As mentioned in the Overview section we designed ISOinteractive
Studio with both Director and Flash users in mind. We also develop
client work in many technologies and like offering what works best
for them. So we do not really push any given product only the best
solutions. That being said we like to make complicated things a
little more simple.
The ISOinteractive Studio is a full installable application and
samples to follow. You can not however use Macromedia FLASH as a
primary authoring environment. Although both Flash and Director
have there advantages, during development of the original ISOinteractive
Engine we found that the Macromedia Director has much more extensible
and powerful engine for what we are accomplishing.
ISOinteractive Studio is to be used with Macromedia Director, however
Flash components can be used with in Macromedia Director and with
the new Director 2004, learning a slightly different but similar
interface it only a minor learning curve.
When we say a minor learning curve we are referring to the ability
to under stand the basics of Macromedia Director and not the advanced
functionality.
NOTE: A 30 day full trial of Macromedia Director MX 2004 can be
downloaded at the Macromedia website.
Will the ISOinteractive Studio work with
Multi User technologies?
Sure, why not. If it is in Director anything can be set up in a
Multi User environment. You can use Shockwave Multi-User Server,
Nubulae Multiuser Server, FUSELight, Flash Communication Server
(and others), however we do not as of yet provide documentation
to do so.
NOTE: For adding shockwave multi user connections to your projects
you can go to www.shockwaveserver.com
What is the difference between the Free
demo CME application and the ISOinteractive Studio?
Big difference. The Free demo CME (Collision Map Editor) will only
show you a how the ISOinteractive Engine works in an authoring environment.
I will show how to create and draw walls and see how avatars would
move. It also traces paths so you can test items you create. This
will give you a better understanding on how to create such isometric
environments.
The Free demo CME does not include the ability to export items,
or save out projects. It also does not include the Director examples
or the ISOinteractive engine. So it is just what is states, a stand
alone demo.
On the other hand the ISOinteractive Studio has all functions to
save, export items for use in other programs such as Macromedia
Director. The ISOinteractive Engine comes with it and can be unlocked
and used as a LDM. The application evens installs a set of behaviors
to easily use the ISOinteractive Engine.
Does the ISOinteractive Studio or demo
CME work on a MAC?
No and yes, currently the CME application does not work on the MAC,
however the out put of the CME will. Majority or the users will
export the project as a .CST file (Director External Cast). This
.CST file as well as ISOinteractive behaviors and most importantly
the ISOinteractive Engine are cross platform.
In short, if you are using a MAC you should port the files needed
from a PC (most likely the .CST file) before continuing the development
of an isometric project. The Engine and Behaviors can be simply
copied over to the MAC with out issues.
We are currently in the process of developing a MAC OSX version,
however there is not set date it will be ready for release.
Can the full version of the CME Application
(part of the ISOinteractive Studio) export information in other
formats as well?
Yes, to mention a few:
- There are image export commands to show comps. This is extremely
important to help visualize how to design the isometric world
and which size tiles to use and not to mention help with client
approval during project development.
- Exports as an .iip (ISOinteractive Project) file which is the
entire project saved for later use.
- Exports the map as a .TXT file. This map then can be use for
custom applications other than Macromedia Director.
How hard is Isometric interactive development?
Well this is a very open ended question but in the past isometric
development for games and communications has been a major hurl.
Doing it the long way you would have to predetermine the size or
the area before you can start mapping out the grids to walk on.
Even then this still does not include creating the Engine or AI
that determines where and how the avatar walks or travels from point
“A” to point “B” through a generated path.
Also most of the algorithms are based on a specific shape like a
diamond. This is not the case for ours. It is designed for ANY shaped
background.
So in short, where in the past it was difficult to create a even
more difficult to manage, with the ISOinteractive Studio it is extremely
easy to do both. In fact you can even save out the project to modify
at a later date.
What functions do the behaviors perform?
The behaviours were designed to let the user set up the engine (LDM)
and the avatars to work properly with the engine. There are also
other behaviours to display some information about the avatar and
to set up the loc-Z of sprites.
How do I use the Photoshop Isometric Patterns?
This patterns library was created to help in the process of drawing
the background image of your movie. Once you have decided the size
of your room (in pixels) you can create an image and apply a pattern
over it to see where to place objects in a way they fits on cells
(or tiles).
For example:
If you place an object in this position:
You might need to block 4 cells to avoid it with the pathfinder:
But you could just move a little (if possible) the object to better
fits on the cells and use only one cell:
 
You can use the option “Export Grid Image” from the
CME to help on this process too.
Where can I get additional help?
We set up a product forum under the support area of the website.
The developers of the products monitor and answer all questions.
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