I’m pleased to release the latest version of the Ajax Animator, 0.2. This version has been a complete rewrite of the application down to it’s core, not a single like of code copied from the old (0.14.7) release. It also happens to be the most advanced and complete release to date, with full multi-layer support, a greatly expanded toolbox, complete undo history, a shared clip-art library, a completely redesigned UI, and much more.

Lets start from when you open the app. The application speed has greatly improved, the 0.14.7 release takes ~9.5 seconds to load, 0.2 takes a mere 4.5 seconds, more than half the time. On the top toolbar, the buttons are relocated and restylized. Over at the file button, you see everything has new gorgeous icons intuitively organizing the New, Open, and Save options, where you can use the powerful new JSON based file format. Below that, you see a new Publish menu, where you can export to several formats like Adobe Flash, Processing (language), Microsoft Silverlight (XAML), and Animated GIFs.

Skipping over to the View meu, you see that there are 17 different UI themes to choose from. An unprescedented degree of customizability. And over at the Help menu, there is more useful content. A working FAQ, helpful Tip Of the Day, About page, and a list of keyboard shortcuts.

Of course the most important and powerful change in this version is the inclusion of the OnlyPaths editor. A new, powerful Vector graphics editor. The new editor allows you to draw not only the standard rectangles, ellipses, and lines, but also Text, Polygons, Freeform Paths, Images and more. You can now Rotate, Resize, and move shapes around.

The Timeline has also been reworked. The new archetecture allows the deletion of layers, expansion of tweens, and more. The Tweening engine is vastly superior, with much fewer bugs than the old one, though the new one certainly does much more and gets much more room to screw up.

A new Animations tab allows you to view and improve on public animations them. A new Properties panel allows you to adjust the canvas size and animation framerate along with the text content and image URL.

Its available here, at http://antimatter15.110mb.com/ajaxanimator/build/

Okay, sorta a weird name for a release right? Beta and Release Canidate? Well, its Web 2.0/Ajax so really, anything can happen. I sure hope this doesn’t spark an onsalought of Stable Beta RC1 Pre-Alpha Unstable Full releases.

But… yeah. Tonight I added two very important features stemming from Properties.

the first is properties itself (duh). It allows you to change canvas Width, Height, and the animation framerate. Stemming from this, is the new feature in the Ajax Animator Format (ALEON, AXON, AXION, AJSON, AXFF, AFF or whatever you want to call it), you guessed it: Width/Height. Oh crap. I just remembered that it doesn’t support framerate yet. CRAP! oh. hmm. i’ll just post it anyway and continue from here when I get that feature done.