Adobe Air Collada-Papervision3D Viewer

Posted on May 23rd, 2008 by Mike Lively.
Categories: Open-source.

I wrote this application so I could compare Collada and Object files and make active changes and view those changes on the fly. You might find it useful…

YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=laaeZroISpo
Source Code: http://code.google.com/p/flex3cookbook1/downloads/list (download ColladaViewer.zip)

Best,
Mike Lively (give and you will freely receive)
The YouTube video notes are below:

Adobe Air Collada-Papervision3D Viewer

Source Code:

http://code.google.com/p/flex3cookbook1

www.youtube.com/mikenku

Adobe Air: (Getting Started) Embedding a Browser into Flex 3

Beginning Adobe AIR: Building Applications for the Adobe Integrated Runtime
by Rich Tretola (Author)

Adobe AIR: Create - Modify - Reuse by Marc Leuchner (Author), Todd Anderson (Author), Matt Wright (Author)

Text Editor, RSS Reader, Music Player, MiniCMS, Image Viewer and Editor, HTML and CSS Editor, Weather Widget, Map Application, Blogger Agent, Slideshow Maker, AIR Video Player

Code:

www.wrox.com/dynamic/books/download.aspx

Molecule Builder + Text Editor

+ Simple Collada Load

http://papervision2.com/loading-complex-models/


1 comment.

Training Curriculum for a Newer and Better POD

Posted on May 14th, 2008 by Mike Lively.
Categories: Globaizing Education, What's Up at NKU.

Our IT is taking over the POD (our faculty training and development facility). They asked me to outline a training curriculum. Here it is below:

Hi —-,
Here is the training curriculum you requested.Training Curriculum for a Newer and Better POD
Becoming fluid in digital media really only requires learning a handful of technologies. With just a little bit of expense and labor, the POD could become a premier training facility.

Here are the key software packages and costs:

Adobe Flex 3 (Web page and Course Management Software) – free
Adobe Air (Desktop Application Software) – free (included in Flex 3)
Audacity (audio recording software) - free
Gimp (image processing software) - free
WizIQ (live communications software) – free
Filezilla (file upload software) - free
Pinnacle (video processing software) – $49.99 a copy
Snagit/Camtasia Bundle (image capture and video capture software) - $199

Training courses can be associated with each software package:

Flex 3 (Flex Basics - 1, 2, 3, 4, Papervision3D - 1, 2)

Adobe Air (Creating a Desktop Application - 1 (RSS FEED), 2 (BLOG))

WizIQ (Live Communications – 1 (Web), 2 (Homegrown))

Filezilla (Uploading to the web)

Audacity (Making a Mp3, Creating Podcasts)

Gimp (Gimp Basics - 1, 2, Building a webpage interface with Gimp)

Pinnacle (Video Processing 1 (Capturing and Processing) & 2 (Effects and Formats))

Snagit (Images Capturing and Effects, Snagit and Gimp)

Camtasia (Video Capture Basics - 1, 2, Creating a Video Lecture, Vodcast)

In addition courses should be taught on: Open Source Solutions, Servers (inexpensive solutions)

Most of these tutorials I have already put on YouTube (www.youtube.com/mikenku), and creating a virtual training site along with the courses would be a real plus.

If you need anything else, don’t hesitate to email.

Best Regards - Mike

0 comments.

Papervision3d Tutorials in Flex 3

Posted on May 12th, 2008 by Mike Lively.
Categories: Software Review, Open-source.

Our group just finished a bunch of tutorials on YouTube with the Source Code released on Google Code. Everything is in Flex 3, Papervsion3D (Great White), and (two tutorials) Wow. Thought I would release them here. You might find some of them useful.

Wow Physics Papervervision3D Starter Code
Demo: http://nkuflc.org/wowphysics/
Source: http://code.google.com/p/flex3cookbook1/downloads/list
YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wYZn0fEtwmQ

Installing the Wow Physics Engine into Flex 3
Demo: http://nkuflc.org/wowphysics/
Source: http://code.google.com/p/flex3cookbook1/downloads/list
YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QwYnCpp4Ewc

3D Sinc Plotter
Demo: http://nkuflc.org/sincplot/
Source: http://code.google.com/p/flex3cookbook1/ under downloads
YouTube Videos:

3D Plotter in Papervison3D and Flex 3 (1 of 2)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YlFLT9YA444

3D Plotter in Papervison3D and Flex 3 (2 of 2)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TvpIFLLLKp8

Summary: Demonstrates how to create a 3D plotting software in Papervision3D and Flex 3.

Molecule Viewer
Demo: http://nkuflc.org/molecule/
Source: http://code.google.com/p/flex3cookbook1/ under downloads
YouTube:

Molecule Viewer in Papervision3D and Flex 3 (1 of 2)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=smDWxWx9I8A

Molecule Viewer in Papervision3D and Flex 3 (2 of 2)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QWeMDzvQ9ko

3D Carousel in Flex 3 and Papervision3D (Free Souce Code)
Demo:http://nkuflc.org/carousel/
Source: http://code.google.com/p/flex3cookbook1/ (under downloads)
YouTube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2VWUR0Yh2Ys

Bible Code in Papervision3D and Flex 3
Demo: http://nkuflc.org/omega/
Source: http://code.google.com/p/biblecode/ (under downloads)
YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3gC4MM2INpo

PaperLife3D
Demo: http://nkuflc.org/plnav/
Source: http://code.google.com/p/paperlife/ (under downloads)
YouTube:
(2 of 2) Papervision3D Second Life Nav System in Flex 3
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rt0V7c44T7U
(1 of 2) Papervision3D Second Life Nav System in Flex 3
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5WbdTdjVO2c

Papervision 3D: Getting Started in Flex 3
YouTube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sgFWaGheR6g

Cheers,
Mike Lively (Give and you will receive)

2 comments.

My Recent Think-Tank Post (Epsilen - Globalization Technology Group)

Posted on February 21st, 2008 by Mike Lively.
Categories: Globaizing Education, Globalization.

Discussion: Globalization and Outsourcing

Questions /
Comment: Thanks for your topic.

The numbers flying around are under dispute - the US educates about 70,000 engineers a year, China 600,000 a year (depending on how you count them), and India about 1/4 million. Some are arguing that these numbers are actually equal. That is the US, China, and India graduate the same number of engineers every year.

So who cares - the big deal is that foreign engineers (which are outnumbering US engineers) are able to innovate at a much lower cost than US engineers. This rapid rate of innovation is decreasing the life cycles of products. Many consumer electronics have life cycles of weeks (not months). This makes it difficult for US companies to keep up, and the pursuit of global innovative talent is at a premium. Corporate giants are now very willing to look beyond their four walls for innovative talent. The big question here is how do we collaborate on a global scale without further giving our markets away.

Over the past few years the US has out-sourced its manufacturing muscle, expecting to maintain an innovative “research” edge (we were going to be the brains and the rest of the world our muscle - that did not work). So now, as we pursue global innovative talent to remain viable in a market of shorter product life-cycles, it is becoming apparent that our innovative edge has fallen prey to our inability to compete with the lower development cost of our foreign competitors.

Just drive to Warren. Ohio one afternoon and examine the rust belt - as an engineer myself - I have lived the nightmare of outsourcing - education better gear up - it is about to happen on a larger scale.

What does this have to do with anything? Well before we lay down and give up … the same tools that are allowing our foreign competition to thrive are at our disposal as well. Competing globally means leveraging technology that is mostly free in an arena where the rules are not well defined. In this flattening world, no one knows the rules - it is about making mistakes and quickly recovering an advantage through innovation. Most universities are not prepared to function at the level of fluidity that is required to survive, but those who do will be the winners in tomorrow’s education arena.

1 comment.

Multi-Video Player on Google Code

Posted on February 21st, 2008 by Mike Lively.
Categories: Open-source.

I just posted our Multi-Video Player on Google Code. 

This is a flex multi-video player with sort and an XML backend. It plays FLVs. The sort categories are hardcoded, but the FLV address and video info are pulled in using an XML file. Since so many people wanted this, we decided to release it open source. The code was created by Mike Lively and Alissa Gilley at Northern Kentucky University.

The full flex code is provided as a zip file under the downloads tab on Google Code. This Google Code address is

http://code.google.com/p/flexvideoplayer/

A video on its usage can be found at

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pAVW7z5siUs

0 comments.

Over the Rhine Website on Google Code

Posted on February 19th, 2008 by Mike Lively.
Categories: Open-source.

This is a multi-part tutorial series on creating the Over the Rhine Website in Adobe Flex. We have posted the code on Google Code along with the video tutorials on YouTube. The tutorials show how to create a states navigation system and build out multimedia components for the site. Video Tutorials and the Incremental code are distributed. 

Check it out on Google Code at

 http://code.google.com/p/overtherhine/

1 comment.

Second Life:A Guide to Your Virtual World

Posted on February 10th, 2008 by Mike Lively.
Categories: Book Reviews.

I just finished reading

    Second Life: A Guide to Your Virtual World by Brian White

I read this book to get ready for a project we are running in our faculty learning community with Rick Brockmeier. Brian White has a cause and effect approach which I really like. He helps you understand the “why” of SL in addtion to the how.

The book covers topics from signing in to building with primatives and scripting. Brian also covers some of the things to watch out for and how to get connected into the culture. He stresses going slowly with relationships, and discusses freinds, partners, and groups. He treats emotional attachments in what he calls dog years (concerning how quickly relationships come and go). He demonstrates how to build objects, change your appearance, and navigate in SL.

I found the book both informative and fun to read. No ideas about how to build a course or learning community in SL, but it is a fantastic newbie book giving a good level of technical detail.

0 comments.

Talk in Cincinnati at Duke Energy

Posted on February 7th, 2008 by Mike Lively.
Categories: Talks.

I’m going up to Duke Energy in Cincinnati to give a presentation on our energy efficient project. Here it is

The website is at

http://www.nkuas.org/dukeenergy/

Very exciting to see a company Globally conscious!

0 comments.

Back from DC

Posted on February 7th, 2008 by Mike Lively.
Categories: Talks.

Just got back from DC. The presentation to the AAUC (Association of American Colleges and Universities) went really well. I learned a lesson from this one though - don’t try to be funny. No one laughed at my jokes and then they laughed when I was trying to be serious.

The slides and Youtube presentation can be found at

http://www.nkuartsandsciences.org/goglobal

I recorded the Youtube presentation after I got back and it is pretty boring. The presentation in DC was more spontaneous - so in that sense it was worth the work.

1 comment.

The Global Brain: Your Roadmap for Innovating Faster and Smarter in a Networked World

Posted on January 19th, 2008 by Mike Lively.
Categories: Book Reviews, Globalization.

Just finished reading

The Global Brain: Your RoadMap for Innovating Faster and Smarter in a Networked World

The first chapter of this book is pretty illuminating and a little scary. A number of years ago a business philosophy was being expounded which touted that exporting our manufacturing abilities to other countries was a good idea. The world would be our muscle and we would be their brains. I really had problems with this. I could not remember when God had placed a regional moratorium on brains. As a results, not only can foreign businesses out produce us, they are also (out thinking us ) innovating at a significantly lower cost which is causing the life cycles of products to drop significantly.

Most US companies can not support the shorter life cycles. (To compete Toyota is moving its car development cycle from 48 months to 12 and consumer electronics have life cycles of weeks not months) The book coins it the Red Queen effect from Alice in Wonderland where some one has to run twice as fast to get anywhere.

Thus companies are looking for innovative talent beyond their 4 walls. The NIH (Not Invented Here) or WKE (We Know Everything) syndromes are crumbling for a network centric approach.The US used to brag that it had the greatest educational institution in the world. It can not make that claim anymore since other countries (such as China) are investing more into education. Many 3rd world countries are poised to skip to 1. As we watch the dollar fall and the Market plunge it is a reminder that we are getting our royal bottoms kicked in the global economy.

The book discusses engaging your own organizations first, creating project champions for innovative ideas, wearing multiple hats, understanding network centric dependencies, and reallocating dollars.

Opps! Time for a Reality Check. Reading between the lines what may actually happen in this scenario is that now that America has outsourced its manufacturing power it may now outsource what it has left of its brain power to remain viable.  The book doesn’t suggest this. But the same mechanism that out sourced our manufacturing is in play here.

However, my favorite quoate wasThink Big, Start Small, Scale Fast.

When I started at Northen Kentucky University there was one broken computer in the back of the room. We have come a long way since then and are ready to scale. We don’t need to outsource our brains. We just need to innovate and bring down the cost of doing so.

0 comments.

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