KitchenSync 2.0 Beta invitation

[Mims Wright]

Dear Developers,

First of all, Happy New Year! I wish you all the best!

KitchenSync, the awesome sequencing library for AS3, is about ready to be reborn in version 2.0. I emphasize sequencing rather than tweening because the library has really shown its strengths as a tool for chaining together a wide variety commands (including tweens). I've found it to be a huge boon in my projects and I hope you have too. 

Since it was released in 2007 the library has evolved quite a lot. I've taken into account a lot of feedback from users as well as my own experience working with it. In the last few months, I've been practically rebuilding KitchenSync from the ground up with a focus on making the entire thing easier to use and more approachable. I don't know if I succeeded really since I also added a lot of new features, but I'm hoping to get some feedback from you. 

Some of the major new features in Version 2.0:

• REFACTORED all classes at the architecture down to method-level. Improved structure and ease of use.  Extracted interfaces for several common functions. Changed package structure throughout to group related things together in a more sensible way. Some class names have changed. Removed some classes that seemed more confusing than useful. FIXED Gobs of bugs

• ADDED ASDocs for nearly every class and method.

• REFACTORED The way time is handled throughout. Synchronizer now has a customizable core that determines how updates are dispatched. TimeStamp is gone. Sync mode is automatic. timing is more accurate.  

• ADDED Color tweens including saturation, brightness, contrast, and tint.

• CHANGED constructors in KSTween. Emphasis is now on using TweenFactory. Added several convenient methods to TweenFactory so it's easier to create complex tweens. Greatly improved functionality of the Object Parser when using TweenFactory.newTweenFromObject();

• Added several useful functions and properties to AbstractAction including jumpToTime(), jumpByTime(), progress, description, togglePause()

• ADDED classes for loading files in a queue such as KSLoadQueue and KSXMLLoader.

• ADDED several new groups including KSRandomGroup, KSSimultaneousEndGroup

• ADDED Syntactic sugar to the group constructors. Using an array in the constructor for a parallel group automatically creates a nested sequence group and vice versa.

• ADDED Looping of actions via a new group called KSLooper.

• ADDED KSAsynchronousIteration for running processor-intensive for loops spaced out over a period of time so that they are essentially asynchronous.

That's only about half the changes in the new version. As you can imagine, it's very difficult to test all of these changes alone. That's where you come in as a beta tester. Before I release this version into the wild, I want to tackle any looming issues that I may have overlooked. Here's what I need from you:

• Use the program for something. Anything! Don't wait around to try it out, make something quick and dirty or use it for a project. Just please try it. 

• Log bugs & feature requests. If you find anything wonky, if something doesn't make sense, or if you have a neat idea, log it on the project issues page.

• Ask questions. I want KS to be self- explanatory so it helps to know what needs more explaining.

• Make demos. If you create a working demo or sample, I can add it to a list of examples. 

• Fix bugs / Write docs. If you are up for really helping me out, I could certainly use the help with fixing issues or improving the documentation. Especially looking for help with optimizing and porting to FP10

If you think you can help with these tasks, please send me an email and I'll put you on my list of testers.

How to get started:

• Download the latest build from SVN at http://kitchensynclib.googlecode.com . Create a Flex Library project for it in FlashBuilder or use the ant script to build it. If you can't use SVN or need the source or SWC, ask me.

• Read the changelog.txt file in the docs folder (especially if you've used a previous version of KS). 

• Complete ASDocs are hosted here: http://kitchensync.as3lib.org/docs/ Note, the Wiki on the project site is out of date - still working on new docs.

• Start playing around. Try to make some simple demos.

• Log bugs and ask questions

• Join the mailing list at http://groups.google.com/group/kitchensynclib?hl=en and check out the new, albeit empty, kitchen sync blog at http://kitchensync.as3lib.org/

Let me know if you have any questions and thanks very much!

Mims

[Mims Hughes Wright]

Hey Beta invitees,

Please shoot me an email if you plan to check out KitchenSync 2.0 so I can keep track of who's trying out the beta. Thank you very much!

Mims

[steve pasos]

I plan to check it out.  - Steve

Mims

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[noah brown]

I've been using Guttershark on my latest job, which includes TweenLite/
Max, but I'll after reading your update i'll give KS a spin on the
next job that fits... certainly in place of TweenLite/Max etc...

Best regards,

.n

[mimsh...@gmail.com]

I'm actually considering trying to make an adapter of sorts for using
TweenLite/Max as an action KitchenSync since KS really does a lot more
besides just tweening.

[Anthony Picciano]

I'm excited and planning to give this a try.

Would you consider it stable enough to try out on a high-profile project? I don't mind working through some minor issues. The project would be a contest microsite for Old Navy.

Let me know your thoughts.

Thanks,
Tony

[mimsh...@gmail.com]

Tony,

I'm honoured that you're willing to give it a shot on a big project.
That's a tough question though. I've done my best to get as many bugs
fixed and docuementation added (using ASDoc) as possible and there's
nothing major that I know of. I can't guarantee that it will work
flawlessly. I will certainly try to fix bugs you find but again, can't
promise I'll fix them in time. On the other hand, I would never claim
that this would solve all your problems even if it was well tested.
You should be aware that this version is syntactically very different
from older versions of KS so moving backwards to a more stable version
may not be an easy task. Likewise, it being beta software, there may
be syntax changes in the future. Some features are going to be better
tested than others so it depends on what you're using KS for.
The short answer is – if it were me I would use it on a high profile
project but with the knowledge that I may have some bumps along the
way.

Mims

On Jan 5, 1:20 pm, Anthony Picciano <anthony.picci...@tuftandco.com>
wrote:

> I'm excited and planning to give this a try.
>
> Would you consider it stable enough to try out on a high-profile project? I
> don't mind working through some minor issues. The project would be a contest
> microsite for Old Navy.
>
> Let me know your thoughts.
>
> Thanks,
> Tony
>

> > *• Use the program for something. *Anything! Don't wait around to try it

> > out, make something quick and dirty or use it for a project. Just please try
> > it.

> > *• Log bugs & feature requests.* If you find anything wonky, if something

> > doesn't make sense, or if you have a neat idea, log it on the project issues
> > page.
> > • Ask questions. I want KS to be self- explanatory so it helps to know what
> > needs more explaining.

> > *• Make demos. *If you create a working demo or sample, I can add it to a
> > list of examples.
> > *• Fix bugs / Write docs*. If you are up for really helping me out, I

> > could certainly use the help with fixing issues or improving the
> > documentation. Especially looking for help with optimizing and porting to
> > FP10
>
> > If you think you can help with these tasks, please send me an email and
> > I'll put you on my list of testers.
>
> > How to get started:
> > • Download the latest build from SVN at

> >http://kitchensynclib.googlecode.com. Create a Flex Library project for

> > it in FlashBuilder or use the ant script to build it. If you can't use SVN
> > or need the source or SWC, ask me.
> > • Read the changelog.txt file in the docs folder (especially if you've used
> > a previous version of KS).
> > • Complete ASDocs are hosted here:http://kitchensync.as3lib.org/docs/Note,
> > the Wiki on the project site is out of date - still working on new docs.
> > • Start playing around. Try to make some simple demos.
> > • Log bugs and ask questions
> > • Join the mailing list at

> >http://groups.google.com/group/kitchensynclib?hl=enand check out the new,
> > albeit empty, kitchen sync blog athttp://kitchensync.as3lib.org/

>
> > Let me know if you have any questions and thanks very much!
>
> > Mims
>
> >  --
> > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups
> > "KitchenSyncLib for AS3" group.
> > To post to this group, send email to kitchen...@googlegroups.com.
> > To unsubscribe from this group, send email to

> > kitchensyncli...@googlegroups.com<kitchensynclib%2Bunsu...@googlegroups.com>

[Eric Priou]

Hi,

First, thanks for your great work.

> I'm actually considering trying to make an adapter of sorts for using
> TweenLite/Max as an action KitchenSync since KS really does a lot more
> besides just tweening.

A question anyway : what is Greensock's Tween(lite/max) licence and
distribution scheme ?

Sorry for the dumb question.
Greetings

----
Eric Priou aka erixtekila
Articles : http://www.v-i-a.net/inprogress

[mimsh...@gmail.com]

That's not a dumb question but it would be dumb for me to answer since
I'm not affiliated with them at all. I would check their website
http://greensock.com/

[Eric Priou]

> That's not a dumb question but it would be dumb for me to answer since
> I'm not affiliated with them at all. I would check their website
> http://greensock.com/

The trick with the licence (apparently free http://blog.greensock.com/features/)
seems to be hidden in a "club" affiliation which has a fee (http://blog.greensock.com/club/
)…

A simple "r" makes the difference between free and fee ;)

[mimsh...@gmail.com]

Hey all you beta testers,

This weekend is the last push for doing beta testing and bug
reporting. I've gotten some great feedback and found and fixed several
issues. KitchenSync 2.0 will most likely be live and released by
monday. If you have anything else to ask or report or request before
then, let me know ASAP!

Thanks for all your help!

Mims

> • Download the latest build from SVN athttp://kitchensynclib.googlecode.com. Create a Flex Library project for it in FlashBuilder or use the ant script to build it. If you can't use SVN or need the source or SWC, ask me.

> • Read the changelog.txt file in the docs folder (especially if you've used a previous version of KS).

> • Complete ASDocs are hosted here:http://kitchensync.as3lib.org/docs/Note, the Wiki on the project site is out of date - still working on new docs.

> • Start playing around. Try to make some simple demos.
> • Log bugs and ask questions

> • Join the mailing list athttp://groups.google.com/group/kitchensynclib?hl=enand check out the new, albeit empty, kitchen sync blog athttp://kitchensync.as3lib.org/