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 May
21, 2010 Happy Friday folks. This seems like a good day to really kick back and let the weekend get started. Maybe you're a reader with a few minutes waiting for the clock to hit five and need some goodies to help pass the time. Well my friend, if that's the case I got just the thing. It's all about the flash games this week and I've got some interesting ones for you. One I couldn't resist featuring is called Cat with a Bow. Golf! Yup, Cat with a Bow Golf. It's on this crazy Japanese site but you don't need to know how to read the site to play the game. Start with this little cat that's rockin' a bow and arrow. The thing is is that he's tethered to his own arrow, so when you fire he goes slingshotting with it. You only get 3 tries but when you hit or miss the mark I think it's over. Can you hit the target in 1 try? The other 2 games is the Flash version of You don't Know Jack and an awesome side-scrolling zombie shooter called Zombie Grinder. Be warned it's pretty violent for a flash game and has insane death metal. Shotgun at your own risk. As often seen in FlashNews, Stefan Richter is here to class up the joint; something often needed after I'm through. Mark Rivera For any site suggestions or general musings, gimme a shout at mark@flashnewz.com And don't forget to check out our Flash Directory |
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Archery golf with a cat. Yes. |
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 Flash style! |
VP8 To Deliver Better Video Than H.264  By Stefan Richter Jan Ozer was quick on the mark to deliver a side-by-side comparison of video encoded with VP8 (the codec which Google open sourced as recently as two days ago) and H.264, the de-facto codec standard for web video and beyond. You can check out Jan's tests here on streamingmedia.com but in summary it is safe to say that any differences in quality are negligible. What remains to be seen is of course how the same codecs perform across a range of bitrates; maybe VP8 does excel once you throw higher resolution, higher bitrate content at it? Or maybe it will distantiate itself at low bitrates? But regardless, the mere fact that VP8 is open source now and that it is a serious contender in the codec wars that rage around the web in the past few months is a great thing. Remember that H.264 is a patent encumbered format with a patent pool overseen by an organisation called MPEG-LA, and license fees are payable for certain types of usage. It is the uncertainty about these fees and their possible future rise that give organisations like Mozilla cause for concern - and they are not alone. By open sourcing VP8 Google is obviously prepared to call the bluff of anyone who may claim to hold patents on which the VP8 codec may infringe. Now that the sources are open for anyone to see it is now possible to inspect them, and quite likely sue Google for patent infringement. Of course we don't know yet if that's the case, but I truly hope that this big questionmark will once and for all be cleared up by a court. Hopefully VP8 is either free of patent infringements or Google can strike agreements that shield anyone from being sued if they use the codec. No doubt the web would be a better place if we had a free to use, patent free, high performant codec available for everyone to use with no strings attached. Google is definitely up for it and saying: "Bring it on, whoever you are." I'm sure Adobe is totally loving this, for various reasons  Comments About The AuthorStefan is a certified Flash Developer who has been involved with Flash Media Server since its very early days. From his home office in the UK he has handled a variety of projects, specializing in Flash Video and Rich Internet Applications for clients that include CNET, USA Network and Unilever. Stefan is the author of a series of Adobe Developer Center articles, has spoken at several industry events and contributes a regular column on Flash Video to Streaming Media Magazine. His site www.flashcomguru.com is one of the largest online resources on Flash Video. |
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