Kuneri bloggy

Sony Ericsson Developer World published an interesting article about different ways of presenting data on mobile devices with Flash Lite 2.0.

This new tutorial explains how data from a Sony Ericsson phone can be presented as dynamic Flash Lite™ 2.0 animations which can then be used as freestanding wallpapers (standby) or imported into a theme using the Sony Ericsson Themes Creator tool (version 3.29).

Although it focuses on Sony Ericsson devices, this can be applied to most of the Flash Lite enabled devices. iMode users enjoy such representations in Japan for many years already via Flash Lite. If you remember, Adobe also showcased Sponge Bob home screen concept this year in Mobile World Congress in Barcelona. I am sure, we will see these kind of creative ways of data representations on mobile, as device manufacturers integrate more deeply into their devices. Up now, Nokia has been little too slow (as usual) catching this up, compared to Sony Ericsson. But this doesn’t mean that they will never do it.

Sony Ericsson just released Themes Creator 3.29, which support Flash Lite themes and XML. It has Windows, Mac and Linux versions. Cool!

You can also download Themes Developers’ Guidelines from Technical Documents section, which is also fresh.

[via Biskero]

Sony Ericsson released the first version of Swf2Jar packaging tool of Project Capuchin. It can be downloaded with its documentation here.

The Swf2Jar 1.0 tool automatically packages together a jar containing a Java MIDlet class and a Flash file (.swf). The simplest Project Capuchin application is to package existing Flash Lite content in a MIDlet jar file which applies Java security, distribution methods and installation.

I personally was not expecting, but hoping this tool to support many devices and be a global packaging tool. However, as Project Capuchin, Swf2Jar tool works only on Sony Ericsson devices, actually on only one device at the moment (C905 Cyber-shot); which is not even released.

Sony Ericsson Developer World released new version of Themes Creator. What is special about this new version is that it supports bundling Flash Lite SWF files for standby screen content (screensaver/wallpaper) into the actual theme file. Previously it was not possible to bundle SWF inside a Sony Ericsson theme file.

Note that only devices supporting themes vs. 4.7 can use SWF bundled in the theme file. This includes SE C702, C902, W760, W980 (all Flash Lite 2.0 devices). For other devices you must distribute the SWF content seperately from the theme.

via Hayden

Design province labs, creator of LiveU screensaver (which also is enabled on KISS60), released a new Flash Lite screensaver called iBattery.

It’s quite elegant, simple, and iPhone-like. You can see the battery level and time as well.

Great work!

Cool news! Sony Ericsson wants mobile software developers to have the best of both worlds.

Next week at JavaOne, the company plans to demonstrate its Project Capuchin, which will allow software developers to create applications for mobile phones that can use pieces of both Java ME and Adobe Systems’ Flash Lite to create their applications. The company plans to release a set of APIs (application programming interfaces) and a software development kit in the second half of this year to bring the two different mobile development styles together.

For example, Java developers could decide to use the richer user interface technology found in Flash Lite, said Ulf Wretling, general manager, head of developer program and communications for Sony Ericsson. Or maybe a developer wants to use Java’s three-dimensional graphics for a mobile game but would prefer to use Flash Lite for menus, he said.

The problem with this kind of project is that while it creates a “bridge” between the two technologies, as Wretling put it, it also pulls developers away from the current road map for both Java and Flash Lite. The difference here is that developers will still be able to create regular Java or Flash applications using this set of APIs, just mixing and matching technology from the other camp as needed.

This technology will be used on the mass-market mobile phone, not the smartphone category with more sophisticated operating systems. Sony Ericsson phones will arrive in the second half of the year with this technology, but the company plans to release the software development kit before the phones arrive.

Bill posted a really great resource: Flash Lite market percentage (as of January 2008). Those numbers are from U.S and Western Europe and give quite good impression of the target market in those selected regions. Listed numbers include Nokia S60, Nokia Series 40, Sony Ericsson and BREW. It’s especially great to see the numbers of devices separately for each platform as well. I always thought UK had the most S60 devices in Europe, however it’s clear that Italy is the leader.

Thanks to Miky from mobileDesign.it for publishing his great Valentines day Flash Lite screensaver on KISS60.

Enjoy!

  3 great free Flash Lite screensavers are published on KISS60 : Skeleton Dance,  Ostrich and Wooden Horse.
Free: Go and get!

Gideon Multimedia launches innovative free mobile travel quide mobiEXPLORE Croatia. It is available for S60 (2nd and 3rd edition), Series40 and PocketPC devices.

I just installed it and liked it a lot! Very stylish and good design, must say.

Read complete press release of product launch here.