Fun with FlashCom

[psychlonex]

Hey all -
I'm messing around with the flash com server. I was sort of disappointed in the example files, as most of the more complex ones use components. I wanted to see how it really worked, so I built this little app:

http://psychlonex.dyndns.org/~john/who/VidChat2a.html

It lets me broadcast continuous video to it, and any visitors can broadcast one at a time to the whole room.

There's also a little chat thing in there which I'm working on the server-side script to get the rooms stuff sorted. Right now it won't show you who is in a room, but everything else is functional. I just looked at the server admin console, and it sais that the trial is the same as the pro version, with a 500 user limit.

So..... I want as many people as can to connect to it today and see if we can't make it crash, or reach 500 users. I'm on cable, so I'm hoping my cable line will choke before the server does. So stop in and if you have a mic say hi, if you have a camera, wave and say hi.

I plan on buying the dev edition and building a site where fellow flashers can come for help. For now, feel free to use the chat and or video streams to help eachother learn something about flash. One case would be for myself or someone else with the broadcast capabilities to do some lecturing of sorts. Like a classroom on the web.

If anyone has any ideas for a tutorial or "class" they'd like to see just let me know and I'll do my best to make it happen.
Any questions regarding the flash-com server, just ask.

Psx

[NerdInside]

What is your upload speed? I wanna know how much bandwidth this thing sucks.

Sorry, I don't have a camera but I will stay watchin'!

[psychlonex]

Hey - I'm really not sure on the upload speed. I turned the fps down on my cam to 6fps, but the "broadcast" cam that users can use is at 15. Flash reports the bandwidth usage, it was something like 16k, but it doesn't it tell you 16k per what, not can I get it to update as I make changes to the camera settings.

At any rate, I'm broadcasting across the lan, and people are connecting, and I'm still able to browse flashkit.

* note - if you enter the chat, chances are I'll be in room1.

Psx

[cosmiceye]

Cool stuff! Hey, John, I have some mad ideas, and I have acces to a flashCom server , but I havent been able to make a netConnection, I have tried for almost over a week
I need your help man, not even the sample apps works....is it possible to get the .fla for your own app? I'll be connected to your app, in room 1 this night to see if I can catch you there. Man, I have been waiting to use flashCom from the first time I saw the as-commands used for that (younow, the "undocumented"). I wanna make multiplayer games and stuff, but mostly toys and cool DYNAMIC LIVING -ARTWORKS made of some really cool masking effects on the dynamic media content...

[psychlonex]

Cosmic - We were just talking in the chat.. hopefully my solution worked for you!

Next week I plan on giving a few demos via the page I linked to in my first post. I plan to try to explain how the flashcom server works, and what you need to know to make full use of it. I will post a schedule on the site as soon as I have it working reliably.

If there is anything flash related that someone doesn't understand, let me know and I'll do my best to work up a demo and how-to session. I see this new server as a great way to teach other people, and well... I know flash so that's what I'd probably be best at teaching someone else how to do!

If anyone has ever been to a user-group meeting or the likes, you'll know what I'm saying. It just makes it that much clearer when someone shows you how it's done, than if they just post the code that will solve your current problem.

With all that, I'm out for the weekend! Too much flash makes a dull boy, or something like that.

If I can say it once more, post what you want to know and I'll show how it's done. If I don't know, I'll learn and then show. If you'd rather use the ol' email, you can find me at jrobinso@nycap.rr.com

[cosmiceye]

This thread should never leave the top. If you havent testes his app, do so. John rules!!!

[HereNt]

Looking forward to the tutorial - didn't see anybody in there, but the last post from CosmicEye showed up. Maybe more people should see the post then they could try chatting with it...

[binbo]

Ok, I have a question. Now when doing a Clint application using flash all our users need is simply a flash player, is it the same case with server application? if not, what do they need in order to run it.

Let me explain some more, I have a game, a multiplayer game, and I want to give it a way as an exe file. Now in that game I need to give the player the choice of playing with other people form his home computer, what does he need in order to run my application? Is the flash player included in the exe file enugh? or what ?

[cosmiceye]

Yeah, the flash player should be enough. U make a connection to the flash server from within the movie, and then the server takes care of it, as long as there is a folder named the same as your application in the applications folder on the server.

I got flashcom to work yesterday (I think), but I have only tried it from my pc, and I would like you to test it and tell me if it works from there. Its a runtime video recorder, that records the webcam stream. If you dont have a webcam, you can tell me if you were able to play the latest videofile.
test it:
http://webzone.k3.mah.se/kit01051/fl...ashComFun.html

thanx!

[psychlonex]

Binbo -
If you are going to distribute exe's, I don't think they even need the flash player. If your game doesn't contain anything windows only, (external vb app, extra fscommand stuff, etc) you should create a mac projector as well to distribute.

Cosmic - Thanks for the compliment! I just checked your app out, but didn't see the "DannyCam" -- saw a not on mine that you were having trouble broadcasting --

Everything works on "channels", or at least that's what I'm going to call them. So in your app, you need to create a second stream, In mine, I made a seperate app that just broadcasts to the other one.

First I made an init function:

function init() {
//our path to the folder for this app
connection.connect("rtmp://yourhost:1935/applications/thisappfolder");
//attach the camera to the myCam variable
myCam = Camera.get();

/* Restricts the size of the bcast to 160 x 120, at 8fps and  true to favor size I believe. */
myCam.setMode(160, 120, 8, true)
/* attaches the "myCam" to a embedded vid object, so I can see what I'm broadcasting. */
Live_Preview.attachVideo(myCam);
}

Then I have a broadcast function, and a stopBroadcast function:

function BroadCast() {
/* make a new "channel" or netStream using our connection from above */
	vOutStream = new NetStream(connection);

//attach the cam video to the stream
	vOutStream.attachVideo(myCam);

//and publish it
	vOutStream.publish("Broadcast_video","live");
	}

function stopBroadCast() {
	vOutStream.publish(false);
	vOutStream.close();
}

On the client end, all you have to do is create a connection (same as in my init) and then instead of attaching the local cam, you connect to the stream.

function JohnnyCam() {
	JohnnyStream = new NetStream(connection);
	Johnny_Video.attachVideo(JohnnyStream);
JohnnyStream.recieveVideo(true);
	jInStream.play("Broadcast_Video");
};

Hope that helps! I'm trying to find a network card for an old powermac 8500. I don't know if I'll be able to find one, but if I can, I'll be able to connect the video out from my laptop to the video in on the other mac and broadcast what is on my screen. Would make a great setup for showing how to do things in flash, or any app.

I've got enough ideas to last me 2 months with this stuff. Today I'm going to try and pretty-up my app and get the room stuff working, as well as the tutorial request and possible a schedule of demos and such.

Psx

[cosmiceye]

You gave me the answer to what I was seeking. Actually, I had made it working, but it recorded video the file instead of streaming it live. Just like you, I made one "admin" app, and the webb app. But I had not set the it to "live":
vOutStream.publish("Broadcast_video","live");

Hehe cool! Man I got some really´big plans for you and me and the rest of the flashcomers to make a merged live community of aps....
well gotta go for now, thanks again for saving my life!

[psychlonex]

Hey -
Cool - glad you got it working! I'm working on my own personal site - adding the tutorials sections, as well as working up a blog setup and some other fun stuff. I'll have a schedule of live how-to's up as soon as I get some ideas for what to talk about! I'm thinking the first one will have to be about flash-com. Seems like a logical place to start. Made a new footer too... hoping it works for everyone else!

Psx

[psychlonex]

Quick Update -
Working out an avatar chat engine. Check it out here:
http://psychlonex.dyndns.org/~john/f.../avatars_2000/

Themed around flash-help - it's a nifty little chat with a shared-text deal where you can post links, questions, etc. Like the message boards but in real-time.

Still have to add more things like instant-messaging, audio/video chat, etc. Have a look and post any ideas you have either here or in the shared-text in the "Lizounge" .Starting a whiteboard this weekend I think.. unless there is one in the new components package...

Cosmiceye's stuff is coming along awesome! Check his link above!

psx