rendermouse blog

Real PNG 8-bit transparency in Win IE using CSS

I was doing some CSS research today, and found this little gem. It only works in IE browsers, but sometimes that is OK.

You can use full 8-bit transparency PNG files in Windows IE if you use a particular Microsoft image filter - AlphaImageLoader:

<span STYLE="position:relative; height:100px; width:100px;
filter:progid:DXImageTransform.Microsoft.AlphaImageLoader(src='myPNG.png',sizingMethod='scale');"></span>

Normally PNG files saved with 8-bit transparency show NO transparency within IE when using the IMG tag, but if you use this instead, it works just fine.

You have to match the height values to your image, of course.

Central apps can dynamically load GIFs

According to this article on DevNet, "Because of fewer restrictions on its size, Macromedia Central has built-in support for GIFs."

Ok. I'll bite. How much larger would the Flash player download actually get if you were to add GIF-loading support?

This is a feature I have needed for YEARS. Is this secretly hiding in the Flash7 player somewhere, or is it really a Central-exclusive feature?'

I am still in MX land, not being able to upgrade to 2004 at the moment...but this one feature would definitely help me get an upgrade.

Flex vs. XForms

Xforms is a new W3C Recommendation standard for building forms and form logic using XML. This allows you to build a data model and processing logic for a form, independent of the user interface.

This sounds very similar to the new Flex architecture Macromedia is beta testing right now.

It's too bad that the Flex XML schema is proprietary, rather than W3C standards-based. If Xforms becomes a full standard, Macromedia should consider adding support for it later on.

It might make people more interested in Flex as a forms authoring/rendering tool, and adding support for accepted standards is never a wasted effort.

If someone wanted to build XForms-based pages, using an XForms-compatible Flex would be a sure winner over another solution, since Flex leverages the widely distributed Flash player, instead of the less popular SVG viewers.

"The Onion" on blogging

One of the funniest satire websites around has a recent article entitled "Mom Finds Out About Blog".

Great stuff.

"MINNEAPOLIS, MN—In a turn of events the 30-year-old characterized as "horrifying," Kevin Widmar announced Tuesday that his mother Lillian has discovered his weblog...."

:D

Microsoft Terminal Services for your Palm PDA

There's a new program for PalmOS called Mobile TS that lets wireless Palm users access Microsoft Terminal Services.

If you have a PalmOS-based phone, you can now have complete Remote Desktop control from anywhere. You could use PalmVNC instead, but Terminal Services is used a lot by corporate networks, so it's something worth knowing about.

A new cure for fuzzy Flash fonts

FontLab now has a new product called FontFlasher, which will convert your fonts into pixel-based fonts for use with small type in Flash.

before:

after:

The downside is that FontFlasher only exports in their own Fontlab VFB file format, which means you have to use one of Fontlab's converter programs to get your new pixel font back into TrueType format. Boooooo.

Star Wars: Clone Wars on Cartoon Network

Cartoon Network does it again with a great online experience to go with their new series of short toons: Star Wars: Clone Wars. Great stuff. Lots of Flash goodies for everyone to play with, that's for sure.

[via MM Site Of the Day]

Flash HL2 tribute game: Half-Life 2D

Some crafty folks are building a Half-Life-themed, side-scrolling, jump-n-run game: Half-Life 2D. Programmed in Flash.

Great artwork!

[via Flashcoders]

Spammers are criminals

More proof that spammers are nothing but crooks and thieves:

Spammers Release Virus to Attack Spamhaus.org

Sometimes I wonder how long this type of behavior will continue before law enforcement and government officials take it more seriously.

If 5000 people were knocking on your congressman's door every day trying to sell him some... er...enhancement pill...they wouldn't waste a breath before finding a way to catch and prosecute these people. Yet deliberately infecting people's computers to host this filth goes completely unnoticed.