How to create animations for Mobile Devices ?

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Will_3
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Joined: Sat Apr 23, 2005 8:44 pm

How to create animations for Mobile Devices ?

Post by Will_3 »

I've been away from animation for a couple of years.

Will Moho/Anime Studio create files that will run on Mobile Devices?

I heard that it took Flash Lite for the Mobile world... but I don't know the difference in a Flash Lite file and a Flash file created by Anime Studio.

Would someone be kind enough to bring me up to date...

Thanks for any help.
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slowtiger
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Post by slowtiger »

Don't even attempt to do.

While AS is great in doing character animation, its SWF export isn't designed for delivering final formats like you need for internet or cell phone. It especially lacks any of Flash's strategies to minimize file size.

If you need to create content for mobile stuff, having Flash is not enough. Trust me, I get the difficulties first-hand because my girlfriend designs exactly that, content for mobile devices.
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Nolan Scott
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Post by Nolan Scott »

Here are the supported iPod video formats as described on Apple's website:

• H.264 video, up to 1.5 Mbps, 640 by 480 pixels, 30 frames per second, Low-Complexity version of the H.264 Baseline Profile with AAC-LC audio up to 160 Kbps, 48kHz, stereo audio in .m4v, .mp4, and .mov file formats; H.264 video, up to 2.5 Mbps, 640 by 480 pixels, 30 frames per second, Baseline Profile up to Level 3.0 with AAC-LC audio up to 160 Kbps, 48kHz, stereo audio in .m4v, .mp4, and .mov file formats; MPEG-4 video, up to 2.5 Mbps, 640 by 480 pixels, 30 frames per second, Simple Profile with AAC-LC audio up to 160 Kbps, 48kHz, stereo audio in .m4v, .mp4, and .mov file formats

You might be able to use these settings directly to export your animation. If you don’t know what this information means,
don’t worry, iTunes will convert it for you, simply follow these steps:

1. Export your animation as a QuickTime file. Using the H.264 is recommended but not required.
This codec is available after installing the free QuickTime player 7. 


2.
Open iTunes 7. (I presume you need at least version 6)

3.
Click the file menu and select ‘Add to Library’

4.
Browse to the location where you saved your animation and select it to open it.

5. In iTunes, on the left side select ‘Movies’ (you should see your animation listed).

6. Right click on your animation and select ‘Convert Selection for iPod’ 

iTunes will duplicate your animation video with the proper settings for podcasting. 

You now have an m4v (MPEG-4 Video) file ready for podcasting. Drag your converted animation to your iPod to transfer it.

Cheers
Nolan
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Rhoel
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Post by Rhoel »

Mobiles use 3gp video format. Generally it is best to output your video at the the correct framesize (from memory its 176 x 144)'then convert it to a 3gp file ... there are a number of good cheap converters out there so try a google search. I have converted several animations for mobile this way and it works better than I first imagined it.

Rhoel
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Nolan Scott
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Post by Nolan Scott »

As far as I know QuickTime 7.2 can export to .3gp

Cheers
Nolan
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Rhoel
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Post by Rhoel »

Nolan Scott wrote:As far as I know QuickTime 7.2 can export to .3gp

Cheers
Nolan
Quicktime players also playback 3gp files too - great for checking before upload to phone.
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Rhoel
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Post by Rhoel »

Quick Uodate - found the web link to the encoder I use - http://www.imtoo.com/3gp-video-converter.html

It will convert 50% of a file without registration ... i have been sneaky and output two video clips back to back in the same video file and therefore ending up with 100% of my film in the 3gp fil: I now have a full license - very pleased with the results.

At $29, it's a steal ... also highlights I'm a cheapskate for doubling up the video to get my 100% content ;)

Rhoel
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