For more on the creation of the new VISP visual app, there’s a terrific story by creator Michael Creighton at Adobe Edge:

Building a visual performance app with Adobe AIR, Flex, and Flash

The advantages of this combination are potent for visual development:

• File system API (so you can easily manage video clips, generative sketches, whatever)
• Native window system API (so your UI looks at home on your OS)
• Flex, for CSS + XML goodness
• Clarity of the ActionScript 3.0 language (I’m totally onboard with this one, frankly, despite complaints from AS old-timers)
• Ease of development in Eclipse

As I noted, it looks like MIDI support comes from an external application. But there’s hope for more interesting possibilities in the future, by hooking up VISP to Java via a new AIR-to-Java bridge called Artemis:

Artemis Tutorial

Now we’re talking. It seems Michael is thinking like I was: wouldn’t it be great to have Processing hooked up to all of this? Now, of course, I hoped to do everything on the Java side, though there is that pesky problem with video support in Java being, how shall we say, less than fresh. But, in the meantime, I’m happy to combine the two where it makes sense.

Onyx was a little shorter on the AIR stuff (aka Apollo), which is what lets you manage files from the file system, so I could see some of what’s in VISP benefiting Onyx, as well .. and visa versa.

Now, someone in Javaland: you know you really want to improve Java’s multimedia support. Come on. All the Adobe people are having so much fun. They’re going to have much better parties. Think about it, won’t you? (Yes, unfortunately, Apple is one of the players who could help remedy the situation and they’re extraordinarily unlikely to be interested, but surely there’s a way.)

We’ve mentioned VISP earlier in the year, an open source VJ app based on Adobe’s Flex and AIR (formerly Apollo) Rich Internet Application platform. Despite some delays, VISP has been released. Check out VISP-VJ.com for downloads and source code. VISP’s home page contains tutorials, introduction videos and guidelines to download the latest frameworks required by the app. Geared towards generative real-time visuals, VISP looks be be a pretty exciting release, especially considering its open nature.

Some features straight from VISPs homepage:

• Works on both Windows and Mac platforms.
• Outputs a max resolution of 640×480 to a second screen.
• Supports MIDI input via a separate Java application (watch the screencast). Ed.: This is necessary because MIDI input remains impossible with Flash/Flex/AIR; you can get data in via XML sockets, but that requires Java — or something ese — to do the actual MIDI. -PK
• Emphasis on performing the content rather than managing a complex user interface.
• Use transitions to more seamlessly move from one piece of content to another.
• Use up to two filters simultaneously to add post-render effects to your output.
• Create your own custom content, transitions, and filters with ActionScript 3.
• Geared toward generative content, not video clip triggering.
• Source code is licensed under the GNU General Public License v2.
• Intentionally feature-deprived to impose constraints, allowing you to focus on your content and creativity.

We’ll be sure to give VISP a good one over and report back as soon as we can!

Ed.: Cool, but I’m still also interested in Onyx VJ. It’s also Flash/Flex-based, so much of what’s here is still true (though I think these are perfectly usable for video triggering). But Onyx has a lot of additional filters and features, including one very nice one: video playback from a VLC server. Of course, nothing stops you from trying both, since they’re both free.

Now, as for generative visuals, seems it’s time for the Processing community to respond. There’s nothing stopping you from doing something similar with Processing and Java, and since they can take advantage of OpenGL/Java3D 3D visuals, among other features, you’ve got more flexibility than with Flash. The main thing is, building a Java app to host other Processing sketches introduces a fair bit of complexity, so developing something would take some work. I’m doing some more limited experiments for my own performance with Processing; if any of it is useful, I’ll be sure to share. -PK

Flex (and thus ActionScript 3 / Flash) are going open source, according to an Adobe announcement today. Ely Greenfield, Flex architect, and David Wadhwani, vice president of Flex Product Line, explained to Robert Scoble what it all means:

It’s difficult to say yet exactly what all the implications are, but something very exciting is happening in the realm of coding digital visuals. Let’s review:

VJing with flickr? Clubbing with Yahoo Maps? Flash/Flex and Apollo-based apps present some interesting new ideas. We’ve been tracking the excellent Flash 9-based Onyx VJ tool, among others, and it’s nice to see the “open source Adobe-based VJ app” category growing. Mute is very early in development, perhaps not as far along as Onyx, but here’s a quick look at what it offers:

1. Multiple filters and layering options, unlimited scalability (as with Onyx)
2. Lovely, easy controls with contextual help


3. Windows-compatible now, but Mac and Linux support coming


4. flickr and Yahoo Maps support for unusual content


5. Fully open source (meaning these projects could merge / fork into other things — check out that source!)

You can grab the Windows beta now, or inquire about Mac compatibility.

Mute VJ Project Page

I like the open source idea here, because so many visualists are developing their own projects and need a way of integrating them without reinventing the wheel. In sound software, this is pretty easy — just route audio from one place to another. But in visual software, you need everything to be integrated on the same output to the display, even more so if you’re not using a mixer (and many of us computer-based folks aren’t).

Let us know if you’ve got projects of your own or want to share more about Mute or other tools.

Video overview from the product creators:

Thanks to Yansky for the great tip!