Microsoft Corp. today announced the release of Microsoft Liquid Motion version 1.0 beta, a new tool that enables developers to create and publish animations on their Web sites.
Many Web sites use animated images to grab the attention of their visitors. By using Liquid Motion, even beginners are able to use animation to improve the experience their site conveys by simply pointing and clicking in the Liquid Motion environment, which is fully integrated with Microsoft FrontPage.
Features of Liquid Motion:
- Animations are developed using point-and-click methods
- Ships with a library of Web ready content, including smoke, bubbles, twirlers and more
- One-button publishing capability optimizes the animation for different browsers and outputs an HTML file that can be used on any Web server
- Developers can use the Publishing Wizard to publish animations directly into a FrontPage-based Web
- Beginners can utilize pre-packaged Web effects such as spin and sparkles, while advanced users can work with advanced multimedia features such as time effects and inner scenes
- Includes support for 3-D graphics, MPEG audio, DirectAnimation and DirectMusic APIs, Dynamic HTML, and vectors
- The interface of Liquid Motion is similar to Microsoft Office and Frontpage, including common toolbars and buttons, similar menu items and shortcuts
- All these features act like building blocks, allowing users to build on what they have already learned to create more complex animations
- Includes tutorials and sample animations, online user guides and special “how do I” help files written for beginners
- No plug-ins required
- Supports MSIE 4.0, 3.0, 2.0; Netscape 4.0, 3.0, 2.0; America Online and UNIX browsers, or any browser with Java support
Liquid Motion 1.0 beta is available for download from the Microsoft Liquid Motion Web site. The full release will sell for a retail price of $149, while current MSFrontPage or Office users may purchase it for $54.95.