At work, we've been discussing the best way to convert the application I'm working on to a web app. That is, how and when to do so. I just started watching some how-to videos on Adobe Flex to learn about the greatness that I've heard so much about. I won't be doing the programming, but it's nice to know what the programmer is talking about, you know?
I must say, I am quite disappointed in the quality of these videos. I'm no expert, but I've made some how-to videos in my time, so I'd like to think I know a little of what they should be like. And Adobe is such a large company! It sounds like they made these videos very fast with little regard to quality. Much of the time, they show you screenshots instead of screencasts. That's just not right. If you're going to show me a video on how to use your program, let's see some actual video!
There are also poor transitions between segments in each video. She'll be showing me how to do one thing, then everything instantly changes so she can show me something else. This is very disruptive and distracting to the eye. I'm trying to follow the cursor, but if it 'jumps around', I can't. It would be better to fade in and out of totally different segments.
Furthermore, the audio quality is rather poor. It is very noticeable to me when the narrator lady moves slightly away from or closer to the mic. I can hear the mouse click every time she changes...slides? I'm not quite sure why there's so much clicking actually. While I should be able to hear the mouse click during a screencast to know what she's doing, I should not hear it any other time. I could also hear a bird chirping in the background. Bad form.
Basically, it's painful to watch all these videos, but I must. I'm disappointed in you, Adobe. I thought you would do better.
3 comments:
The tutorials are simple and straightforward. There are no algorithms discussed, so no complexity there. The concepts are introduced with a user interface so visual people can follow along.
The narrator has a calming voice. Have you heard the event propagation video? Meditative. :)
Additionally, the explanations might seem long but these are things that are internalized by experienced developers. It's not a lot once you've learned it.
Adobe has done a great job. I'm only on Day 1, and I'm optimistic. I'm a programmer and these basic videos are a great introduction.
Maybe that's my problem...I'm not a programmer. And I care about quality and presentation.
Quality and presentation are valid criteria. And kudos for trying to understand your programmers.
I'm just saying, for a introduction to the API in video format, it's awright.
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