Macromedia FlashCast

In 2002 Macromedia commissioned a series of applications to show how data-driven Flash could be deployed on mobile devices. I was tasked with designing a variety of apps including an entertainment calendar, weather channels, and a quick start guide.

Macromedia FlashCast

In 2002 Macromedia commissioned a series of applications to show how data-driven Flash could be deployed on mobile devices. I was tasked with designing a variety of apps including an entertainment calendar, weather channels, and a quick start guide.

1. Context

[↓] The mobile phones of 2002 forced us to work within considerable technical constraints. Memory, bandwidth, and storage were severely limited. Screen resolution was a tiny 176 x 208 pixels, and hardware controls allowed only a handful of interactions. Despite these limitations, we were able to make something that was quite rich and compelling for the time.

2. Wireframes

[↓] Since FlashCast was something new and the control scheme was very hardware-specific, I designed a getting started guide. When the iPhone was released five years later without a similar tutorial, it became clear that inflexible hardware control schemes have huge disadvantages compared to touch screens.

3. Visual Designs

[↓] I designed a local guide and two weather channels. The goal was to make them as rich as possible while providing up-to-date information that couldn't be easily accessed on cell phones of the day. Animated icons provided visual interest and differentiated FlashCast from competing mobile platforms.

4. On The Box!

[↓] The work we did in developing FlashCast helped Macromedia get the tooling ready for launch in Flash MX Professional 2004. I was surprised to see that my weather channel design was included on box.

1. Context

The mobile phones of 2002 forced us to work within considerable technical constraints. Memory, bandwidth, and storage were severely limited. Screen resolution was a tiny 176 x 208 pixels, and hardware controls allowed only a handful of interactions. Despite these limitations, we were able to make something that was quite rich and compelling for the time.

2. Wireframes

Since FlashCast was something new and the control scheme was very hardware-specific, I designed a getting started guide. When the iPhone was released five years later without a similar tutorial, it became clear that inflexible hardware control schemes have huge disadvantages compared to touch screens.

3. Visual Designs

I designed a local guide and two weather channels. The goal was to make them as rich as possible while providing up-to-date information that couldn't be easily accessed on cell phones of the day. Animated icons provided visual interest and differentiated FlashCast from competing mobile platforms.

4. On The Box

The work we did in developing FlashCast helped Macromedia get the tooling ready for launch in Flash MX Professional 2004. I was surprised to see that my weather channel design was included on box.

1. Context

The mobile phones of 2002 forced us to work within considerable technical constraints. Memory, bandwidth, and storage were severely limited. Screen resolution was a tiny 176 x 208 pixels, and hardware controls allowed only a handful of interactions. Despite these limitations, we were able to make something that was quite rich and compelling for the time.

2. Wireframes

Since FlashCast was something new and the control scheme was very hardware-specific, I designed a getting started guide. When the iPhone was released five years later without a similar tutorial, it became clear that inflexible hardware control schemes have huge disadvantages compared to touch screens.

3. Visual Designs

I designed a local guide and two weather channels. The goal was to make them as rich as possible while providing up-to-date information that couldn't be easily accessed on cell phones of the day. Animated icons provided visual interest and differentiated FlashCast from competing mobile platforms.

4. On The Box!

The work we did in developing FlashCast helped Macromedia get the tooling ready for launch in Flash MX Professional 2004. I was surprised to see that my weather channel design was included on box.

5. Impact + Takeaways

Macromedia used the demos we created to convince mobile phone operators and handset manufacturers to support Flash. By 2007, over 200 million Flash-enabled devices had been manufactured by Motorola, Nokia, NEC, LG, and others.

  • The memory and performance constraints on mobile phones were considerable in 2002. Every design choice had to be weighed and tested to ensure performance was fast enough.
  • Supporting a variety of phone models presented interesting usability challenges. We had to rely on five-way navigation pads and softkeys for input, but the placement of these controls could be radically different depending on phone manufacturer and carrier.
  • FlashCast didn't solve enough of the right problems to be successful in the long term. With the launch of the iPhone in 2007, we learned that delivering game-changing mobile experiences to the masses required reimagining hardware and software together.

5. Impact + Takeaways

Macromedia used the demos we created to convince mobile phone operators and handset manufacturers to support Flash. By 2007, over 200 million Flash-enabled devices had been manufactured by Motorola, Nokia, NEC, LG, and others.

  • The memory and performance constraints on mobile phones were considerable in 2002. Every design choice had to be weighed and tested to ensure performance was fast enough.
  • Supporting a variety of phone models presented interesting usability challenges. We had to rely on five-way navigation pads and softkeys for input, but the placement of these controls could be radically different depending on phone manufacturer and carrier.
  • FlashCast didn't solve enough of the right problems to be successful in the long term. With the launch of the iPhone in 2007, we learned that delivering game-changing mobile experiences to the masses required reimagining hardware and software together.

5. Impact + Takeaways

Macromedia used the demos we created to convince mobile phone operators and handset manufacturers to support Flash. By 2007, over 200 million Flash-enabled devices had been manufactured by Motorola, Nokia, NEC, LG, and others.

  • The memory and performance constraints on mobile phones were considerable in 2002. Every design choice had to be weighed and tested to ensure performance was fast enough.
  • Supporting a variety of phone models presented interesting usability challenges. We had to rely on five-way navigation pads and softkeys for input, but the placement of these controls could be radically different depending on phone manufacturer and carrier.
  • FlashCast didn't solve enough of the right problems to be successful in the long term. With the launch of the iPhone in 2007, we learned that delivering game-changing mobile experiences to the masses required reimagining hardware and software together.

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