• Adobe Media Encoder with H.264 now supports the standard in high-quality/low-bandwidth video content. You will be able to deliver higher quality video faster and more reliable than ever before.
Obviously the huge feature is the object-based animation model. This is something that not only will save time and frustration, but I believe that it will be the feature that does separate Flash CS4 from other products and will keep it unrivaled as a design application tool. Many more will be able to create better Flash animations, and hence, make it more approachable to new users.
The 3D tools are a good start and I hope that Adobe will continue down this path in the future by adding more 3D abilities. The Bones tool is also a welcomed addition and while they take a little bit to get the hang of, they are well worth your time. The Adobe AIR is cool in that it lets you create and test AIR applications with no hassle or complications. And the rest of the features, while not as big as these, certainly add to an already powerful upgrade.
While there may be some who are not thrilled with learning a new way of doing things in Flash, there will be many more that Flash will become much more accessible to. In my review of the prior version I said, "The downside is still the fact that it is a complex program to learn and it will still be frustrating to new users." Well this version has taken a huge step to correct this and I think that we are beginning to see the benefit of Adobe taking over this product. If you use Adobe Flash, or are considering learning Flash, now is the time to do it. I very highly recommend this product.
Article comments