First Online Multimedia Palm Magazine

[Dypsisdean]

It's been a while since we discussed the possibilities of publishing a Palm Journal type magazine online. I've been working with some revolutionary software that IMO makes a real nice web presentation in a magazine format. In addition, it allows for the addition and integration of several multimedia features such as audio and video.

This first edition has almost 30 pages of articles, photos, games, slideshows, etc. Below are some Low-Res screen captures of the cover and contents page. The feature article is on "Palms in Habitat." There's Jeff Marcus' new slideshow presentation of his exploration to Madagascar, recently given here in Hawaii that includes new photos and the long anticipated Part Two. There's the second $50 USD Palm Puzzle Contest, some background on the early history of the IPS, and much more. Don't miss the slideshow of a recently visited masterpiece of a Hawaiian garden.

Older computers (3+ years) may have some trouble viewing this magazine. If enough people have trouble, I can hopefully put up a less demanding version. So your feedback will be very much appreciated. There is a link on the first page with some tips/tricks for viewing on slower computers.

CLICK HERE FOR "PALM MAG ONLINE"

[www.dadluvsu.com]

Very cool Dean! Animated photos, this is the coolest! Can we get on an email list to alert of us of new issues?

Thanks for reminding me, I need to get my bamboo chimes fixed.

[John in Andalucia]

I like the retro look. My problem was the rain effects on page 10-11. My CPU peaked 100% and froze my web browser. This is probably just my PC, though. Great job, Dean.

[rozpalm]

Absolutely exceptional work! This is one of the coolest online mags I have ever seen. I especially love the insert presentations.

[palmislandRandy]

Thanks, Neat magazine! I'll store it & read it later!

[BS Man about Palms]

My computer is out for repair and I'm on a borrowed laptop. I was able to see most of it. Exceptional!!!

[George Sparkman]

Now that is cool !

Absolutely great piece of work Dean !

George Sparkman

Cycads-n-Palms.com

[PalmatierMeg]

Dean, great work. The biggest problem for me (likely nothing you can do about) is I can't read the text with my failing vision. Is there a way to increase the text size? But the visuals are fantastic. Well done.

[Kris]

Dear Dean

Very nice,and each page was so life like and the colour effect was simply as good as watching Hi Def 1080p in a sony Bravia LCD ! Great Work

Thanks for the link & also for informing us all whats latest happenings in the palm journal front !

And iam fully impressed page after page & with some audio too in the background !

Thanks & Love,

Kris

[8er-moni]

....... and froze my web browser. This is probably just my PC, though.

Sorry, I agree with John --- I'll try it later on again!

Thank you, Dave

[Geoff]

Incredible!!!!!

[Nick L]

Bravo!

[Kai]

I've got no words for this! Thanks!!!

When can we expect the next issue?

[SubTropicRay]

Phenomenal!!

[MattyB]

Oh, my! That's fracken awesome!!!!!!

[DoomsDave]

Very nice!

The still pictures were especially good, with all the glowing detail.

(Hmm. Want an article about Roystoneas in habitat?)

[Bob Johnson]

Palmtastic! Thanks for all of your work on this, Dean. You have made a real contribution to the palm community!

[Walter John]

I was hoping to read and see El Hoagies in OZ, maybe volume two.

Great mag.

[Nigel]

Very frustrated...... cant seem to turn the pages , anybody else having this problem ? I can turn them manually with the mouse but they always go back and if I click the next page button at bottom nothing seems to happen.

[osideterry]

I'm on a fast Mac with a high speed connection, and it's painfully slow trying to turn the pages. I'm in Safari... I'll try Firefox later.

[Cristóbal]

this is very good ! i use firefox, 2 giga speed of internet, 4 giga memory, i have no problem for see the magazine.

if other persons have problems, try eliminate the music.

cristóbal

[Dypsisdean]

Thanks to everyone. The feedback is very important for me to evaluate the format and make improvements. There is much more potential that this type of publication has to offer. I tried to demonstrate some of the possibilities. Perhaps other palm/plant societies will consider offering their publications as well. As mentioned, there was a lot to learn, and first attempts are never the best.

I will try to answer some of the questions and concerns below.

[Dypsisdean]

Very cool Dean! Animated photos, this is the coolest! Can we get on an email list to alert of us of new issues?

Thanks for reminding me, I need to get my bamboo chimes fixed.

Thanks Bill,

If you are registered for Palmpedia, I can send out a notice when the next issue is published. I don't anticipate more than three a year at this point. However, if I can get some more contributions (hint, hint) from members, I would be willing to do more, or do larger issues. I would especially like a more international flair. More on that later.

[Dypsisdean]

I like the retro look. My problem was the rain effects on page 10-11. My CPU peaked 100% and froze my web browser. This is probably just my PC, though. Great job, Dean.

Thanks John,

I would be especially interested in your feedback, because you understand computers. Do I remember that you use Linux, and Firefox? If so, try another browser, or boot to Windows. I have no idea how Linux handles Flash. You may also try tweaking your Flash settings for larger caching, etc.

The "Rain Effect," oddly enough turned out to be the most CPU intensive effect of all. I would be willing to eliminate that in a "slimmed down" version if it gives enough people a problem. But first I would hope you would all read and try the "Tips and Tricks." I will be adding some more tips from what I am learning here. TIPS AND TRICKS FOR SLOWER COMPUTERS

[Morabeza]

Thank you Dean for this fabulous contribution to palm lovers through Palmpedia!

The only trouble I had was with part 1 of Jeff Marcus' presentation. The slideshow stopped right as he began to mention stomach something with a slide of a food stall being shown (57:29 ish). The audio became very choppy and no more pictures progressed, not matter where I clicked the mouse on the progression slide. Reloading the page a few times didn't help either. Part 2 ran beautifully however!

FYI I am using Firefox 3.0.11, Windows Vista (service pack 1), Dual CPU 2.4 GHz, RAM 2 GB, 32 bit OS.

EDIT: I rebooted my computer and now part 1 is playing fine. Mahalo nui loa!

[Dypsisdean]

Dean, great work. The biggest problem for me (likely nothing you can do about) is I can't read the text with my failing vision. Is there a way to increase the text size? But the visuals are fantastic. Well done.

Meg,

You should be able to utilize the "Full Screen" and zoom buttons to make the text plenty large for even poor eyes. Did you try that? Experiment with the buttons at the top. There is a "Full Screen." There is also a "Fit to Screen" which for some browsers makes it even larger. Then there is the "+" and "-" buttons for zoom in and out. Please let me know how that works.

[Dypsisdean]

Very nice!

The still pictures were especially good, with all the glowing detail.

(Hmm. Want an article about Roystoneas in habitat?)

Dave,

Thanks for the offer. I've PMed you on Palmpedia. I am thinking about doing a feature on some of the "personalities" of the palm community. You would definitely qualify.

How about an audio interview?

Would anybody listen?

[Dypsisdean]

I was hoping to read and see El Hoagies in OZ, maybe volume two.

Great mag.

Talking about "personalities" of the palm community.

As you know Wal, I've been mentioning getting you in an interview, or showcasing your garden, or more video of some of your excursions, for a while now. And as mentioned above, I am especially interested in getting a more international flair to the next editions. I know that is agreeable to you as well. Let's talk.

I would love to do a slideshow presentation with Jack on his trip to OZ. Or anyone else's for that matter. It wouldn't be that difficult, so anyone with an interesting trip with some good photos, let me know. I can fix up the photos into a slideshow, and then you could narrate over the top. It would make a great article. Same for a Garden Showcase.

[Morabeza]

Dear Dean,

Thank you so much for the captions, they are really a bonus!

[Dypsisdean]

Very frustrated...... cant seem to turn the pages , anybody else having this problem ? I can turn them manually with the mouse but they always go back and if I click the next page button at bottom nothing seems to happen.

Nigel,

I would be interested in your computer specs and internet service. I could help you more with that info. Have you read the "TIPS AND TRICKS FOR SLOWER COMPUTERS" mentioned above? Try those suggestions and let me know. There is a link to a less intensive version that may have easier page turning for you.

If all else fails, and the demand is there, I will put together a 'slimmed down' version. But it kinda defeats the purpose if I start removing the motion effects, or reduce the quality of the photos and text.

[Dypsisdean]

I'm on a fast Mac with a high speed connection, and it's painfully slow trying to turn the pages. I'm in Safari... I'll try Firefox later.

Terry,

Something has to be wrong. The whole thing was designed and test driven on a Mac laptop 2.33 Ghz Intel Core Duo w/3 GB Ram, and it plays flawlessly. It almost even plays on an old slow PowerBook with Firefox.

Give me your specs. I'm sure I can help, if as you say, you have a fast Mac. It may be your Flash settings.

[MattyB]

I'm using a PC, Intel Core 2 Quad w/ 4 GB RAM on Internet Explorer and I have no problems whatsoever. I don't know what that means but I asked my Dad.

[Dypsisdean]

Thank you Dean for this fabulous contribution to palm lovers through Palmpedia!

The only trouble I had was with part 1 of Jeff Marcus' presentation. The slideshow stopped right as he began to mention stomach something with a slide of a food stall being shown (57:29 ish). The audio became very choppy and no more pictures progressed, not matter where I clicked the mouse on the progression slide. Reloading the page a few times didn't help either. Part 2 ran beautifully however!

FYI I am using Firefox 3.0.11, Windows Vista (service pack 1), Dual CPU 2.4 GHz, RAM 2 GB, 32 bit OS.

Edit: Jacob, I saw your edit and am pleased it worked for you on second try. I'll leave this response for other's benefit. Aloha

Jacob,

I bet if you tried again, you wouldn't have that problem. Those slideshows have been pretty solid. The software anticipates your connection speed so it can start playing before the whole slideshow is loaded. It buffers (waits) until the download gets far enough ahead of the playing so as not to be a concern. The idea is that it will always stay ahead of the slideshow. On those longer slideshows, if something happens and your internet connection slows, it may catch up and cause a problem. You could always pause the play for a minute or two and that would assure the buffer gets way ahead of the play. No one anticipated hour long slideshows when they designed sildeshow software. This one seems to be the best I found.

You could start the slideshow again, pause it and wait for a few minutes as it downloads, then use the slide bar or thumbnails to advance to the part you didn't get to see.

[Dypsisdean]

And to everyone who didn't ask questions, but offered feedback and encouragement.............

THANK YOU

[LJG]

Just FYI Dean, I had the same thing happen. IE 7. I think it is a browser issue.

Now I know where you have been hiding out. You have been busy. because the old Dean would have wanted to kill that cat you were told about that is destroying your palms in the Cali yard. 20 palms completely clawed up. This has to be the size of a cougar too.

Very frustrated...... cant seem to turn the pages , anybody else having this problem ? I can turn them manually with the mouse but they always go back and if I click the next page button at bottom nothing seems to happen.

[Morabeza]

Hi Dean,

Just another note, perhaps my success in viewing part 1 later had to do with a detail that I left out, I restarted my computer (not just my browser) and tried again. Perhaps this is a missing link for others who had preliminary issues.

Thank you again!

Thank you Dean for this fabulous contribution to palm lovers through Palmpedia!

The only trouble I had was with part 1 of Jeff Marcus' presentation. The slideshow stopped right as he began to mention stomach something with a slide of a food stall being shown (57:29 ish). The audio became very choppy and no more pictures progressed, not matter where I clicked the mouse on the progression slide. Reloading the page a few times didn't help either. Part 2 ran beautifully however!

FYI I am using Firefox 3.0.11, Windows Vista (service pack 1), Dual CPU 2.4 GHz, RAM 2 GB, 32 bit OS.

Edit: Jacob, I saw your edit and am pleased it worked for you on second try. I'll leave this response for other's benefit. Aloha

Jacob,

I bet if you tried again, you wouldn't have that problem. Those slideshows have been pretty solid. The software anticipates your connection speed so it can start playing before the whole slideshow is loaded. It buffers (waits) until the download gets far enough ahead of the playing so as not to be a concern. The idea is that it will always stay ahead of the slideshow. On those longer slideshows, if something happens and your internet connection slows, it may catch up and cause a problem. You could always pause the play for a minute or two and that would assure the buffer gets way ahead of the play. No one anticipated hour long slideshows when they designed sildeshow software. This one seems to be the best I found.

You could start the slideshow again, pause it and wait for a few minutes as it downloads, then use the slide bar or thumbnails to advance to the part you didn't get to see.

[Palm Guy]

This is some awesome stuff Dean. Well done and hopefully more is to come!

[Dypsisdean]

Just FYI Dean, I had the same thing happen. IE 7. I think it is a browser issue.

Now I know where you have been hiding out. You have been busy. because the old Dean would have wanted to kill that cat you were told about that is destroying your palms in the Cali yard. 20 palms completely clawed up. This has to be the size of a cougar too.

Very frustrated...... cant seem to turn the pages , anybody else having this problem ? I can turn them manually with the mouse but they always go back and if I click the next page button at bottom nothing seems to happen.

Without info on what computer you're on I can't offer a solution. But most everyone uses IE 7, so I doubt that's the issue. Any dual core CPU with a decent video card should turn those pages easily. My 2.33 Ghz Dual Core Intel Mac runs it perfectly with all five browsers I tested it on. IE7, Safari, Firefox, Opera, and Camino, both in OSX and Vista. I would really like to know your specs and fix your problem, so I could tell any others with the same issue. Please let me know.

There are still palms in the Cali garden???

[edric]

Outstanding work! You've really out done yourself Dean, I can only imagine the work involved, I had no problems with it so far, I will finish, and submit a short conclusion, Ed

[Palm Guy]

Now that I'm thinking about this more... and I'm not sure if this has been proposed by someone else since I didnt read the whole post. but this will be a good cost effective alternative to having the quarterly Palms subscription mailed out from the IPS. Don't get me wrong, I do enjoy receiving my hard copy but I could see this becoming quite popular!