14 DAY TRIAL // Most people think that application development is something that only programmers can do successfully, and they are usually right. From time to time, something happens and all that you knew crumbles down like a tower made of playing cards. Although most such events remain unknown to the public, they will have an influence in the future - just think about the first jet plane that flew in 1912 or the alternative energy sources available now and you'll understand what I am trying to say here.
Moving a step further, I'll get to multimedia applications development, today's topic. Programs like media players, basic Web browsers or CD interfaces can be built the hard way, using traditional programming and design, or the easy way, using a multimedia authoring tool like today's target.
The authoring tool that we're going to check out now is called Multimedia Builder MP3, has reached version 4.9.7 and comes as a full featured trial version (the exported content will be watermarked until you buy the program). The installation kit has 20MB in size and the setup process goes on without any problem. Once you finish downloading and installing the program, it's time for the game to begin!
First of all, let's talk about this program's interface. I must admit that I was expecting more from a program from this family released less than a year ago. What I don't like with it are the old looking icons and the overall feeling of "years behind", but if we talk about ease of use, then things get a little better.
Most authoring tools come with built in templates and/or examples to help you speed up the program learning process, and Multimedia Builder MP3 is no exception to this rule, so the best thing to do after starting the program for the first time is to choose the New from Template option from the File menu.
All you have to do now is follow the Project Wizard and do as it says, nothing more. When you will press the Finish button, you will be taken to your project with the basic settings already configured. Now you have to add content and change behavior of the application's elements.
A Multimedia Builder project is organized in two directions, when looking on the program's interface. First, you have the layered objects, placed into a panel to the right of the main work area, and at the bottom you can find the pages of your current project.
The objects are the elements of your program's interface, including invisible ones, such as scripts or plugins, while each page guides you to a new area that needs to be set up (for example, the media player template has two pages - the main interface and the About screen; if you were to design a program like WinAmp, then you would have a page for the main screen, one for the Playlist, Equalizer, and so on, each one having its own objects).
When working with this program you don't have to be afraid that the result won't be what you're expecting, since we're talking about a WYSIWYG application here. The objects that can be added start with text and finish with plugins, but the list is long enough to make most people happy, including interactive elements like text input fields, VR panoramas and more.
Adding objects like images and music without the ability to apply additional effects to them would be a really sad thing, and Multimedia Builder MP3 won't leave you crying in the rain, but provide a pack of nice effects to use. There are three categories available, and the last one, called Interactive Effects, allows you to add three items which interact with the user, but these are things to see, so I'll jump to the real power pack of this program before drawing the conclusions.
No one could deny that programming is much powerful than drag&drop, template-based design, but also traditional programming languages are harder to learn. This fact led to the birth and development of scripting languages that are extremely popular today, most advanced applications having their own one.
In our case, Multimedia Builder MP3 has a language that uses natural English language and shouldn't be too hard to learn, especially when considering the excellent documentation for it included in the program's Help file.
I won't fool you and say what an amazing application for everybody we have here, because we can't change reality. A lot of people run from programming like a vampire chased by a 10 ton truck loaded with fresh garlic, and no matter how easy could be a scripting language, they won't even try to use it. Multimedia Builder MP3 can help you achieve great results, but you have to save some time (and money, if you'll get along well) for it.
The Good
Multimedia Builder MP3 comes with a powerful scripting language, wizards that will help you work faster and a lot of other features that you'll have to discover. The program's interface is skinnable and additional plugins are supported.
The Bad
The worst parts of this program, in my opinion, are its interface and lack of built in templates. The price would be fair if all the graphic parts of the application, especially icons, would be updated to this day's standards, but as I see it now, the price is a bit high.
The Truth
If you are not into programming at all, and don't want to hear about it, then you shouldn't expect much from Multimedia Builder MP3, but you can give it a chance. For the others, this can be an excellent solution for quick multimedia application development, and my only advice is to grab the program, install it and see if it suits your needs. Good luck!
Here are some snapshots of the application in action:
