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Macromedia Director is a powerful media application created by Macromedia. Its proprietary scripting language Lingo motivated some to use this application. Many companies deliver demonstrations or use it as a user interface (UI) for content on CDs and DVDs. It can incorporate many different formats (e.g. AVI, BMP, QuickTime, PNG, JPEG, RealVideo) thus making it possible to integrate without re-encoding files. It also supports vector graphics and 3D interactivity, which is great for producing games. Version MX and its successors are also easily linked with Flash animation. Since version MX 2004, one can use JavaScript instead of the Lingo.
Director started out under the title "VideoWorks", an application for the original Apple Macintosh. Its name was changed to "Director" with the addition of new capabilities and the Lingo scripting language, around 1987. A Windows version was available in the early 1990s.
At its peak in 1992, over 70% of CD-ROM multimedia titles were authored using Director.
Some users have criticised Director for its confusing interface, which has been extended over time from its original "spreadsheet" paradigm. In its earliest incarnation, this approach (called "the score" within the application) was very simple and easy to understand, but not very flexible. The later addition of the scripting language Lingo added flexibility, but in many ways did not fit well with the linear timeline representation of the Score. In particular, multimedia authors coming from a conventional programming background have often found that while the actual syntax of Lingo is easy enough to understand, determining the overall flow of control throughout a project can be a frustrating and time-consuming experience. This is particularly true when maintaining previously written projects, leading some critics to dub Director/Lingo a "write-only" authoring system.
The files created by Director can be viewed using the Shockwave plugin.
See also: Revolution (development environment), Simple DirectMedia Layer, GLPro
Recent Versions
- Director MX 2004
- Director MX
- Director 8.5
- Director 8.0
- Director 7.0
- Director 6.5
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