In addition to all bug fixes, the ability to use blend modes with the PixelRenderer has now been implemented. For a full list of changes, see the changelog here:

http://github.com/andrewfitz/desuade/blob/P251M151/changelog.txt

Stay tuned, the official Desuade Partigen 2.5 plugin release is coming next week!

Whew, it’s been a long time coming.

This is huge update that brings some incredible updates to Partigen, and some of those innovations trickled down into the DMP v1.5 (like object pooling). This is the biggest update to Partigen since the original 2.0 release, and am stoked about all the improvements.

Let’s take a look at what’s new since the original 2.0 release:

• pixel renderer and pixel-based effects
• tremendously improved performance and memory management with new object pooling for particles, particle sources, and tweens
• support for particle filters and XML filter support
• renderers start/stop automagically without needing to do it manually anymore
• caching particles as bitmaps
• more rendering options such as predraw, removeAllParticles(), and clear()
• improved custom Random class
• prefetching allows you to start emitters as if the effect has already been running for a while
• XML support for renderers
• BitmapCanvas class allows for super easy use and duplication of Bitmap/PixelRenderers
• blendmode support for particles
• groupBitmaping to improve performance on particles with a high groupAmount
• particles can now be any class, without having to extend Particle
• all the improvements in the Desuade Motion Package
• plus over 50 bug fixes, tweaks, changes, and minor enhancements

By now, you can tell this is huge – big enough to be a full new version release. If you’re interested, you can checkout the full changelog here: http://github.com/andrewfitz/desuade/blob/master/changelog.txt

Now the bad news.

Unfortunately, the developer helping with the backport to AS2 totally failed to come through… so no AS2 version. It’s actually an incredible amount of extra work, and I still decide to place my energy on the future instead of the past. So we’re still AS3 only, unless somebody else wants to give it a go.

Regardless, this release is has been incredible amount of work, and I really hope you try it out and share it with your friends because the more feedback I get, the more work I put into it for you.

The commercial Flash extension and plugin is almost done being upgraded to 2.5 as well, and will be released sometime in July. Trust me, it’s worth the wait.

So stop – and download the latest Partigen 2.5 library and examples now here:

http://desuade.com/partigen/download

Enjoy, and let me know what you think!

(PS. The docs have been updated with all the new additions to 2.5 - http://api.desuade.com/)

With tremendous help from Peter Elst, we’re working on getting Partigen backported to AS2 for those of you still required to use it. AS2/AS3 components for the plugin will be provided together in 1 package for the same price. Unlike most other component developers, I don’t feel the need to ask for more money just for another language (even though it’s almost double the work). The goal is to get the AS2/AS3 version working seamless as possible, regardless of which you’re using in your document.

Releasing new versions of the extension is a big effort (1-2 weeks of packaging, documentation, site updates, testing, etc), so instead of releasing many 2.1, 2.2, 2.3 updates, I’ve decided to just do 1 big shebang as version 2.5 with lots and lots of improvements to the plugin (and libraries). There’s really a lot of free goodness coming with this update, and here’s a sneak peak of what will be new since v2.0:

• (Maybe) Particle filter support
• (Maybe) Faster performance with better pooling
• Flash CS5 and AS2 Support
• Emitter prefetching (start emitters as if they’ve already been running)
• BitmapRenderer now starts/stops automagically (no need to start()/stop() renderers anymore)
• Lots of other new BitmapRenderer goodies
• Renderer support via XML (allowing preset bitmap effects in the UI!)
• New BitmapCanvas component to simplify BitmapRenderers
• Particle Blendmode
• Use any DisplayObject as a particle without needed to extend it
• Improved Particle grouping with Bitmaping support
• Indicators always show in IDE development mode
• New and improved presets
• Lots of bug fixes and refinements

So there you have it, a sneak peek at the new features in Desuade Partigen 2.5! If you’ve taken a look at some of the demos recently, you’ll see Partigen 2.5 in action.

Due to working with two code bases now, both AS2 and AS3, development time will take a bit longer, with a planned release sometime early summer. After that, effort will be put into documentation, tutorials, and examples.

This release comes with lots of goodies, so let’s get straight to it and see the major changes in this release:

Motion:

• MotionController.start(keyframe, startTime) – Allows you to start a controller at the given time as if it’s already been running
• ClassSequence – duration, startAtTime(), getPositionInTime() for Tween-based classes only
• Tween and BasicTween now have run() method to statically perform a tween instead of creating an object
• BasicTween.position

Partigen:

• Emitter prefetching – allows you to start an emitter as if it’s already been running
• XML support for Renderers in Emitters – allowing bitmap effect presets
• BitmapCanvas class for BitmapRenderer for easy management of BitmapRenderers
• emitter.particleBlendMode – blendmode for particles
• emitter.groupBitmap – lets particle groups be created as bitmaps
• emitters now automatically start their renderers on start()
• emitter.particle can now be any class, and does not have to inherit from BasicParticle
• BitmapRenderer no longer asks for BitmapData (not backwards-compatible)
• BasicParticle and Particle classes inherently use groups (removed BasicGroupParticle, GroupParticle)

As you can see, there’s some pretty awesome additions brought into the package, mostly refining and enhancing Partigen 2. These changes will soon be reflected in the upcoming Partigen 2.1 plugin as well, most importantly with XML support for BitmapRenderers and a BitmapCanvas component.

Download your copy now: http://desuade.com/partigen/download or http://desuade.com/dmp/download

You will receive an email automatically when you purchase Partigen, and spam filters are the number 1 suspect when your license email never come – so be sure to check them first!

If you ever lose your information (or never seem to have gotten it), just visit this page and you’ll get it in a jiffy:

http://desuade.com/support/license

So a few changes and updates that are expected to be tackled in Partigen 2.1 include:

• Use any DisplayObject as particle without inheriting from Particle
• XML-based renderers
• BitmapCanvas class greatly simplifies BitmapRenderers
• Improved particle grouping
• Emitter.groupBitmap provides huge performance boost
• Particle blendmodes
• Misc performance improvements

These should provide some really nice improvements for the engine, and bubble up into the actual plugin. Those improvements are under the hood, and a few more interface improvements will also be expected.

Oh, and ActionScript 2… well it seems a large majority of users still use or are required to code in AS2. Desuade is all about focusing on the future, but leaving behind half a user-base is unacceptable. So, after the 2.1 codebase is complete, it will be ported back to AS2. There will be performance issues of course, but it will be better than no AS2 at all.

Expect some roll outs on the GIT server for you early adopters, and sometime next week for 2.1 release for the AS3 library!

http://desuade.com/partigen

I have included many new demos, videos, tutorials, and lots of other good stuff to really show off the kind of Flash particle effects Partigen 2 is capable of. Most importantly, how quickly and easily it is to make them.

I hope this helps you make a more informed decision deciding how right Partigen 2 is for you, your company, and clients. Let me know what you think!

Again, you can check out the new pages here and here.

Update: there was an issue with the Partigen Buy Now page that has now been resolved. If you had any issues purchasing, please try again now, thank you.