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Web tool disappoints

Arman Danesh

AuraLine promises to be 'the simplest, fastest and most affordable' way to use the Java language to create multimedia-intensive Web pages and Powerpoint presentations.

Of course, with the limited range of Java multimedia creation kits, that may not be saying much.

However, there are products such as Net-it Now! (www.net-it.com) and Jamba, (www.jamba.com) which produce respectable Java-based multimedia presentations and are even easier to use than AuraLine.

When I first came across AuraLine, I was filled with great hope. So, when I got a chance to install and run it, I was disappointed.

Its basic framework is a timeline approach with rows representing graphics, text, sound, logic and other elements of a presentation. It is possible to place the above elements into these rows, add new rows and create logic and interactions between elements and the user.

The flexibility to design the layout of a frame or to produce high-quality text without the need to render it as a graphic is limited.

There are a respectable range of effects to bring an image into the frame and have it leave, ranging from slide effects to fades, but controlling placement of the image requires either typing position co-ordinates in a dialogue box or using a limited page canvas without placement aids.

There is no way to group, align or rotate images, and beyond basic style manipulation (for example, underlining), there is no way to control the size, appearance, font or style of text.

This means anything beyond the most basic text, including headlines and logos, needs to be changed into graphic images and imported into AuraLine. This makes quick changes difficult and makes AuraLine ill-suited to large amounts of text in a frame.

In many ways, AuraLine falls somewhere between Macromedia Director, which takes a timeline-based approach to interactive multimedia authoring, and PowerPoint, which is more of a canvas approach. Unfortunately, AuraLine fails to match either in terms of intuitiveness or power.

Still, at $19.95, it is probably unfair to expect to find a tool comparable to those 10 times or 30 times more expensive. But, the product promises a lot while delivering what feels like far less.

What power is present in the tool is deeply hidden in a cumbersome and less-than-powerful interface.

While Auraline can produce quick Java animations and interactive buttons which run on any platform using Java or in a Powerpoint presentation, there is little more on offer.

However, there are a few features which may make the $19.95 price a worthwhile investment.

AuraLine comes with a media library with over 5,000 items, such as graphics and sound clips, which can be easily browsed.

It also provides an easy way to convert graphics and sound into playable Java applets to bypass platform compatibility issues when distributing such items.

However, for any powerful multimedia work - Java or not - AuraLine does not hold its own against other tools with better interfaces and more to offer.

PROS AND CONS Vendor: NEC Systems Laboratory Price: US$19.95 Pros: Uses Java to create Web pages and Powerpoint presentations Cons: Clumsy handling of text, difficult to use

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