Pulling the plug

[david50B9]

I'm tired.  I've been using Flash (Animate) for 20 years.  They've rolled out a few nice new features over the last decade, but with each release the program just gets more bug-riddled.  I came to the conclusion many years ago that no one at Adobe actually uses Animate on a day to day basis.  They may use it to make video tutorials,  but they don't road test it.  And they sure as hell don't have an adequate QA department.  It's obvious that Adobe doesn't have their heart behind this product anymore and they haven't for years now.  Probably since Jobs put the first nail in the coffin.

So,  after many years of hanging on, I'm finally letting go.  I'm cutting the cord.  You won't drag me down anymore, you magnificent beast.  I'm a free man.  Thanks for the good times.  I wish I had left you long ago, before it got ugly.  But that's on me.  I had too much faith in you.  I'll try to remember you as you once were.

Going to give  MOHO a shot.  Or ANYTHING ELSE.

Goodbye,

David Winn  (Happy Tree Friends)

[kglad]

if you're just using animate for 2d animation, what problems are you having?  that (2d animation) does seem to be the main focus of animate development.

[david50B9]

The problems are too numerous to mention here.  If you are truly interested in my input, I might respond to an email.  As I said in the post,  Animate has many great features, but there are so many problems and things that haven't been addressed in years that I just can't hang on anymore.  

[rayek.elfin]

I can relate. I came to that conclusion years ago and left it for other alternatives. I am currently using OpenToonz/Tahoma2d and an older version of Moho, with a spot of Blender. The only reason that I still use Animate/Flash at times is because of simple animations which must be imported into InDesign as OAM files. But I am switching to PubCoder for that work now, which means I no longer need Animate either.

Try OpenToonz/Tahoma2D and Moho. Blender is getting my attention for its 2d animation mode, because it supports all the advanced puppet rigging tools that one would ever need. And the complete seamless 2d/3d transition and support is quite mind-blowing. The GUI needs a lot of getting used to, however. Very, very different.

OpenToonz 1.4 was recently released!

https://opentoonz.github.io/e/index.html

https://tahoma2d.org/ (offshoot of OpenToonz with an easier GUI)

Also a good alternative: the free DUIK 2d character rigging tools for After Effects, which provides good 2d rigging tools. Interestingly enough, DUIK for Blender is in development:

https://rainboxlab.org/tools/duik-for-blender/

Obviously there's Toonboom, but I never got along with that app. The trouble with Moho is that the latest update is not really production ready due to unfinished features and bugs in the repurposing of rigs. It's not quite obvious what Moho's future will be at this point.

Blender 2d animation showcase:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vVziWi0vQkc

[david50B9]

Thank you SO MUCH for the reply.  The fact that you relate means enough, but you sharing all that good information about new avenues is GREATLY appreciated.

[rayek.elfin]

No worries, I used to earn my keep with Flash years and years ago.

About Moho: avoid version 13, but r12 is solid for the most part. OpenToonz is used in Japanese studios, and fully supports vector as well as bitmap. Great compositing tools similar to the nodes in Toonboom Harmony. Quite amazing that it is completely free.

Also have a look at Krita for background painting. Krita also supports (bitmap) animation, and will be compatible with the DUIK tools for Blender. It uses the OCA (Open Cel Animation) format to export the animation.

Loads of quality tools for free nowadays!

Finally, for storyboarding, check out Storyboarder:

https://github.com/wonderunit/storyboarder

Great (free!) storyboarding software.