Trace Systems, Inc

TCPmaker Pro gives you all these great capabilities because it does things in a brand new way.

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Flash demo

The old way of making interactive content on embedded web server devices used HTML and AJAX, a Javascript technology that works differently on different web browsers. That approach suffers from a lot of problems:

• Hard to lay out - it can be difficult to position things precisely in HTML and CSS. You can often get surprises: your layout might look fine in one browser (e.g. Firefox), but not in another (perhaps Internet Explorer).
• Complex to program - requiring you, the embedded designer to acquire deep knowledge of unfamiliar web technologies (and their quirky behavior on different browsers)
• Bulky content - your device would have to store, and serve up when required, a lot of what amounts to source code (both HTML and Javascript). All too often, your device would run out of storage before you got your design looking good enough.
• Not very attractive - The combvination of HTML and AJAX tends to make interactive content that look flat and "texty" : sliders that look like flat text boxes rather than real controls.

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The TCPmaker Way uses Adobe Flash to provide great-looking interactive web controls that react quickly and look right in all browers. Adobe Flash comes pre-installed in all new PCs, and is already installed on 95% of all PCs in the world.

• Easy to Lay Out - controls stay where you put them
• No Browser Dependence - your layout looks right in any browser that works with Adobe Flash. Which means ALL of them.
• Easy to program - No PC programming at all, no Javascript or AJAX to learn. Just fill in simple event handlers in your PIC code!
• Content is small - device stored and serves up content in compiled form. A simple layout will fit in 32KB, though we suggest that you provide a bit more storage space in your hardware design, so you can use anything that TCPmaker can do for you.
• Attractive 3-D look - controls look like something that you can click or grab on to and drag. You can make professional looking layouts in minutes!

"Will My End Users Already Have Adobe Flash On Their Computers?"

Yes, it is highly likely that they will. Adobe says that its Flash plugin is available on 99% of all PCs in the world, and is pre-installed on ALL new PCs. The Adobe Flash Player is available for free for the PC, Mac, and Linux platforms.

"Will I Need To Buy The Flash Development Software From Adobe To Use TCPmaker?"

Absolutely NOT! All you need is TCPmaker and your PIC compiler, as well as a demo board or your own design, that is capable of running the Microchip TCPIP Stack.

If you want to design Flash animations or vector graphic images to display in your TCPmaker device, you can buy Adobe Flash, or one of the many inexpensive Flash drawing and authoring tools that are available on the web, some of which cost as little as $50.