Adobe Debuts HTML5 Animation Editor

Adobe has been claiming that it loves HTML5 just as much as it does Flash, a technology it owns. So far though, while there have been a few exceptions, it hasn't had much to back up that claim.

With the release of Adobe Edge, an animation design tool which relies on HTLM5, CSS, JavaScript and so on, the company finally has something to silence the critics.

The tool is labeled as a 'preview,' meaning that it's an initial beta with missing features and probably some issues, but it's concrete evidence that Adobe wants to and can support HTML5 along with Flash.

"Adobe Edge is a new web motion and interaction design tool that allows designers to bring animated content to websites, using web standards like HTML5, JavaScript, and CSS3," the company wrote.

"Edge will be updated regularly to add new functionality, stay ahead of evolving web standards, and incorporate user feedback to provide the best functionality and experience possible," it added.

"This is an early look at Edge with more capabilities to come," it concluded.

The technology for smooth and interesting animations using nothing than standard web stuff is here, but, until now, it required developers to hand write all of the code to handle this.

Adobe Edge is aimed at professionals wanting a more visual approach and should appeal to designers in particular.

The new tool features a familiar timeline in which designers can define the events and stages of the animation.

Users can provide HTML files or web graphics as starting points and the tool spills out neatly arranged HTML, CSS and JavaScript files when it's done.

There is also a live preview of the animation created, courtesy of an embedded WebKit browser engine, to provide real-time feedback.

Animations created with Adobe Edge will work in modern browsers on many devices, but there is still clearly a place for Adobe Flash and the company doesn't plan on replacing the technology with HTML5 or anything else any time soon.