We decided awhile ago that instead of complicating the Mag+ plug-in with tons of options and buttons, we’d just build wide support for HTML into the platform: Anything that’ll run in a webkit browser will run inside a Mag+ page. The problem: Not all print designers know how to code HTML.
So we created the Mag+ Feature Builder. It’s a Web-based tool – free and open to anyone with a Mag+ login (create one at magplus.com if you haven’t already) – that lets you build HTML elements like slideshows without touching any code. It’s kind of awesome, if I do say so.
Right now, we’ve only got four elements live – thumbnail slideshow, swiping slideshow, scrubbable slideshow (think 360-degree rotations) and online/offline content placeholders – but there are a ton of customization options: background colors, speed of transitions, navigation arrows. Just make all your choices, upload the photos and click Export and you’ll get your neat little HTML package back you can point to in your InDesign doc. The site even saves your back projects.
We’ll be adding more features to this over time, like forms, RSS feeds, video, more image options. But we’d love to hear in the comments what features you’d like to see, or if you’ve found any other great tools for building HTML bits and bobs.
For more on the site and how to incorporate HTML into Mag+, check out this video.
