JParallax - Javascript parallax effect | Hacker News Reader

JParallax - Javascript parallax effect

webdev.stephband.info

91 pointsdhotson20 comments

Neato... Now if someone could just combine this with eye-tracking (http://news.ycombinator.org/item?id=287626), we could have 3D web "windows" ala:

http://www.cs.cmu.edu/~johnny/projects/wii/

I never get tired of that head tracking video... It's definitely one of the coolest hacks I've seen. :)

Web 2.0: reinventing the wheel.

Seriously, how is 20 yr (30?) old client-side technology implemented in a browser considered news? Yes, browser programming is a pain in the ass, but a PITA platform is nothing new.

"... Seriously, how is 20 yr (30?) old client-side technology implemented in a browser considered news? ..."

Because you can do interesting things with open technology on a large range of platforms without some vendor getting in the way. I know one application straight away (comics) that could use this technique to create more compelling interactive stories.

It's not what you think of the technology, but what you can do with it.

If you want to pseudo-replicate this effect using css only, here are some examples and tutorials:

http://www.thinkvitamin.com/features/design/how-to-recreate-...

http://css-tricks.com/3d-parralax-background-effect/

The effect is only visible when someone resizes the browser window, but it's kind of neat nonetheless.

I love parallax effects. Reminds me of all those days "wasted" playing aracade when I was a kid.

Not to be a pedant, but this is not really the parallax effect. Parallax happens when you receive multiple images of the same object simultaneously from different perspectives. This library gives you simulated depth from the animation of a single image.

True but as game far as game developers/fans use the word - this is parallaxing.

Yes. I'm not a game developer, but I have seen this referred to as "parallax scrolling"

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parallax_scrolling

"Parallax is an apparent displacement or difference of orientation of an object viewed along two different lines of sight"

I don't recall anything about parallax requiring receiving multiple images simultaneously. Can you elaborate?

Standard Compliance Enthusiasts will not stop until everything that would be done in flash by a sane person is ported to some strange js+html+css solution. :D

li tags transformed to this instead of just one embedded srolling.swf?! I can think of almost nothing (except full games) where a plugin would be better suited.

Still I admit it's cool!

Yes, there is a bit of reinvention, but I would prefer JS to take over from Flash. Flash just doesn't integrate as nicely with the standard the web paradigms ...

jQuery just rocks.

It doesn't hurt that, while Flash (e.g. versions 9, 10) is getting faster (Lower CPU usage), Javascript in the browser is becoming insanely fast.

Flash is quickly becoming irrelevant in categories it seemed to be the only option.

still a long way to go however....

mainly SVG, video and audio

Surely we're not that far away.

I guess it's time I started using jquery.

I'd recommend jQuery, not just because of this library but because it really is worth using. Their motto "The Write less, Do More..." really holds true. Plus, it's fast, and will be even faster with John Resig integrates his new selector engine into the base jQuery.

Edit: I should have mentioned the other fact that jQuery aims to be compatible with other libraries such as Prototype by allowing you to change how it's used. I've never used it personally, but it might be helpful for you if you're adopting jQuery after having used another library for a while.

You mean using it is fast, or it runs fast? The new selector engine will make it easier to write stuff, or the code will run faster?

That's been what's holding me back - I'm worried it'll be slower to run on browsers (especially old ones on old computers) then code written to do just what it needs to and no more.

Sorry for not being clear.

It runs fast, and is fast to use.

The new selector engine will make it even faster to run.

I haven't had any problems with jQuery running on browsers before IE 6, but I honestly haven't tried it on anything older than that.

Any ideas for something cool I could do with this? I'll do it!

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