It can be argued that animations and particularly transitions are integral part of innovative mobile experiences for iOS and Android. Nowadays, UXers must know about motion design and staging. While there are tools out there which are built for prototyping animations, Axure has similar if not identical capability with the help of few technologies. In this presentation, we will go over the current animation limitations of Axure 7.0 including firing multiple animations on the same item, resizing, animation origin and others. In the process we will step by step build a complex animation sequence with the help of AxQuery (Axure’s flavor of jQuery) and CSS3 transform properties. This presentation will give you the tools to build animations otherwise not possible in Axure such as dynamic rotations, varying the animation speed with custom Bezier curves, and others.

1. Here Be Dragons
How to Extend Axure’s
Animation Capability
by Svetlin Denkov
@svetlindenkov
+

2. Who Am I?

3. WHO AM I
Svetlin “Svet” Denkov
**Pseudo name on Axure Forums = light_forger
Ÿ UXer with passion for IxD & Vis. Design
Ÿ DePaul HCI Graduate
Ÿ Constantly evolves own prototyping tool
kit with different technologies
Ÿ Writes and presents when the muse
strikes him J
Ÿ Oh, and a GoT fan! Go crows!

4. What We Will Cover

5. WHAT WE WILL COVER
Topics & Demos
- Animation limitations of Axure 7.0
- How to do code injection
- Basics of using CSS and jQuery
- Transitions and Transforms in CSS3
…and if time allows (fingers crossed):
- Building custom Bezier curves
- CSS Filter property
**Main content will be supplemented by a series of demos!

6. WHAT WE WILL COVER
Not in Scope
- Multi-line code injection with Axure Plugins
- CSS 3D rotations and perspective property
- Taking it further with SVG
- External animation libraries such as Velocity.js
**Feel free to drop me a line at @svetlindenkov
after the presentation with questions.

7. WHAT WE WILL COVER
Code Notation
stuff – Axure actions/events or jQuery/CSS code
<stuff> - Code placeholder
stuff – Putting extra attention
**I promise, this will be entertaining. No, really! J

8. Axure & Animation
1

9. AXURE & ANIMATION
Robust Event Model
widget-based
page-based

10. AXURE & ANIMATION
Rich User-customizable Actions

11. AXURE & ANIMATION
Some Level of Transition Support
“Show” action
“Set Panel to State” action

12. AXURE & ANIMATION
Capabilities
- Moving widgets by a distance/to a location
- Changing state of a widget via dynamic panels
- Showing/hiding widgets
- Scaling widgets
- Text manipulations

13. AXURE & ANIMATION
Painpoints
- No widget rotation of widgets on different axes
Source: http://bit.ly/1L9RJSa
- No simultaneous animation of multiple widget properties
Source: http://bit.ly/1exZkxM
- Can’t specify an animation origin
Source: http://bit.ly/1LpZNfG
- And others: scaling, animating to an opacity, no custom
animation curves, etc.

14. “Dracarys!”
(Painpoint demo)

15. Identified Solution
(Let’s tackle the dragon!)
2

16. IDENTIFIED SOLUTION
Prototype Structure
- Axure prototypes have mostly HTML and CSS files

17. IDENTIFIED SOLUTION
Role of jQuery
- Axure uses custom version of jQuery called AxQuery

18. IDENTIFIED SOLUTION
Prototype Code
- Each widget has a unique id in the HTML (and name if given one)

19. IDENTIFIED SOLUTION
Next Steps
- Based on Axure’s inner workings, we can do code injection on
widget <div>s via CSS3 and jQuery
BUT
- What about Axure 8.0 beta, which comes out this summer?
Source: http://bit.ly/1It92Lp

20. IDENTIFIED SOLUTION
Axure 8.0 beta
Source: http://bit.ly/1Fzn4H1

21. IDENTIFIED SOLUTION
Axure 8.0 beta (cont)
- Surprise!!! 2 days ago Axure announced improved animation
support (secretly grinning here J)
- So what has been confirmed so far?
Ÿ Rotation action
Ÿ Multiple animations at once
- Need more details on the following
Ÿ Animation origin
Ÿ Dynamic Panel 3D rotations

22. IDENTIFIED SOLUTION
Why This Talk is Relevant
- It will be a while before we can use Axure 8.0 animations for
production ready projects
- The method to be presented is useful for any code injection
- More robust control over easing functions
- Animations not yet available in 8.0 such as blurs, tonal changes,
animating shadows, etc.
Source:

23. Code Injection Methods
3

24. CODE INJECTION METHODS
Method 1 - Axure Plugins

25. CODE INJECTION METHODS
Method 1 - Axure Plugins (cont.)
- First introduced in Axure 7.0 as part of the AxShare service
- Used for attaching HTML/CSS/Javascript code blocks
- Each AxShare project has this feature
- One or more plugins can be attached in the header, footer or a
dynamic panel of a page

26. CODE INJECTION METHODS
Method 1 - Axure Plugins (cont.)
- For more information, check this resources out:
http://bit.ly/1CjPvsi
http://bit.ly/1GZzw8d
Axure Supplied Info: Examples:
http://bit.ly/1Bu7UYl
http://bit.ly/1Nd86g5
http://bit.ly/1l6Rsn0 http://bit.ly/1Ftjr5d
Detailed Walkthrough:

27. CODE INJECTION METHODS
Method 2 – Third-party Hacks

28. CODE INJECTION METHODS
Method 2 – Third-party Hacks (cont.)
- Finer control wanted for a long time, resulting in many user
attempts of hacking Axure
- A variety of options: custom libraries (.rplib), external JS
files, and code read in from local widgets
- Use these approaches with caution! Many may not work
properly or at all as Axure evolves

29. CODE INJECTION METHODS
Method 2 – Third-party Hacks (cont.)
- There is too much variability with this method, so we won’t
cover it, but if your curiosity grabs you:
Zeroskillz’s http://bit.ly/1Rjsywl
ColinB’s http://bit.ly/1tfNQ6V
Different Attempts: Various Threads on JS:
http://bit.ly/1Lq4IgD
http://bit.ly/1K2CTxN
http://bit.ly/1I5S7jH
Rootnot’s http://bit.ly/1JasSOH

30. CODE INJECTION METHODS
Method 3 - Using Open Link in Current Window Action

31. CODE INJECTION METHODS
Method 3 - Using Open Link in Current Window Action (cont.)
- Method discovered back in v6.0 by power users
- Quick way of executing short code without Axure Plugins
- This is the high level flow:
1. We pick the event we want to use e.g., OnClick
2. Pass an Open in Window action
3. Select Current Window option
4. Past inline the code to be executed
5. Magic happens!!!

32. “Dracarys!”
(“Open Link in Current Window”
demo)

33. “Open Link in Current
Window” Method Details
4

34. METHOD DETAILS
Pros
- Anyone can learn it. Yes, anyone!!!
- Quick to implement and use
- Will work as long as your browser is supported
Cons
- Doesn’t scale well for multi-line code
- Readability of code is poor, so write it in Coda or Gedit
- May not handle complex cross-widget interactions

35. METHOD DETAILS
Building Blocks
1. use javascript: keyword
2. select appropriate widget(s)
3. pass a method (action) and its argument list (values)

36. METHOD DETAILS
Part 1 – javascript:
- It is an URI (Uniform Resource Identifier) scheme. In English?
- It allows us to run JavaScript code (jQuery too):
javascript:<statement 1>; <statement 2>; void(0); OR
javascript:void(<single statement>); ß We will use this one!
- It is evaluated on top of the existing prototype code
http://bit.ly/1BucuWA
http://bit.ly/1Bucupm
More on URIs: More on void keyword:
http://mzl.la/1x6OJC7

37. METHOD DETAILS
Part 2 – Select Widgets
- Two different ways of doing this:
Option 1: $axure(‘@<widget-name>’) – uses an Axure object (part
of API)
Option 2: $(‘[data-label=<widget-name>]’) – using jQuery and
custom HTML5 data- attribute
- I am sorry, WHAT??!!!

38. METHOD DETAILS
Part 2 – Select Widgets (cont.)
- Let’s back up! Here is a primer on jQuery:
$ or jQuery( ) = encapsulation object. It tells that jQuery stuff will
happen. Obviously, there is more to this!
(<stuff>) = query. Informs the DOM (Document Object Model),
what we are searching for. Can use id, <> tag, class, etc.
http://bit.ly/1GcYBsA
http://bit.ly/1nJVbqD
More on jQuery object:

39. METHOD DETAILS
Part 2 – Select Widgets (cont.)
Back to Option 1, $axure(‘@<widget-name>’):
- Axure has an API built on top of jQuery called AxQuery
- $axure is referencing that API
- Has different support of jQuery methods
- You can read a very detailed writeup here: http://bit.ly/1LaoG0P

40. METHOD DETAILS
Part 2 – Select Widgets (cont.)
And back to Option 2, $(‘[data-label=<widget-name>]’):
- Uses jQuery object and HTML5 data- property
- Axure uses data-label for any named widgets. Name your
widgets, people!!!
- <widge-name> = name given to widget in Axure e.g., bs_Click
http://bit.ly/1d83j2h
More on data- property:

41. METHOD DETAILS
Part 2 – Select Widgets (cont.)
- jQuery behavior differs based on whether using $ or $axure
- .css() is not predictable. Some properties work (“color”), while
others don’t (“background-color”, “height”)
- Both topics require additional investigation

42. METHOD DETAILS
Part 3 – Use .css() Method
- Can be used to modify CSS properties, but we will primarily use
it for animations
- It is a jQuery method that passes property: value pairs
- Can be used for a single CSS property:
<widget-name selection>.css(“text”, “Hello!”);
- Can also be used for a long list of items:
<widget-name selection>.css ({“text”:“Hello!”, “color”:”red”});
http://bit.ly/1SyZVxA
More on .css():

43. METHOD DETAILS
Putting It All Together
- Open Link in Current Window:
javascript:void($('[data-label=bs_block1]').text(”Drogon rules!"));
and for kicks, let’s throw in $axure too to see change in behavior:
javascript:void($axure('@bs_block2').text(“Told you he rules!”));

44. “Dracarys!”
(Break time! jQuery demo)

45. Let’s Build an Example
with CSS Transforms
5

46. CSS TRANSFORMS
Targeted interaction = tap to remove item from grid of
items. The animation will include:
1. Scaling widget by x3 factor
2. Rotating it by 50 degrees
3. Moving it out of the way by 1000px
4. Changing the opacity to 0% to hide it
Copyright of the cute fella is Game of Thrones (sold via POP): http://bit.ly/1eyj5oV
“BBQ, anyone?” - Drogon

47. CSS TRANSFORMS
Scale, Move, and Rotate
- We can use Move and Set Panel Size Axure actions but that
becomes complicating
- We will stick to CSS3 Transforms, which creates a unified
method for modifying the widget
- But what are Transforms? Transformers!? Heck, no! We are
fighting a dragon!

48. CSS TRANSFORMS
Background
- Originally came from WebKit, then folded into 2 W3C Working
Drafts, CSS 2D and 3D Transforms
- More prominent in CSS3 which has good browser support
- Transforms include translations, scalings, rotations, skewing and
perspective changes
- Last two are too much for today! Gotta keep you focused J
http://bit.ly/Y629ge
More on Transforms:
http://bit.ly/1fojScj

49. CSS TRANSFORMS
Background (cont.)
http://mzl.la/1ze7NPsSource:

50. CSS TRANSFORMS
Background (cont.)
- We can add separate statements for each browser. Target
one only for effectiveness
- We will target Firefox with transform (also works for Chrome).
For Safari, we need to use –webkit-transform
- Transforms can be single value or multi-value:
transform: <value1(arg1)> OR
transform: <value1(arg1)> <value2(arg2)>

51. CSS TRANSFORMS
Part 1 - Scale
- To scale an item we use:
transform: scale (<number1>, <number2>)
<number1> is the scaling factor for the x-axis
<number2> is the scaling factor for the y-axis
- To grow symmetrically we can use the same value for both
- There are also scaleX(<number>) and scaleY(<number>)

52. CSS TRANSFORMS
Part 2 - Move
- To move an item we use:
transform: translate (<number>px)
<number> is the end x-coordinate of the end state
- translate = translateX
- Translate can also be used with 2 arguments:
translate(<number1>, <number2>), but for our purposes we will
move the item on the X-axis only
- There are also translateX(<number>) and translateY(<number>)

53. CSS TRANSFORMS
Part 3 - Rotate
- To rotate an item we use:
transform: rotate (<number>deg)
<number> is the number of degrees of rotation we want for the
end state
- rotate = rotateZ or rotation on the Z-axis (the plane facing us)
- There are also rotateX (vertical card flips) and rotateY
(horizontal card flips)

54. CSS TRANSFORMS
Part 4 - Opacity
- To change the opacity we can use the opacity property:
opacity: <number>
<number> is % of opaqueness in decimal: 0 = transparent, 1
= fully visible. We will use 0.
- Name of the property is opacity in all browsers
- This is not a Transform property

55. CSS TRANSFORMS
End Statement
- Written for Firefox:
javascript:void($('[data-
label=img_drogon]').css({"transform":"scale(3,3)
translate(1000px) rotate(50deg)", "opacity":”0"}));
- We will modify it slightly. You will see why!
javascript:void($('[data-
label=img_drogon]').css({"transform":"scale(3,3)
translate(200px) rotate(50deg)", "opacity":"0.2"}));
- As homework, read on transform-style and transform-origin!

56. “Dracarys!”
(CSS Transforms demo)

57. Adding CSS Transitions
6

58. CSS TRANSITIONS
Background
- Last example didn’t animate. For this, we need a CSS Transition
- Similarly to CSS Transforms, CSS Transitions originated with the
WebKit team and later folded in own W3C draft
- Now integral part of animating CSS Transforms as per CSS3
http://bit.ly/1BFMibH
More on Transitions:
http://bit.ly/1Gdp4WO

59. CSS TRANSITIONS
Background (cont.)
http://mzl.la/1eV9SiASource:

60. CSS TRANSITIONS
Background (cont.)
- Axure has animation type (ease in) and duration (500 ms).
CSS3 Transitions have:
property – element being animated
duration – identical to Axure
timing function – similar to Axure
delay – similar to Axure’s Wait action

61. CSS TRANSITIONS
Background (cont.)
- Each has an associated CSS property:
1. transition-property
2. transition-duration
3. transition-timing-function
4. transition-delay
- Can be used individually or via a shorthand:
transition: <property> <duration> <timing function> <delay>
- Remember, we are using transition which works for Firefox
and Chrome. For Safari it is –webkit-transition

62. CSS TRANSITIONS
Part 1 - transition-property
- Acts on one or comma-separated list of CSS properties
- Default value is all, which is what we will use:
transition: all <duration> <timing function> <delay>
http://bit.ly/1TEpj6z
More Info:

63. CSS TRANSITIONS
Part 2 - transition-duration
- Uses seconds in the format <number>s
- So we can see the transition details, let’s use 4 seconds or 4s:
transition: all 4s <timing function> <delay>
http://bit.ly/1Ird4kY
More Info:

64. CSS TRANSITIONS
Part 3 - transition-timing-function
- It can use a built-in value such as ease-in or custom Bezier
curve (more on that later)
- For our example, let’s use ease-in or gradually speeding up:
transition: all 4s ease-in <delay>
http://bit.ly/1K30Ch4
More Info:

65. CSS TRANSITIONS
Part 4 - transition-delay
- Similar format as transition-duration
- We will use no delay, so the value will be 0s:
transition: all 4s ease-in 0s
http://bit.ly/1GZVSqa
More Info:

66. CSS TRANSITIONS
Updated End Statement
- We are adding transition: all 4s ease-in 0s
- The jQuery written for Firefox looks likes:
javascript:void($('[data-
label=img_drogon]').css({"transform":"scale(3,3)
translate(1000px) rotate(50deg)", "opacity":"0",
"transition":"all 4s ease-in 0s"}));
- Now we should be able to see a smooth transition

67. “Dracarys!”
(CSS Transition demo)

68. Time Check!!!

69. Custom Timing
Functions
7

70. CUSTOM TIMING FUNCTIONS
Background
- Earlier we discussed CSS has pre-built timing functions such
as linear, ease-in, ease-in-out and others
- These are considered specific implementations of
a Cubic Bezier curve
- Animation behaviors come into two flavors: swings and
curves (Cubic Bezier curves), so let’s review each briefly

71. CUSTOM TIMING FUNCTIONS
Swings
- Axure has this as a built-in value swing
- Swings are how springy an item is e.g., bounce of a ball
- A swing has tension, friction, velocity, tolerance (RK4 spring).
There are also DHO springs
- CSS natively does not YET have spring property. This may be
simulated via animation keyframes, but requires more research
http://bit.ly/1ALicze
More on Swing with CSS:
http://bit.ly/1K3gw9V

72. CUSTOM TIMING FUNCTIONS
Curves
- Axure has some built-in values ease in, ease in out, etc.
- We have two points in space and a cubic curve (x3 curve)
between them
- The curve determines the animation progress over time
http://bit.ly/1EeJXi7 http://bit.ly/IFqq5p
More on Curves:

73. CUSTOM TIMING FUNCTIONS
Custom Cubic Bezier Curves
- Certain implementations are provided as built-in CSS values
- We can build our own using:
cubic-bezier(<x1>, <y1>, <x2>, <y2>) where the numbers
specify the x/y coordinates of the 2 points
- This can be confusing if we are just plugging numbers, so
there are visual tools for this
http://bit.ly/1j89N0S http://bit.ly/1cMqCf2
More on Building a Curve:

74. CUSTOM TIMING FUNCTIONS
Building the Curve
- Copy the value of the built curve and update the CSS Transition:
transition: all 4s cubic-bezier(.08,.78,.89,-0.61) 0s
- The jQuery updated for Firefox:
javascript:void($('[data-
label=img_drogon3]').css({"transform":"scale(3,3)
translate(1000px) rotate(50deg)", "opacity":"0", "transition":"all
4s cubic-bezier(.08,.78,.89,-0.61) 0s"}));

75. CUSTOM TIMING FUNCTIONS
Integrating
- To modularize the code we can save the curve to an Axure
global variable and re-insert it in the code:
varTestAnim = cubic-bezier(.08,.78,.89,-0.61)
- The jQuery re-updated for Firefox:
javascript:void($('[data-
label=img_drogon]').css({"transform":"scale(3,3)
translate(1000px) rotate(50deg)", "opacity":"0",
"transition":"all 4s [[varTestAnim]] 0s"}));

76. CUSTOM TIMING FUNCTIONS
Best Practices
- Keep animations between 150ms and 350ms
- Staging is important: for multiple animating items, what’s the
order and timing of each
- Introduce animations only if they bring value to the overall
user experience
http://bit.ly/1PgMzHY
More on Best Practices:

77. “Dracarys!”
(Custom Cubic Bezier curve demo)

78. Going Further
with CSS Filter
(We killed the dragon.
Now let’s get its genome!)
8

79. CSS FILTER
Background
- What about dynamic blurs, tonal changes, and drop shadows?
Sure. We can do that!
- Enter the filter CSS property
- It is in draft form (W3C Filter Effects Module), so it is not
officially released, yet most main browsers support it
- Used to apply images effects, but we will hack it for any widget
(insert evil laugh here)
http://bit.ly/1K5L9LK
More on Filter:
http://bit.ly/1G0g61j

80. CSS FILTER
Background (cont.)
http://mzl.la/1eyTKLzSource:

81. CSS FILTER
Basic Syntax
- It uses the familiar property: value approach:
filter: <value(arg)>
Just like transform multiple values can be stringed together:
filter: <value1(arg1)> <value2(arg2)>

82. CSS FILTER
Re-Updated End Statement
filter: blur(5px) grayscale(100%) drop-shadow(16px 16px 20px red);
- Optionally we can replace opacity: 0.0 with filter’s opacity(0%)
- jQuery rewritten for Firefox:
javascript:void($('[data-
label=img_drogon5]').css({"transform":"scale(3,3) translate(1000px)
rotate(50deg)", "opacity":"0", "transition":"all 4s [[varTestAnim]]
0s", "filter":"blur(5px) grayscale(100%) drop-shadow(16px 16px
20px red)"}));

83. “Dracarys!”
(CSS Filter demo)

84. And Beyond?
(Cloning your own dragon!)
9

85. AND BEYOND?
When CSS/jQuery Is Not Enough
- CSS3 offers even more: animations, perspective changes,
masks and clip-paths, SVG object manipulation, etc.
- We can even tie in 3rd party animation libraries via Axure
Plugins: GreenSock (GSAP), Velocity, and others
- The next level in animation is using tools such as:
1. Framer JS (code-based)
2. AfterEffects and Mitya (timeline-based)
3. Origami and Google Form (node-based)

86. Summary
(You survived the battle!)
10

87. SUMMARY
Quick Takeaways
- This is an experimental technique. Support in mobile
depends on the browser quality
- Transforms/Transitions can be applied to a single widget or a
dynamic panel
- CSS Transforms are written differently across browsers
- Some CSS properties are not animatable via jQuery
- Code is best written outside of Axure

88. SUMMARY
Closing Thoughts
- Animations play a key part in interactions when done right
- Axure animations right now have limitations, but 8.0 beta is
going to change that
- Regardless if use CSS3/jQuery with Axure or not,
understanding code can expand your prototyping skills
- Axure is great but not always the solution, so explore other
prototyping technologies, too

89. Questions?
(Polish your armor and ask away!)
**Take a look at the Additional Resources section for more goodies!

90. That’s All, Folks!
light_forger
@svetlindenkov
Svetlin Denkov

91. Additional Resources
11

92. ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
Presentation Resources
- Generated prototype on AxShare
- Source Axure .rp file
http://bit.ly/1e7XNxJ
http://bit.ly/1LtVwtX

93. ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
Books

94. ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
Specification Information
- W3C
- W3Schools
- CSS Tricks
Animation Libraries
- Dynamics JS
- GreenSock (GSAP)
- Velocity JS
http://bit.ly/1kMucX1
http://bit.ly/1Cfzqnr
http://bit.ly/1SzFkJs
http://bit.ly/1sFYIq7
http://bit.ly/1hLLLc0
http://bit.ly/1hALtFq

95. ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
CSS Code Examples
SVG Code Examples
http://bit.ly/1FlQRs9
http://bit.ly/1TEFHUx
http://bit.ly/1ESt9B6
http://bit.ly/1MpYPRM