Cool stuff:

Cycling ’74 has finally launched the much-anticipated Max 5. You can read about it on their website located here. I am not going to bore you with all the details of what Max 5 is, since a very comprehensive introduction can easily be located on their site. Rather, I will bore you with my own experience with this update and how it has gone in the 24 hours since I realized that it had been released.  Max/MSP 4 didn’t have a “check for updates” feature so I didn’t even know it had been released until I happened to come across it elsewhere. As far as I can see, Max 5 doesn’t include such a feature either, at least not in the program menu, meaning that people will need to either subscribe to their e-notifications, or manually check the website for updates.  

1. jWeb

This is shocking.  Now you can access websites from within Max. I am hoping that this will eventually open up the possibility of directly interfacing with online flash applications and the like.  As it looks right now, one is mainly given access to simple commands like back, forward, reload, history, go, and a simple progress bar (see below)

2. Text Buttons

Max 5 now has an object that does everything a text button should do, from the safety of a simple inspector.  This is a thing of beauty: you can create either a button or a toggle with accompanying text, colors, and behavior.  

3. Presentation mode

Now you can choose which interface object you want to include for presentation purposes.  It seems a bit bulky to me at this point, and I think it will take a while before I fully integrate it into my workflow. However, I do see the purpose of it, and new users will probably get the most use out of it.  

4. Graphic design possibilities

Designing a good interface for the general public demands good graphic design tools, and Max 5 now includes a whole host of them. The most notable are:

• Grids and snap-to-grid: align and organize your objects with ease
• Integrated font menu: uses Apple’s font browser for access to all font functions
• Advanced buttons, dials and sliders with unified design approach: now you have far more control over interface algorithms
• Updated for the modern age: transparency, gradients, and attractive display improvements await you at every (rounded) corner. It’s lots of fun to see the ways things are improved, while still maintaining the same functions

 

Most of your Max/MSP Jitter 4.x patches will run without any problems, but of course there will be exceptions.  However, Max 5 will not overwrite your older versions, so you can run them concurrently for the time being: doubtless a wise move from C’74.  I checked all of the patches that I had available on this site, and only one of them had problems and they seemed pretty easy to fix.  Max 5 uses the same .mxo format for externals, so most of your previous externals should run as well. 

Less successful things:

1. Clicking the background twice to open a patch. fixed

2. This dial:

3. Zoom. It won’t return to 100% when turned off. 

4. Taking the toolbar away. They have replaced this with simple keystrokes to invoke tools. N = new object, B = Bang, M = Message and so forth. Probably the motivation behind number 1 above.  But I do miss the old toolbar. 

Update: 5. The preset object now has hovering numbers that tell you which numbered preset you are activating. Problem is, the color of the number collides with the color of saved presets, rendering the number virtually illegible (see picture below).  

Summary:

Max 5 is billed as “Max for the next 20 years”. This is both a witty reference to the fact that the program had been running on the same technology that had been developed twenty years ago, and also a fearless prediction that the new Max 5 will last another two decades.  An upgrade costs between 200 and 300 dollars depending on what you already own, and starting from the beginning will set you back 700 dollars. This means the prices have been drastically lowered.  So download it, pay for it, try it! It won’t overwrite your old 4.x applications, preferences, or patches.  

More information on Max 5