Macromedia^? Flash^? 8 Bible

by Robert Reinhardt (Los Angeles, CA, Web designer and author); Snow Dowd (Los Angeles, CA, Web designer and author)

• ISBN13: 9780471746768
• ISBN10: 0471746762
• Edition: CD
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2006-02-01
• Publisher: Wiley

Summary

Written by two of the industry's top Flash experts, this new edition of the best-selling classic has been revised and enhanced to cover the very latest release of Macromedia Flash. User-friendly, yet in-depth this is the book that serves as an indispensable reference for anyone -- from the web novice to the accomplished web worker -- and functions as the perfect, real-world guide to the workings and capabilities of this powerful program. The accompanying CD-ROM includes trial software, custom components and finished examples. Totally enhanced and revised edition of the all-time Flash classic reference! Everything you need to know to learn and master the Macromedia Flash 8 -- the most comprehensive Flash reference available Includes a CD-ROM packed with files from the book and valuable tryouts. Co-author Robert Reinhardt is one of the two or three top stars in the Flash developer community, speaking regularly at FlashForward, the Macromedia User's Conference, WebTEK, Macromedia's traveling user seminars, and major universities. No other title matches this one in both comprehensiveness and author reputation. Includes expert tutorials from the world's leading Flash gurus Includes tips for integrating Flash with other programs Includes unpublished tricks, techniques and time-savers "When I'm planning the FlashBelt conference, Reinhardt is the first one I call. His knowledge reaches to the farthest corners of the software."-Dave Schroeder, Director, FlashBelt conferences; Owner, PilotVibe Music and Sound Design"Its range and depth make the Flash Bible a must-have for designers, developers and producers of Flash content." -- Matthew Carroll, designer, Wieden + Kennedy

Author Biography

<b>Robert Reinhard</b> is one of the world's leading Flash experts and is co-principal of [theMakers], a multimedia company based in Los Angeles. He has developed multimedia courses for educational facilities in Canada and the United States, and is a regular speaker at FlashForward and other conferences. Recent projects have included screen graphics for Sean Penn&#8217;s film The Pledge (2000), and a Flash web site for the Warner Bros. feature film Training Day (2001.) <p> <b>Snow Dowd</b> is a co-principal at [theMakers] and has worked with Robert Reinhardt for the last six years on various multimedia projects. Snow initially collaborated with Robert on film and photography-based installation projects while earning a degree in Image Arts at Ryerson University in Toronto.

Table of Contents

Foreword	ix
Preface	xi
Acknowledgments	xvii
Part I: An Introduction to Flash Web Production	1	(58)
Understanding the Flash 8 Framework	3	(16)
The Brave New World of Expressiveness	3	(10)
The topography of Flash 8	8	(1)
File types in Flash 8	9	(4)
The Many Faces of Flash 8	13	(4)
Bitmap handler	14	(1)
Vector-based drawing program	14	(1)
Vector-based animator	14	(1)
Video compressor	15	(1)
Audio player	15	(1)
Multimedia authoring program	15	(1)
Animation sequencer	15	(1)
Programming and database front end	16	(1)
Summary	17	(2)
Exploring Web Technologies	19	(14)
Contextualizing Flash in the Internet Evolution	19	(8)
High expectations for Web experiences	19	(2)
To Flash or not to Flash?	21	(4)
Alternative methods of multimedia authoring	25	(2)
Exploring Companion Technologies	27	(2)
HTML is here to stay	27	(1)
Client-side scripting using JavaScript	28	(1)
The world of Web Services	28	(1)
Macromedia server technologies	29	(1)
Recognizing Project Potential	29	(2)
Linear presentations	29	(1)
Interactive presentations	30	(1)
Data-driven presentations	30	(1)
Data-driven applications (or Rich Internet Applications)	30	(1)
Summary	31	(2)
Planning Flash Projects	33	(26)
Workflow Basics	33	(15)
Phase II: Producing, testing, and staging the presentation	46	(2)
Using the Project panel in Flash Professional 8	48	(9)
Establishing a project and a site	49	(4)
Adding files to the project	53	(1)
Committing and editing files in the project	54	(2)
Adding new files to the project	56	(1)
Publishing the entire project	57	(1)
Summary	57	(2)
Part II: Mastering the Flash Environment	59	(248)
Interface Fundamentals	61	(50)
Getting Started	61	(9)
Welcome to Flash Basic 8 and Flash Professional 8	62	(1)
Start Page	62	(2)
Help menu options	64	(2)
The Flash 8 interface on Macintosh and Windows	66	(3)
What to expect from the Property inspector	69	(1)
Managing Windows and Panels	70	(7)
Contextual menus	71	(1)
Grouping and stacking panels	71	(2)
Focus: Making panels or windows active	73	(1)
Creating custom Workspace Layouts	73	(2)
Keyboard shortcuts	75	(2)
The Tools panel	77	(6)
Controlling the Tools panel	77	(1)
Reading the Tools panel	78	(1)
Using Tool options	78	(1)
Customizing the Tools panel	79	(4)
The Document Window	83	(10)
Controlling the Document window	84	(2)
Reading the Document window	86	(2)
Using scenes	88	(1)
Using Document window menu options	89	(3)
Working with Flash templates	92	(1)
The Timeline Window	93	(16)
Controlling the Timeline window	93	(1)
Using the Timeline Controller toolbar	94	(1)
Reading the Timeline	95	(4)
Editing frames and layers	99	(8)
Using Frame View options	107	(2)
Printing	109	(1)
Summary	110	(1)
Drawing in Flash	111	(50)
Using Geometric Shape Tools	112	(6)
The Line tool	112	(1)
The Oval tool	113	(1)
The Rectangle tool	114	(1)
Flash 8 Join and Miter settings	115	(1)
The PolyStar tool	116	(2)
Using Drawing Tools	118	(9)
The Pencil tool	119	(1)
The Brush tool	120	(6)
The Eraser tool	126	(1)
Creating Precise Lines with the Pen Tool	127	(3)
Using Fill and Stroke Controls	130	(7)
Choosing colors	130	(2)
Choosing line styles	132	(3)
Controlling Stroke Scale behavior	135	(2)
Optimizing Drawings	137	(1)
Putting Selection Tools to Work	138	(9)
The Selection tool	138	(6)
The Lasso tool	144	(2)
The Subselection tool	146	(1)
Designing and Aligning Elements	147	(12)
Simplifying snapping settings	148	(5)
Design panels	153	(4)
The Edit menu	157	(2)
Summary	159	(2)
Symbols, Instances, and the Library	161	(42)
Understanding the Document Library	162	(9)
Working with Common Libraries and External Libraries	163	(1)
Working with multiple Document Libraries	164	(2)
Reading the Library	166	(3)
Organizing the Library	169	(2)
Defining Content Types	171	(5)
Raw data	171	(1)
Drawing Objects	171	(1)
Groups	172	(1)
Native symbols	172	(2)
Imported media elements	174	(2)
Editing Symbols	176	(4)
Modifying a symbol in Edit mode	176	(1)
Editing a symbol in a new window	177	(1)
Editing a symbol in place	177	(1)
Editing symbols from the Library	177	(1)
Returning to the Main Timeline or scene	178	(1)
Working with Timeline Effect symbols	178	(2)
Modifying Instance Properties	180	(3)
Applying basic color effects to symbol instances	180	(2)
Changing the symbol behavior of an instance	182	(1)
Swapping symbols	182	(1)
Building Nested Symbol Structures	183	(8)
Converting a raw shape into a Graphic symbol	183	(2)
Using Graphic symbols in a Button	185	(1)
Animating Graphic symbols in a Movie Clip	186	(2)
Adding a Movie Clip to a Button symbol	188	(1)
Modifying a Movie Clip Instance	189	(2)
9-Slice Scaling for MovieClip backgrounds	191	(3)
Using the Movie Explorer	194	(4)
Filtering buttons	195	(1)
The Display List	195	(1)
The Movie Explorer Options menu	196	(1)
The contextual menu	197	(1)
Using Authortime Shared Libraries	198	(3)
Summary	201	(2)
Applying Color	203	(26)
Introducing Color Basics	203	(7)
Discussing Web-safe color issues	204	(1)
Using hexadecimal values	205	(1)
Using custom Web-safe colors	205	(1)
Using color effectively	206	(4)
Working in the Color Swatches Panel	210	(7)
Color Swatches panel options	212	(2)
Importing custom palettes	214	(3)
Using the Color Mixer Panel	217	(10)
Adjusting fill and stroke transparency	219	(1)
Working with gradient fills	220	(2)
Controlling gradient fill colors	222	(1)
Using Alpha settings with gradients	223	(3)
Selecting bitmap fills	226	(1)
Working with Droppers, Paint Buckets, and Ink Bottles	227	(1)
Summary	228	(1)
Working with Text	229	(38)
Considering Typography	229	(1)
Text Field Types in Flash	230	(5)
Static text boxes	232	(2)
Editable text fields: Dynamic and Input	234	(1)
The Text Tool and the Property Inspector	235	(9)
Working with the Text tool	235	(3)
Setting text attributes in the Property inspector	238	(6)
Font Export and Display	244	(9)
Smoothing text with anti-alias settings	245	(2)
Rendering outlines with the Bitmap text setting	247	(1)
Understanding device fonts	247	(1)
Working with the Use Device Fonts setting	248	(1)
Troubleshooting font display	249	(1)
Controlling font substitution	249	(4)
Font Symbols and Shared Font Libraries	253	(9)
Creating a Font symbol	254	(2)
Updating Font symbols at author-time	256	(1)
Using Font symbols in runtime Shared libraries	257	(5)
Modifying Text	262	(4)
Editing text manually	262	(2)
Using Timeline Effects on Static text	264	(1)
Moving beyond the box with Filter effects	265	(1)
Summary	266	(1)
Modifying Graphics	267	(40)
Sampling and Switching Fills and Strokes	267	(7)
The Eyedropper tool	268	(2)
The Ink Bottle tool	270	(1)
The Paint Bucket tool	270	(2)
Using the Paint Bucket Gap size option	272	(1)
Using the Paint Bucket Lock Fill option	272	(2)
Transforming Gradients and Bitmap Fills	274	(5)
Adjusting the center point with the Gradient Transform tool	275	(1)
Rotating a fill with the Gradient Transform tool	276	(1)
Adjusting scale with the Gradient Transform tool	276	(2)
Setting gradient fill overflow styles	278	(1)
Skewing a bitmap fill with the Gradient Transform tool	278	(1)
Gradient Transform Used for Lighting Effects	279	(1)
Applying Modify Shape Menu Commands	280	(4)
Convert Lines to Fills	280	(1)
Creating scalable artwork	280	(1)
Expand Fill	281	(1)
Soften Fill Edges	282	(2)
Free Transform Commands and Options	284	(5)
The Transform panel	285	(1)
The Modify Transform menu	286	(1)
The Free Transform tool	286	(1)
Transforming shapes, symbols, text, and groups	287	(2)
Modifying Item Types	289	(8)
Stacking order	289	(1)
Grouping	290	(1)
Applying Break apart	291	(3)
About the Magic Wand option	294	(1)
Tracing bitmaps	295	(2)
Working with Drawing Objects and Combine Object Commands	297	(2)
Working with Compound Shapes	299	(2)
Editing with Find and Replace	301	(1)
Using the History Panel	302	(3)
Replay Steps	303	(1)
Copy Steps	303	(1)
Clear History	304	(1)
History View	304	(1)
Save As Command	304	(1)
Summary	305	(2)
Part III: Creating Animation and Effects	307	(152)
Animation Strategies	309	(16)
Establishing Ground Rules	310	(1)
Defining Variables	310	(3)
The environment	311	(1)
The materials	311	(1)
The motion	312	(1)
Adding Personality	313	(2)
Manipulating Perception and Illusion	315	(5)
Viewpoint, framing, and depth	316	(2)
Anticipation	318	(1)
Secondary motion	319	(1)
Understanding the Laws of Nature	320	(3)
Law #1: Inertia	321	(1)
Law #2: Acceleration	321	(1)
Law #3: Action/reaction force pairs	322	(1)
Summary	323	(2)
Timeline Animation	325	(40)
Basic Methods of Flash Animation	325	(1)
Frame-by-Frame Animation	326	(2)
Adding keyframes	327	(1)
Creating frame-by-frame animation	328	(1)
Modifying Multiframe Sequences	328	(5)
Onion skinning	330	(2)
Editing multiple frames	332	(1)
Using Tweens for Animation	333	(18)
Shape tweening	334	(3)
Adding Shape Hints	337	(3)
Motion tweening	340	(6)
Adjusting tweens with Custom Easing	346	(3)
Using multiple Custom Easing curves	349	(2)
Integrating Multiple Animation Sequences	351	(4)
Moving tweens onto symbol timelines	352	(3)
Organizing Symbol instances on the Main Timeline	355	(2)
Reusing and Modifying Symbol Instances	357	(6)
Controlling symbol instances with ActionScript	358	(1)
Transforming symbol instances	358	(2)
Reversing tweens to create smooth loops	360	(3)
Summary	363	(2)
Applying Filters and Effects	365	(36)
Applying Filters in Flash	365	(10)
Adding and adjusting filters	365	(5)
Creating dimensional shadows	370	(1)
Combining filters and saving custom presets	371	(3)
Animating filters with motion tweens	374	(1)
Using Custom Easing to control filter interpolation	375	(1)
Controlling Color: Properties vs. Filters	375	(7)
Adjust Color filter	377	(2)
Color properties	379	(1)
Using Advanced Color Effects: Understanding relative and absolute color settings	380	(2)
Layering graphics with blend modes	382	(7)
Understanding blend modes	383	(2)
Applying basic blends	385	(1)
Applying compound blend modes: Alpha and Erase	386	(1)
Creating an animated Alpha blend	387	(2)
Using Timeline Effects for Graphics and Animation	389	(11)
Timeline effect limitations	389	(1)
Timeline effect options	390	(2)
Applying a static Timeline effect	392	(1)
Applying an animated Timeline effect	392	(4)
Modifying Timeline effect symbols	396	(4)
Summary	400	(1)
Applying Layer Types	401	(22)
Guide Layers	402	(3)
Motion Guides	405	(4)
Applying a Motion guide	405	(3)
Adding control to animation along a path	408	(1)
Using Orient to Path	408	(1)
Registration and center point alignment	409	(1)
Mask Layers	409	(6)
Masking with a filled shape	410	(2)
Masking with a group	412	(1)
Masking with a symbol instance	413	(1)
Masking text	413	(2)
Motion Guides and Movie Clip Masks	415	(4)
Using Distribute to Layers	419	(2)
Summary	421	(2)
Character Animation Techniques	423	(36)
Working with Large File Sizes	423	(3)
Storyboarding scenes and shots	424	(1)
Flash Scenes and project files	425	(1)
Voices, sound effects, and ambient sound	425	(1)
Some Cartoon Animation Basics	426	(6)
Expressing motion and emotion	426	(1)
Anticipation	427	(1)
Weight	427	(1)
Overlapping actions	427	(1)
Blurring to simulate motion	428	(4)
Animator's Keys and Inbetweening	432	(4)
Walk cycles (or walk loops)	432	(3)
Repeaters	435	(1)
Types of walks	435	(1)
Coloring the Art	436	(4)
The model sheet	436	(1)
Gap problems	436	(1)
Speed coloring	437	(1)
Temporary backgrounds	437	(3)
Flash Tweening	440	(2)
Panning	441	(1)
Instance swapping	441	(1)
Motion guides	442	(1)
Lip-syncing	442	(5)
Shape morphing is not for lip-syncing	443	(1)
Expression and lip-syncing	443	(1)
Lip-sync tricks	443	(1)
Syncing with music and sound effects	444	(3)
Backgrounds and Scenery	447	(6)
Runtime bitmap caching	449	(1)
Bitmaps	449	(1)
QuickTime limitations	449	(1)
Building layered backgrounds in Photoshop	450	(1)
Flash Mask layers	450	(1)
Long pans	451	(1)
Multiplane pans	452	(1)
Blurring to simulate depth	452	(1)
Finishing Up	453	(4)
Final output	453	(4)
Summary	457	(2)
Part IV: Integrating Media Files with Flash	459	(160)
Adding Sound	461	(44)
Identifying Sound File Import and Export Formats	461	(5)
Import formats	462	(2)
Export formats	464	(2)
Importing Sounds into Flash	466	(2)
Assigning a Sound to a Button	468	(2)
Adding Sound to the Timeline	470	(1)
Organizing Sounds on the Timeline	471	(1)
Enhanced viewing of sound layers	471	(1)
Organizing sound layers with a layer folder	472	(1)
Synchronizing Audio to Animations	472	(2)
Event	472	(1)
Start	473	(1)
Stop	473	(1)
Stream	473	(1)
Stopping Sounds	474	(3)
Stopping an Event sound	474	(2)
Stopping a single instance of a Stream sound	476	(1)
Stopping all sounds	476	(1)
Applying Behaviors That Control Sound	477	(8)
Load Sound from Library behavior	478	(2)
Load streaming MP3 file behavior	480	(2)
Play Sound	482	(1)
Stop All Sounds	483	(2)
Editing Audio in Flash	485	(4)
Sound-editing controls	486	(1)
Applying effects from the Effect menu of the Property inspector	487	(2)
Sound Optimization Overview	489	(1)
Publish Settings for Audio	489	(5)
The Set options	491	(3)
Supporting audio and MP3 playback	494	(1)
Fine-Tuning Sound Settings in the Library	494	(3)
Settings for audio in the Library	495	(2)
Combining methods for controlling sounds	497	(1)
Final Sound Advice and Pointers	497	(5)
VBR (Variable Bit Rate) MP3	497	(1)
Optimizing sounds for bandwidth usage	498	(3)
Extracting a sound from a Flash document	501	(1)
Summary	502	(3)
Importing Artwork	505	(40)
Defining Vectors and Bitmaps	505	(2)
Knowing the File Formats for Import to Flash	507	(4)
Preparing Bitmaps	511	(2)
Preserving Bitmap Quality	513	(2)
Importing and Copying Bitmaps	515	(2)
Importing sequences	516	(1)
Copying and pasting a bitmap into Flash	517	(1)
Setting Bitmap Properties	517	(5)
Being Prepared for Common Problems	522	(2)
Cross-browser consistency	522	(1)
JPEG rotation	522	(1)
Applying Alpha, Color Effects, and Filters to bitmaps	523	(1)
Using the Bitmap Buttons in the Property Inspector	524	(1)
Swap	524	(1)
Edit	524	(1)
Making Sense of Bitmap Compression	525	(2)
24-bit or 32-bit lossless source files	525	(1)
8-bit lossless source files	526	(1)
Source files with lossy compression	527	(1)
Converting Rasters to Vectors	527	(3)
Using External Vector Graphics	530	(1)
Importing Vector Artwork	531	(8)
Importing Macromedia Fireworks files	534	(1)
Importing Macromedia FreeHand files	535	(4)
Optimizing Vectors	539	(4)
Tracing complex vector artwork	540	(1)
Converting text to outlines	541	(1)
Optimizing curves	541	(1)
Runtime Bitmap caching	542	(1)
Summary	543	(2)
Displaying Video	545	(74)
Integrating Video: The Solutions	545	(2)
Loading a Flash Video file at run time	545	(1)
Real-time streaming a Flash Video file at run time	546	(1)
Importing the Video	547	(22)
An overview of codec options	547	(2)
Compressing video with Flash Basic 8	549	(11)
Extracting .flv files from Embedded Video symbols	560	(1)
Deploying existing .flv files with Flash Pro 8	561	(4)
Compressing and deploying new .flv files with Flash Pro 8's Video Import wizard	565	(4)
Using the FLVPlayback Component	569	(5)
Working with the Component Parameters	569	(2)
Using FLV Playback Custom UI components	571	(3)
Working with Cue Points	574	(17)
Creating .flv files with embedded cue points	575	(9)
Generating ActionScript cue points with XML	584	(7)
Using SMIL Files with the FLVPlayback Component	591	(10)
For streaming .flv files	592	(4)
For progressive .flv files	596	(5)
Working with the Flash 8 Video Encoder	601	(1)
Using the FLV QuickTime Export Plug-in	602	(2)
Using Sorenson Squeeze for Flash Video	604	(5)
Choosing a Flash output file type	606	(1)
Compressing video with Sorenson Spark Pro and On2 VP6 codecs	607	(2)
Working with Video Alpha Channels	609	(7)
Live action footage	610	(3)
3D modeling footage	613	(3)
Summary	616	(3)
Part V: Adding Basic Interactivity to Flash Movies	619	(82)
Understanding Actions and Event Handlers	621	(32)
Actions and Event Handlers	621	(12)
What are behaviors?	623	(2)
What is ActionScript?	625	(1)
Navigating the Actions panel	626	(4)
A brief primer on code syntax	630	(3)
Your First Five Actions	633	(6)
gotoAndPlay and gotoAndStop	633	(2)
nextFrame and prevFrame	635	(1)
nextScene and prevScene	635	(1)
play and stop	636	(1)
stopAllSounds	636	(1)
getURL	636	(3)
Making Actions Happen with Event Handlers	639	(8)
Combining an action with an event handler to make a functioning button	639	(3)
The Flash event handlers	642	(5)
Creating Invisible Buttons and Using getURL	647	(5)
Summary	652	(1)
Building Timelines and Interactions	653	(22)
Movie Clips: The Key to Self-Contained Playback	653	(4)
How Movie Clips interact within a Flash movie	654	(1)
One movie, several timelines	655	(2)
Targets and Paths Explained	657	(4)
Paths: Absolute and relative modes	659	(2)
Targeting Movie Clips in Flash 8	661	(4)
Targeting Movie Clips with Behaviors	665	(2)
Integrating Behaviors with Movie Clips	667	(6)
Overview of the pianoKeys Movie Clip	667	(1)
Create sound instances with a behavior	668	(2)
Targeting the sounds with more behaviors	670	(3)
Summary	673	(2)
Making Your First Flash 8 Project	675	(26)
The Main Timeline as the Site Layout	675	(9)
Creating a plan	676	(1)
Determining Flash movie properties	677	(1)
Mapping presentation areas to keyframes	677	(3)
Creating content for each area	680	(4)
Adding Navigation Elements to the Main Timeline	684	(5)
Creating text buttons for a menu	684	(3)
Browsing the video items	687	(2)
Text Scrolling with the TextArea Component	689	(3)
Using the Custom BlurFader Component	692	(2)
Adding Named Anchors	694	(1)
Making the Movie Accessible	695	(3)
Summary	698	(3)
Part VI: Distributing Flash Movies	701	(86)
Publishing Flash Movies	703	(36)
Testing Flash Movies	703	(8)
Using the Test Scene or Test Movie command	704	(2)
Using the Bandwidth Profiler	706	(5)
Using the size report	711	(1)
Publishing Your Flash Movies	711	(1)
Publish Settings	712	(24)
Selecting formats	712	(2)
Using the Flash settings	714	(8)
Using the HTML settings	722	(7)
Using the GIF settings	729	(3)
Using the JPEG settings	732	(1)
Using the PNG settings	733	(2)
Creating Windows and Macintosh projectors	735	(1)
Using the QuickTime settings	736	(1)
Publish Preview and Publish Commands	736	(1)
Using Publish Preview	736	(1)
Using Publish	736	(1)
Using Publish Profiles	736	(2)
Summary	738	(1)
Integrating Flash Content with Web Pages	739	(32)
Writing Markup for Flash Movies	739	(9)
Using the <object> tag	740	(6)
Using the <embed> tag	746	(2)
Detecting the Flash Player	748	(15)
Plug-in versus ActiveX: Forcing content without a check	748	(1)
Detecting the Flash Player with Flash 8	749	(6)
Building your own Flash sniffer movie	755	(4)
Detecting the Flash Player with JavaScript and VBScript	759	(4)
Using Flash Movies with JavaScript and DHTML	763	(6)
A word of caution to Web developers	763	(1)
Understanding how Flash movies work with JavaScript	763	(1)
Changing HTML attributes	764	(3)
Adding a percentLoaded() method	767	(2)
Summary	769	(2)
Using the Flash Player and Projector	771	(16)
The Stand-Alone Flash Player and Projector	771	(7)
Creating a projector	772	(2)
Distribution and licensing	774	(1)
Distribution on CD-ROM or DVD-ROM	774	(1)
fscommand actions	774	(2)
Using a behavior to toggle the screen mode	776	(2)
Stand-Alone Limitations and Solutions	778	(1)
File sizes	778	(1)
File locations	778	(1)
Using the Flash Player Plug-in for Web Browsers	779	(2)
Supported operating systems	780	(1)
Supported browsers	780	(1)
Plug-in and Flash movie distribution on the Web	780	(1)
Plug-in installation	781	(1)
Using the Settings in Flash Player 6 and higher	781	(3)
Privacy	781	(1)
Local Storage	782	(1)
Microphone	782	(1)
Camera	783	(1)
Alternative Flash-Content Players	784	(1)
RealOne Player with Flash playback	784	(1)
QuickTime Player	784	(1)
Shockwave Player	784	(1)
Player Utilities	785	(1)
Summary	786	(1)
Part VII: Approaching ActionScript	787	(142)
Knowing the Nuts and Bolts of Code	789	(34)
Breaking Down the Interactive Process	790	(3)
Define your problems	790	(1)
Clarify the solution	790	(1)
Translate the solution into the interactive language	791	(2)
The Basic Context for Programming in Flash	793	(4)
Accessing ActionScript commands	793	(1)
Actions list organization in the Actions panel	793	(1)
The Help panel	794	(1)
ActionScript 1.0 and 2.0	795	(2)
One Part of the Sum: ActionScript Variables	797	(7)
String literals	799	(1)
Expressions	799	(2)
Variables as declarations	801	(1)
Variables as text fields	802	(2)
Declaring Variables in ActionScript	804	(2)
Using actions to define variables	804	(1)
Loading variables from a predefined source	804	(1)
Sending variables to URLs	805	(1)
Establishing variables with HTML	805	(1)
Creating Expressions in ActionScript	806	(11)
Operators	806	(2)
Checking conditions: if...else actions	808	(2)
Branching conditions with switch() and case	810	(2)
Loops	812	(4)
Properties	816	(1)
Built-in functions	816	(1)
Creating and calling subroutines	816	(1)
Creating a Login Sequence with Variables	817	(4)
Summary	821	(2)
Controlling Movie Clips	823	(42)
Movie Clips: The Object Overview	823	(21)
Movie Clip properties	824	(1)
Movie Clip methods	825	(12)
Event methods: The more flexible Movie Clip handler	837	(6)
Other classes and functions that use the MovieClip object	843	(1)
Working with Movie Clip Properties	844	(3)
Positioning Movie Clips	844	(1)
Scaling Movie Clips	845	(2)
Rotating Movie Clips	847	(1)
Creating Draggable Movie Clips	847	(17)
Drag-and-drop basics	848	(1)
Detecting the drop position: Using_droptarget	849	(4)
Making alpha, scale, and blur sliders	853	(11)
Summary	864	(1)
Using Functions and Arrays	865	(24)
What Are Data Types?	865	(7)
String	865	(1)
Number	866	(1)
Boolean	867	(1)
MovieClip	868	(1)
Object	868	(1)
Function	868	(1)
undefined	869	(1)
Checking data types with typeof	870	(1)
Checking class type with instanceof	871	(1)
Overview of Functions as Procedures	872	(2)
What functions do	872	(1)
When to create a function	872	(1)
How to define a function	872	(1)
How to execute a function	873	(1)
Managing Related Data: The Array Class	874	(2)
Creating a Dynamic Reusable Flash Menu	876	(4)
Functions as Methods of Objects	880	(3)
Functions as Constructors for Objects	883	(4)
Function definition	884	(1)
Object creation and assignment	884	(1)
Sound object method execution	884	(1)
Converting the function definition to a class definition	885	(2)
Summary	887	(2)
Interacting with Movie Clips	889	(40)
Movie Clip Collision Detection	889	(3)
Using_droptarget	890	(1)
Collision detection with hitTestO	890	(2)
Using the Mouse Class	892	(3)
Manipulating Color Attributes	895	(9)
Creating a ColorTransform object	897	(3)
Setting Multiplier and Offset Values	900	(4)
Enabling Sound with ActionScript	904	(17)
Creating sound libraries with ActionScript	907	(4)
Creating a soundTransformObject	911	(1)
Creating volume and balance sliders for sounds	912	(9)
Printing with ActionScript	921	(6)
Summary	927	(2)
Part VIII: Applying ActionScript	929	(176)
Sharing and Loading Assets	931	(68)
Managing Smooth Movie Download and Display	931	(2)
Preloading a Flash Movie	933	(6)
Preloading a Flash Movie Containing Components	939	(7)
Loading Flash Movies	946	(11)
Basic overview of Flash site architecture	947	(1)
Storing multiple movies	948	(1)
Loading an external .swf file into a movie	948	(3)
How Flash handles loaded movies of differing dimensions	951	(1)
Placing, scaling, and rotating externally loaded Flash movies	951	(4)
Communicating between multiple movies on different levels	955	(1)
Unloading movies	955	(1)
LoadMovie() as a method for Movie Clip targets	956	(1)
Loading Images into Flash Movies	957	(4)
Loading an Asset with the MovieClipLoader API	961	(2)
Loading MP3 Audio into Flash Movies	963	(3)
Loading a Flash Video into a Flash Movie	966	(4)
Displaying a Flash Video at Its Native Size	970	(5)
Adjusting video size with metadata	971	(3)
Setting the video size without metadata	974	(1)
Using a Preloader for External Assets	975	(8)
Using the Loader and ProgressBar Components	983	(7)
Adding a Loader component to your Flash movie	983	(2)
Dynamically changing the source of a Loader component	985	(2)
Applying the ProgressBar component	987	(3)
Accessing Items in Shared Libraries	990	(6)
Setting up a Shared library file	991	(2)
Assigning names to assets	993	(1)
Specifying the Shared library's location	993	(1)
Publishing the Shared library movie file	994	(1)
Linking to assets from other movies	994	(1)
Updating shared assets	995	(1)
Summary	996	(3)
Sending Data In and Out of Flash	999	(16)
Using Text Fields to Store and Display Data	999	(4)
Input text fields	999	(2)
Dynamic text fields	1001	(2)
Defining a Data Process with States	1003	(3)
Input state	1004	(1)
Send state	1004	(1)
Wait state	1005	(1)
Output state	1005	(1)
Creating a User Comment Form	1006	(5)
Using XML Data in Flash Movies	1011	(3)
Understanding XML	1011	(1)
Loading an XML document into a Flash movie	1012	(2)
Summary	1014	(1)
Applying HTML and Text Field Formatting	1015	(32)
Exploring HTML Usage in Text Fields	1015	(15)
Supported HTML tags	1015	(3)
Formatting text with the Property inspector	1018	(1)
Inserting HTML tags into Text Fields with ActionScript	1019	(2)
Formatting fields with the TextFormat object	1021	(2)
Applying style sheets to text fields	1023	(3)
Inserting images into text fields	1026	(3)
Using asfunction in anchor tags	1029	(1)
Controlling Text Field Properties	1030	(8)
Scroll properties	1030	(1)
Text rendering properties	1031	(7)
Pixel-based Text Scrolling with Movie Clips	1038	(4)
Manipulating Text with the Selection Class	1042	(1)
getBeginIndex()	1042	(1)
getEndIndex()	1043	(1)
getCaretIndex()	1043	(1)
getFocus()	1043	(1)
setFocus()	1044	(1)
setSelection()	1044	(1)
Summary	1044	(3)
Creating a Game in Flash	1047	(24)
The Game Plan: Four Phases of Game Design	1047	(3)
Game design	1048	(1)
Interaction design	1048	(1)
Visual and sound design	1048	(1)
Programming	1049	(1)
Building the Project	1050	(1)
Scripting the Game	1051	(1)
Initializing the Game	1052	(3)
Main Timeline overview	1052	(3)
Building the Interface	1055	(4)
Creating text fields	1056	(2)
Creating the alphabet	1058	(1)
Starting the Game	1059	(4)
Display the letters of the alphabet	1061	(1)
Choose a random word	1061	(1)
Create the letters of the displayed word	1062	(1)
The User Input	1063	(1)
Interpreting the User Input	1063	(3)
Was the letter selected before?	1064	(1)
Is the letter part of the word?	1064	(2)
Checking the Status of the Game	1066	(3)
Is the word complete?	1066	(1)
Is the hangman complete?	1066	(1)
Are there more words to guess?	1067	(1)
How do you end the round?	1067	(1)
Removing the hangman	1068	(1)
Reset the game or just the round?	1068	(1)
Added Feature: Storing User and Game Information	1069	(1)
Summary	1070	(1)
Managing and Troubleshooting Flash Movies	1071	(34)
Customizing the Actions Panel	1071	(5)
Code hints	1071	(3)
Syntax coloring	1074	(2)
Managing Your Code	1076	(5)
Using Replace in the Actions panel	1076	(1)
How and where to place your code	1077	(1)
Centralized code	1078	(1)
Naming conventions	1079	(1)
Commenting	1080	(1)
Strong (or strict) typing	1080	(1)
Using the Output Panel	1081	(4)
trace() action	1081	(3)
List Objects and List Variables	1084	(1)
Knowing the Flash Debugger panel	1085	(4)
Displaying and modifying variables	1086	(1)
The Watch list	1087	(2)
Editing and displaying movie properties	1089	(1)
Assigning Breakpoints	1089	(4)
Adding or removing breakpoints in the Actions panel	1090	(1)
Adding and removing breakpoints in the Debugger panel	1090	(2)
Stepping through your code	1092	(1)
Debugging a Flash Movie Remotely	1093	(3)
Testing across mediums	1095	(1)
Testing matrix	1096	(1)
Storing Code in External Files	1096	(3)
The #include command	1097	(1)
Import Script command	1098	(1)
Export Script command	1098	(1)
Team environments	1098	(1)
ActionScript libraries and classes	1099	(1)
Troubleshooting Guidelines	1099	(4)
Good practices	1099	(1)
General troubleshooting checklist	1100	(1)
Designer troubleshooting checklist	1101	(1)
Developer troubleshooting guidelines	1101	(2)
Community Help	1103	(1)
Summary	1103	(2)
Part IX: Integrating Components and Data-Binding	1105	(100)
Using Components	1107	(38)
What Are Components?	1107	(1)
Why Use Components?	1108	(2)
Compiled Clips: A specific component format	1109	(1)
How to Add a Component	1110	(1)
Where to Find Components, Assets, and Parameters	1111	(4)
Modifying Component Color Properties and Parameters	1115	(1)
Removing Components from Your Movie	1115	(1)
Components in Flash 8	1116	(9)
Button component	1116	(1)
CheckBox component	1117	(1)
ComboBox component	1118	(1)
List component	1119	(1)
RadioButton component	1120	(1)
ScrollPane component	1121	(1)
TextArea component	1122	(1)
UIScrollBar component	1123	(2)
Understanding the Listener Event Model for Components	1125	(2)
What a typical listener looks like	1125	(1)
Letting the component know who its listeners are	1125	(2)
Using the Delegate class to control scope with listeners	1127	(2)
Using Components in Your Movie	1129	(5)
Modifying Components	1134	(3)
Changing styles for a component class	1136	(1)
Changing styles for individual instances	1136	(1)
Using Embedded Fonts with Components	1137	(1)
Replacing Component Skins	1138	(3)
Custom Components	1141	(1)
Live preview	1142	(1)
Exchanging and acquiring components	1142	(1)
Summary	1142	(3)
Binding Data and Events to Components	1145	(20)
What Is Data Binding?	1145	(1)
Working with Visual Data Binding: Building a Video Clip Selector	1146	(8)
Preparing the assets	1146	(1)
Making an XML file	1147	(1)
Constructing the Flash movie	1147	(7)
Providing Data and Event Handlers for Components	1154	(9)
Adding code to movies using visual data binding	1155	(1)
Making a list of cue points for a video clip	1156	(3)
Creating lists with the DataGrid component	1159	(4)
Summary	1163	(2)
Building an Image Gallery Component	1165	(40)
Creating a Plan	1166	(5)
Describing the feature set	1166	(1)
Determining the server-side scripting requirements	1167	(4)
Phase 1: Setting Up the Gallery class	1171	(5)
Reviewing the starter files	1171	(2)
Constructing the Gallery component	1173	(3)
Phase 2: Loading Thumbnails into the ScrollPane	1176	(8)
Uploading scripts and images to your Web server	1176	(1)
Building data properties for the Gallery class	1176	(3)
Creating thumbnail holders in the Gallery class	1179	(5)
Phase 3: Displaying the Full-size JPEG Image	1184	(5)
Loading the full-size image	1184	(4)
Updating the scroll bar and auto-loading the first image	1188	(1)
Phase 4: Enhancing the Thumbnail and Image States	1189	(13)
Framing the selected thumbnail with the BevelFilter class	1189	(2)
Creating a loading transition with the BitmapData and BlurFilter classes	1191	(3)
Transitioning thumbnail states with the Tween and ColorMatrixFilter classes	1194	(3)
Setting the image caption	1197	(1)
Completing the thumbnail button handlers	1198	(2)
Building a right-click download menu item for the full-size JPEG	1200	(2)
Phase 5: Finalizing the Component	1202	(2)
Adding the component definition	1202	(2)
Changing script paths for final deployment	1204	(1)
Summary	1204	(1)
Part X: Expanding Flash	1205	(2)
Working with Raster Graphics
Working with Vector Graphics
Working with Dreamweaver 8
Part XI: Appendixes	1207	(2)
Appendix A: Using the CD-ROM	1209	(4)
Reviewing Example .swf and .fla Files	1210	(1)
Installing and Using Plug-Ins and Applications	1210	(1)
Applications	1211	(1)
Troubleshooting	1211	(1)
Customer Care	1212	(1)
Appendix B: Guest Experts' Information	1213	(4)
Appendix C: Digital Audio Basics
Appendix D: Digital Video Basics
Index	1217