How to Use Adobe Flash Cs3 Professional

Using Flash CS3 can open a multitude of doors for a diligent programmer and multimedia producer.

Flash CS3 is a powerful multimedia program allowing designers to create complex interactivity projects involving animation, video, graphics and images. A professional level knowledge of Flash is necessary for complex interactivity projects using ActionScript programming languages. Yet a basic knowledge of the program will allow designers to create smaller projects with simple interactive elements. Use the Adobe tutorials in conjunction with this article to better understand the program, its tools and how the various elements in the program communicate to produce a Flash project.

Instructions

1. Open Flash and select the type of file necessary to create your project and set your Stage dimensions. Choose from the "General New Document" or from the "New from Template" option. For this tutorial, select "Flash File (ActionScript 2.0)" from the new document option. Set the Stage size, which represents the final output size of your project and will serve as the workspace in Flash, located just below the Timeline. Go to "Properties" > "Size" and enter the desired dimensions.

2. Create a new Layer in the Timeline by selecting "Insert" > "Timeline" > "Layers" and give the Layer a name based on its function, such as navigation, images or background. Layers contain the various elements that are found in your project's Timeline. Each Frame represents a page or a point in time in the project. For example, Frame 1 can be the Home page of a website or the first second in a 30-second animation. The Timeline holds all the Frames and the Playhead, which is directed by ActionScript programming to land on the desired Frame number and display all the content in each frame of every active Layer containing a Frame holding a Keyframe.

3. Create a Keyframe for placing content inside of the desired Frame next to the Layer you are working in. Use the Selection Tool at the top of the Tool Bar and click on the Frame next to the Layer you will place content in to display on the Stage. Go to "Insert" > "Timeline" > "Keyframe" and press the mouse. Once content appears on the Stage in this Frame, the clear circle will convert to a black circle.

4. Place content on the Stage using the Rectangle, Oval or Text Tools or import your assets into the Library and drag them onto the Stage. Assets are the graphics, images and videos created outside of Flash and must be imported into the program to use in the project. Import the assets by going to "File" > "Import" > "Import to Library" and following the dialog boxes that fit the appropriate files. An image file with a JPG file extension will have a different dialog box then a PSD image file and Flash will need to import them according to your preferences. The Library will help you organize your project's assets as more content is added.

5. Convert an object to a Symbol to add interactivity to your project. Creating an interactive Symbol will allow a user to communicate with the project and the ActionScript associated with the Symbol will tell Flash how to treat the Symbol based on the user's actions. A common Symbol is the Button, which can be used in the navigation of a website and can tell the Playhead to go to another Frame or page in a website when a user hits the Button. Select the object with the Selection Tool and go to "Modify" > "Create Symbol" and select the desired outcome of the object, either a Button, Symbol or Movie. Label the creation with its intended outcome, such as home button, to keep the assets organized in your Library.

6. Add ActionScript to a Button or Symbol by highlighting the asset with the Selection Tool and going to "Window" > "Actions" while still selecting the converted object and add an ActionScript to the asset. For example, for the "About" button on a website, tell Flash to send the Playhead to the second Frame, which contains the "About Us" content using the following code:
   on (release) {gotoAndStop(2);}

7. Add a Stop Action to each Frame in the project if you are building a website or similar project with multiple Frames or the Playhead will run continuously creating a flashing effect as it rapidly loads each Frame or page of the project. Create a separate Layer in the Timeline labeled Actions and be sure it resides at the top of the Layer list. Change the location by highlighting the Layer and dragging the name to the top of the Timeline while holding down the mouse. Highlight each Frame in the Timeline next to the Actions Layer and go to "Windows" > "Actions" and add the following script to the Frame:
   stop ();
   The Stop script will keep the Playhead on this Frame and will not move until another button or script in Frame 2 directs the Playhead elsewhere within the project.

8. Save your file and publish a preview to test the functionality of the ActionScript added to this project. If a problem is present, the "Compiler Error" window will appear onscreen and locate the scripting problems in the site.

References

• Adobe: Flash Tutorial