Index
A
absolute paths, 147
action, 35
ActionScript, 313–318. See also code; scripts
adding animation with, 313–318
adding to Flash files, 12–13
case sensitivity, 149
classes. See classes
code coloring, 138
creating new document, 142
keywords, 137–138
navigating to frame labels, 6
navigating to scenes, 10
objects in, 134
operators, 138–141
planning phase, 131–133
settings, 147
statements, 137–138
typing, 152–153
versions, 12
vs. JSFL, 228
ActionScript mask, 240
ActionScript-to-JSFL interactions, 259–267
addChild method, 300
addNewPrimitiveRectangle command, 247
Adobe (company), v
Adobe Extension Manager, 122, 269
After Effects, 328
AIFF files, 20
alphaMultiplier property, 180
animated preloaders, 287–291
animation. See also character animation
ActionScript vs. Timeline, 313
adding with ActionScript, 313–318
cutout, 53–54
digital portfolio, 274–291
dynamic, 330–333
exporting to PNG sequences, 328–330
publishing for broadcast, 325–333
publishing to mobile/desktop, 333–334
sharing via web, 274–325
stop-motion, 53–54
traditional, 50–51
animation classes, 313–318. See also classes
Animation Tasks panel, 260–267
AnimSlider, 127
anti-aliasing, 284
arguments
considerations, 170–171, 237, 260
arithmetic operators, 139
armatures, 104–110
arrow keys, 39, 41, 196, 199, 216, 224
artwork. See also sketches
collecting for site content, 292
converting to symbols, 57–58, 110–111, 148
creating for Flash files, 276–281
hiding/showing, 8
for preloaders, 287–291
previewing, 7
repository for, 11–12
scaling, 321
synchronizing audio with, 22–23
as keyword, 171
aspect ratio, 326
audio. See sound
authoring environment, 227
auto-completion, code, 146
automating repetitive tasks. See workflow automation
B
backups, 328
Bandwidth Profiler, 310–312
base class, 155
behaviors
controlling sound with, 22–23
edge, 200–206
graphics, 57–58
movie clip, 57
start, 22
stop, 22
stream, 22
symbol, 57–58
Bitmap object, 159, 161, 172, 174
bitmap smoothing, 249–252
BitmapData object, 172–174
blocking, 32
bones, 104–110
Boolean properties, 164
boundaries property, 200
BoundedMover class, 201–206
branching narrative, 29
breakApart() command, 241
Brush tool, 47, 61–62, 83–84, 93
Button symbols, 57
buttons
in panels, 263
states, 57
C
camera
perspective angle, 37–39
stop-motion animation, 53
techniques, 13–20
cartoon characters. See characters
case sensitivity, 149
CD, included with book, viii
cel animation, 50
character animation, 49–128. See also animation; characters
adding dialogue, 110–128
animating manually, 90–103
animating with inverse kinematics, 104–110
bones, 104–110
building characters, 56–89
cel animation, 50
conceptualization, 55–56
creating armatures, 104–110
creating joints, 90–92
cutout animation, 53–54
designing characters, 29–31, 54–56
doodling, 55
drawing on ones, 51
drawing on twos, 51
driver character. See driver character
flour sack exercise, 50
hand-drawn, 50–51
lip syncing, 110–128
resources, 50
run/walk cycle, 92–103, 217–224
screen edge behavior, 200–206
stop-motion, 53–54
synchronizing sound to, 22–23
techniques, 50–54
traditional, 50–51
tweening. See tweening; tweens
wandering around screen, 206–216
character control classes, 191–224
character design, 29–31, 54–56
animating. See character animation
bones, 104–110
building in Flash, 56–89
cleaning up sketches, 56
converting to symbols, 88–89
driver. See driver character
joints, 90–92
lip syncing, 110–128
mouth symbol/shapes, 111–118
checkEdges method, 202–206, 219
character control, 191–224
visual effects, 156–191
classes, 129–224. See also specific classes
access control attributes, 161
attaching to Library items, 151–154
author of, 146
base, 155
basic structure, 143
within classes, 161
composition, 161
document class, 141–149, 296–310
empty, 154
encapsulation, 160
event, 154–155
examples. See class examples
helper, 161
instantiating, 141
from other sources, 224
overview, 134–137
polymorphism, 155–156
purpose of, 134
user-created, 135
web addresses, 146
classpaths, 145–147
clearCanvasOnUpate property, 164, 170, 179, 190
code. See also ActionScript
auto-completion options, 146
case sensitivity, 149
color in, 138
comments, 139
indenting, 152
code blocks, 139
Code Editor, 138, 142–147, 153, 163
code hinting, 146
code snippets, 13
coding. See scripting
colon (:), 152
color
animating for broadcast and, 326
in code, 138
ColorTransform object, 180
fills, 61, 63, 65, 172, 232, 240
ColorTransform object, 180
commands
deleting, 267
renaming, 267
running, 238
saving scripts as, 233, 237–238
shortcuts, 247–248
Commands directory, 237
commands list, 260
Commands menu, 234, 237, 248, 260, 267
comments, 139
compiler, 140–141
compiler errors, 143, 144, 146
composition, 161
compression, 332
conceptualization, 55–56
conditional statements, 171
configFile properties, 297
Configuration directory, 237–238
confirm method, 248–249, 251, 252
constructor method, 143, 163, 164
content
collecting artwork for, 292
dynamic, 293–296
guided, 4–5
loading/unloading, 297, 300, 303–305
preparing for web, 292
title/action safe areas for, 2
content directory, 292
contentLoader property, 297, 304
contentLoaderInfo property, 304
coordinate system, 193
CSS, styling text with, 312–313
CSS files, 312–313
CSS properties, 312
cutout animation, 53–54
D
debugging, 249
Deco tool, 159
design patterns, 150
desktop computers, publishing to, 333–334
dialog boxes, advanced, 258–259
dialogue, adding, 110–128
document class, 141–149
Document Object Model (DOM), 229–231
documents. See also files; Flash files
compacting, 12
creating new blank, 59–60, 142
templates. See templates
DOM (Document Object Model), 229–231
doodling, 55
dot syntax, 230
DOWN conditional, 221
download speeds, 310–312
animating manually, 90–103
animating with inverse kinematics, 104–110
building, 59–89
converting to symbol, 88–89
run/walk cycle, 92–103
working with imported sketch, 59–63
driver character, components
bones, 104–110
eyes, 63–66
hat, 66–70
joints, 90–92
limbs, 83–89
mustache/hair, 71–76
torso, 77–83
dynamic animation, 330–333
dynamic content, 293–296
dynamic text, 283–284
E
ease, 319
easing, 314
ECMAScript, 228
edge behavior, 200–206
elements, 229–230
else statement, 171
else-if statements, 171, 196, 220
encapsulation, 160
ENTER_FRAME event, 166
envelope, sound, 23–24
errors
strict typing and, 153
try-catch statements, 305
Unhandled ioError, 299
Event behavior, 22
event classes, 154–155
event listeners, 152, 162, 195, 319
events
dispatching, 155
keyboard, 196
mouse, 154
overview, 154–155
sounds, 22
exporting
animations to PNG sequences, 328–330
dynamic animation, 330–333
to QuickTime, 330–333
video for Flash output, 325–333
to video sharing sites, 274, 333
Extensible Markup Language. See XML
included on CD, viii
MotionSketch, 177
packaging for distribution, 257–268
resources, 270–271
SmartMouth, 127
F
fade method, 179–180
fadeAmount property, 179, 181, 190
file formats, 56
files. See also documents; Flash files
AIFF, 20
CSS, 312–313
FLA, 328
GIF, 292
HTML, 322–325
JPEG, 292
MP3, 20
MXI, 268–269
PNG, 292
SWF, 292
SWZ, 285
WAV, 20
fills, 61, 63, 65, 172, 232, 240
FLA files, 328
Flash
advanced techniques, 257–268
forums, 270–271
popularity of, 54
Flash Code Editor, 138, 142–147, 153, 163
Flash coordinate system, 193
Flash DOM, 229–231
Flash extensions. See extensions
Flash files. See also documents; files
action safe/title safe guides, 2–5, 328
creating artwork for, 276–281
displaying on web, 276–291
exporting to video, 325–333
organizing in Library, 11–12
saving/compacting, 12
setting up for video output, 326–328
setting up for web output, 277
setup tips, 2–13
templates. See templates
Flash panels, 259–267
flashbacks, 28–29
flashContent element, 324
flour sack exercise, 50
fl.trace method, 249
folders
ActionScript, 147
expanding/collapsing, 11
layer, 9
organizing in Library, 11
subfolders, 146
font embedding, 283–284
for loop, 300
forums, 270–271
frame notes, 6
frames. See also keyframes
adding ActionScript to, 12, 15
layers and, 229
selecting, 16
skipping, 219
FrameSync extension, 122–128, 227
framing, 32
FTP (File Transfer Protocol), 322, 325
FutureSplash Animator, v
G
Gap Size setting, 69
generateMenu method, 299–300
get method, 185
getBitmap method, 166
getCanvas method, 163
getters, 185
GIF files, 292
GIF format, 56
globalToLocal method, 172
Graphic symbols
described, 57
uses for, 57–58
graphics tablets, 59
H
helper class, 161
History panel, 232–234
hover state, 312
HTML files, 322–325
htmlText property, 302
I
if statement, 171
IK (inverse kinematics), 104–110
Illustrator, 56
importing
ActionScript classes, 147–148
audio, 119–120
index property, 301
init method, 164–166, 190, 297–298
initBitmap method, 171–173
initialization methods, 164
instance names, 279
instances, 57–59, 110–111, 134
int (integer data type), 193
integer data type (int), 193
internal keyword, 161
interpolation, 51–52. See also tweening
inverse kinematics (IK), 104–110
J
JavaScript Flash. See JSFL
JPEG files, 292
JPEG format, 56
ActionScript-to-JSFL interactions, 259–267
advantages of, 228–229
basics, 227–231
custom tools, 268
extensions in, 227
Flash DOM and, 229–231
objects in, 229
panels, 259–267
resources, 270–271
vs. ActionScript, 228
K
key poses. See keyframes
keyboard
moving object with, 192–200
shortcuts, 247–248
keyboard events, 196
keyCode property, 196
keyframes. See also frames
creating, 125
described, 51
frame labels, 5–6
keywords, 137–138
L
layer folders, 9
layers
displaying as outlines, 8
frames on, 229
height, 8–9
hiding/showing, 9
names, 8
properties, 8–9
title, 281
Library, organizing items in, 11–12
library folders, 11
Library items, 150, 151–154, 249–253
linear narrative, 28–29
lines, constraining, 70
lip syncing, 110–128
loadContent method, 303–304
loadItem method, 302
logical operators, 139
M
Macromedia, v
Math.min method, 289
matte script, 238–247
Media Playback templates, 60
memory issues, 166, 174, 328, 333
menuItemStart property, 297
Merge Drawing model, 239
MMExecute() function, 259–260, 266
mobile devices, publishing to, 333–334
motion tweens, 4, 15, 16, 18, 52
MotionBlurClip class, 181–189
MotionBlurTrail class, 190–191
MotionBrush class, 159–168
MotionSketch extension, 177
MotionTrail class, 177–181
mouse click listeners, 152, 264, 300
mouse clicks, 111, 229, 240, 242, 264
MouseEvent object, 152
mouth shapes, 115–118
mouth symbol, creating, 111–115
mouth symbol script, 252–257
Mover class, 192–200
Movie Clip symbols, 57
Movie Clip Timeline, 326
MovieClip class, 135
movies. See also video
action safe/title safe areas, 2–5, 328
adding sound to, 20–27
MP3 files, 20
MXI files, 268–269
N
naming conventions, 11–12
narrative, 27–29
nesting
described, 58
symbols, 58–59
new keyword, 166
nonlinear narrative, 28–29
notes, frame, 6
O
Object class, 134–135
Object Drawing mode, 112, 238, 240, 245
object-oriented design patterns, 150
object-oriented programming (OOP), 150
objects. See also specific objects
in ActionScript, 134
instances, 57
in JSFL, 229
moving with keyboard, 192–200
primitive, 247
on Stage. See Stage
offset property, 169
onAddedToStage method, 162, 201
onClick function, 152–153
onContentLoadProgress method, 304
onContentLoadStarted method, 304
onDataLoaded method, 298
Onion Skin feature, 93, 115–118
onMenuItemClick method, 319–320
onRemovedFromStage method, 163
OOP (object-oriented programming), 150
operators, ActionScript, 138–139
Optimize Curves dialog box, 73
P
package paths, 146
panels, 259–267
parallax scrolling, 17–18
parentheses ( ), 139–140
paths, 145–147
perspective angle, 37–39
Photoshop, 56
plot, 35
plug-ins. See extensions
PNG files, 292
PNG format, 56
PNG sequences, 328–330
points, 172
polymorphism, 155–156
portfolio, digital, 274–325
Preview modes, 7
primitive objects, 247
programming. See ActionScript; code; scripts
programming terms, 136–137
prompt method, 249
properties. See also specific properties
Boolean, 164
CSS, 312
layer, 8–9
sound, 22–23
protected keyword, 161, 168, 193
publishing
for broadcast, 325–333
to mobile/desktop platforms, 333–334
Q
Queasy Tools panel, 260–267
R
raw vector data, 239
rectangles
Create Stage Size Rectangle script, 232–238
matte script, 239–247
rigging, 90
rollover state, 312
root keyword, 201
rotation property, 215
Runner class, 217–224
run/walk cycles, 92–103, 217–224
S
scaling artwork, 321
scanners, 56
scenes
converting to symbols, 16
overview, 10
panning, 14–18
using sound across, 24–25
zooming in/out, 18–20
scr object, 173
Script Editor, 234–236
scripting, 228. See also ActionScript; coding
scripting terms, 228
scripts. See also ActionScript; workflow automation
advanced dialog boxes, 258–259
for bitmap smoothing, 249–252
compatibility, 247
History panel, 232–234
matte creation, 238–247
modifying, 236–237
mouth symbol, 252–257
rectangle, 232–238
sample, 238
saving as commands, 234, 237–238
testing, 246
with user interactions, 248–249
scrubbing, 57
selectAll function, 241
semicolon (;), 140–141
set method, 186
setBounds method, 203
setters, 185
setting, 35
shape hints, 208–212
shapes
adjusting, 65
creating armatures with, 108–110
merging, 239
mouth, 115–118
sharing animations, 273–334
overview, 273
publishing for broadcast, 325–333
publishing to mobile/desktop, 333–334
via web, 274–325
Simulate Download option, 310–312
Single Frame option, 118
site document class, 141–149, 296–310
site.html file, 323–325
sketches. See also artwork
cleaning up, 56
for run/walk cycles, 92
in storyboards, 31–45
working with, 59–63
SmartMouth extension, 127
sound, 20–27
adding to movies, 20–21
controlling via behaviors, 22–23
disabling, 332
event, 22
importing, 119–120
lip syncing, 110–128
narrative, 27–29
settings, 25–27
streaming, 22
synchronizing to animation, 22–23
using across multiple scenes, 24–25
sound effects, 24
sound envelope, 23–24
sound properties, 22–23
Spring feature, 52
square brackets [ ], 139, 230, 237
camera techniques, 13–20
as frame border, 33
manipulating objects on, 148–149
width/height of, 34
Stage objects, 229
stage property, 172
Start behavior, 22
statements, 137–138
Stop behavior, 22
stop-motion animation, 53–54
story bibles, 30
storyboard example, 39–45
storyboarding, 31–45
storyboards, animated, 46–48
storytelling, 27–29
Stream behavior, 22
streaming sound, 22
strict typing, 152–153
stroke width, 82
styleFile properties, 297
styles, CSS, 312–313
super keyword, 179
SWF files, 292
SWF2Video, 333
SWZ files, 285
symbol behaviors, 57–58
symbol instances, 58–59, 110–111, 134
symbol names, 279
symbol parameter, 170
SymbolCanvas class, 168–177
symbolCanvas property, 164
symbols
buttons, 57
converting artwork to, 57–58, 110–111, 148
converting characters to, 88–89
converting items to, 57
converting scenes to, 16
creating armatures with, 104–108
described, 57
editing, 75, 93, 253, 285, 286
Graphic, 57–58
Movie Clips, 57
nested, 58–59
rendering mattes within, 245–246
using as masks, 177
working with, 57–59
T
tablet devices, 34
animatic files as, 46
Media Playback, 60
NTSC, 326–327
PAL, 326–327
storyboard, 33
testing
download speeds, 310–312
files for publishing, 325, 331
in Flash Player, 331
scripts, 246
text
anti-aliased, 284
classic vs. TLF, 285
dynamic, 283–284
static, 286
styling with CSS, 312–313
text descriptions, 280
Text Layout Framework (TLF), 285
TextWrangler, 324
TIFF format, 56
adding frame labels to, 5–6
applying audio clip to, 21
customizing look of, 6–9
vs. ActionScript, 130–131, 313
Tint effect, 87
title layer, 281
tools, custom, 268
trace method, 266
transparency, 172, 179, 180, 315
try-catch statements, 305
tween classes, 313–318
TweenLite, 314–318
typing, 152–153
U
uint (unsigned integer data type), 193
unloadContent method, 303, 304–305
unsigned integer data type (uint), 193
UP conditional, 221
update method, 166
updatePosition method, 195, 202, 214, 219
user interactions, 248–249
V
var keyword, 236
variables
local, 172
syntax example, 137
vector data, 239
video. See also movies
exporting for Flash output, 325–333
exporting to video sharing sites, 274, 333
publishing for broadcast, 325–333
publishing to mobile/desktop, 333–334
Vimeo, 333
visemes, 115
visual effects classes, 156–191
vx property, 221
W
walk cycles, 92–103
Wanderer class, 213–217
Wanderer symbol, 206–213
WAV files, 20
waveforms, 23–24
web addresses, 146
websites
digital portfolio, 274–291
download speeds, 310–312
dynamic content, 293–296
preparing content, 292
sharing animations via, 274–325
site directory, 277
site document class, 296–310
uploading, 322–325
workflow automation, 225–271. See also scripts
advantages of, 226–227
Document Object Model, 229–231
History panel, 232–234
JavaScript Flash. See JSFL
resources, 270–271
write-on effect, 177
X
XML (Extensible Markup Language), 293–296
XML attributes, 300
XML files, 258–259, 293–296, 299
XMLUI object, 258–259
Y
YouTube, 333