Flash originally became a member of Adobe Creative Suite 3 and is now a member of the various flavors of Adobe Creative Suite 4, sharing the suites with the likes of Photoshop, Illustrator, After Effects, and Acrobat. This exposes the tool to many new kinds of creative designers and developers, who will likely use Flash in ways the current Flash community hasn’t thought of. Whether you’re a new or existing Flash user, now is a great time to learn or use the software and get involved with the Flash community online.
Many years ago in a dimly lit basement, I started using Flash to create unpalatable, short, frame-by-frame animations – and discovered Flash was much easier than other tools I had been using to do the same thing. It’s hard to believe what Flash has become over the years, from the relatively simple animation program it once was back then. For example, Flash now has a powerful programming language, a bucket full of filter and blending tools, and cross-product integration with tools like Illustrator, Photoshop, and Flex to help you make great animation, applications, or motion design.
One of the nice things about Flash is that it attracts so many different users, from inspiring and creative animators to hard-core programmers, and all sorts of people in-between. You certainly don’t need to learn everything there is to know about Flash to be a master at the tool – you can choose to focus your talents on design or development, or challenge yourself from time to time by crossing over between graphics and code. But now that Flash is full of features and capable of so much, the tools can seem rather daunting to learn. But if you have helpful resources at your side, like this book, learning Flash doesn’t need to be difficult. I believe the key to learning Flash is to keep it simple when you start out, take it slow, use the available resources (like books), and try to be patient. Learning Flash takes some time, but it is a lot of fun and very rewarding.
Flash is an incredible tool for expressing your creativity, style, and unique ideas. I hope that you use Flash with this book to get inspired, learn valuable new tricks and techniques, and create some wonderful animation. And of course, make sure to have fun with the software while you read and learn all about how to animate!
Jen deHaan
Instructional Designer, Web and DVA
Adobe Systems Inc.