Flash Templates Tutorials - Macromedia Flash
Flash, General Issues
Flash and Professional Flash applications are tools designed for creation of online multimedia presentations and websites. Vector graphics and animation are typical for Flash, although this program can be used for manipulation or reflection of raster graphics, video editing and even for sound files manipulation.
One can easily design various data saturated program applications or simple animated large headings. Flash content is multifunctional and is available on many platforms.
Flash content, in particular, can be viewed in Windows, Macintosh, Unix, mobile devices and cell phones by using advantages regarding coherent presentation on all the platforms without altering the content entirely for each platform.
Flash and Flash Professional are the two different versions of the same Flash program. By using Flash one can create animation, effects, vector graphics, online applications, programs, presentations and Websites. All the content is entered to the author work area in Flash and then is saved in its own FLA file format. FLA format file contains all the necessary resources, including images, video, sound and code and can be readjusted if needed. Flash content is published in compact SWF file formats for the future demonstration on the various platforms with the help of Flash player. Thus, SWF file is a compiled type of FLA file.
Flash is a set area for demonstration and combining of such a various multimedia content as an online animation, sound files, effects, video, etc. To the FLA document, in particular, one can import text, raster and vector graphics (from Photoshop, Illustrator and Freehand documents), PDF files and sound files (like WAV and MP3). Besides, while playing SWF file online one can load MP3 sound files, Flash video and JPEG images. And the Flash player allows connecting to the data sources in order to combine them with data base, XML or Web services. Due to all these possibilities the attractive components of animation and various effects may be entered to the applications managed by the data.
File / Revert – allows to return to the previous version of the saved project (when saying project we mean file with our work)
File / Import – adding of the new graphic and sound objects to the project.
File / Export Movie – saving of our project in the required format, like gif or QuickTime video, i.e. in any animation format.
File / Export Image – the same as above but in the look of a static image.
File / Publish Settings – allows to set all the necessary properties for the project saving in the ready for publication in the internet way.
File / Publish Preview – one can check how the ready project looks like and whether some changes of publishing should be made.
File / Publish – finally when everything is checked you can already publish (save in the required format) the project.
Then go the commands contained in the most Windows programs - Page Setup, Print Preview, Print and Send, their meaning is quite standard and there is no need in additional description.
File / Preferences – allows to set Flash to your personal taste.
File / Bitmaps on Clipboard – (for Windows only) places the image into the Clipboard as a raster graphics, further to the standard Windows Metafile information when you select Edit – Copy. It is useful when shifting the data to the application which works best of all with images as the raster graphics. One can select raster graphics format and resolution as well as dithering.
File / Size limit – (for Windows only) limits RAM volume used while image shifting as a raster graphics to the Clipboard. Increase this value when working with large images as a raster graphics or with those possessing high resolution. If your computer has a limited memory, select None than.
File / Gradients on Clipboard – manages the quality of gradient filling in Windows Metafile which is generated each time you copy some elements to the Clipboard. Because of some limitations intrinsic Windows Metafile generation of these gradients may be slow. If you are shifting back into Flash only, select None Flash for the acceleration of copying which always supports the full quality of the gradients in the Clipboard.
File / Printing Options – (for Windows only) cancels output PostScript while printing on PostScript printer. This option is not selected by default. Select it only if you face some problems while printing with Post Script printer. Printing with PostScript may be much slower if PostScript is canceled in Flash.
File / PICT Settings for Clipboard – (for Macintosh only) manages PICT data type generated while using Edit – Copy. To save images in vector format select Object or one of the other formats of the raster graphics. These options look the same as those available from dialogue menu at PICT Export. Objects with 300 dpi resolution and PostScript Included option are set by default. Gradients (for Macintosh only) manage the quality of gradients placed into PICT which are generated while copying elements to the Clipboard. Generation of these elements may be slow because of some limitations intrinsic to PICT format. If you are shifting back only into Flash, select None for acceleration of copying. Flash always supports the full quality of gradients in the Clipboard. Undo Levels sets the amount of undo/repeat levels (up to 200). Undo levels requires lots of available memory: the more amount you are using the more system memory will be deducted. Setting the large amount of undo levels can increase memory volume required for Flash.
File / Shift Select – manages the way Flash makes the multiple selection of the elements. If the Shift Select option is turned off, when clicking other elements will add them to the current sampling. If the Shift Select option is turned on, when clicking elements will except them from the sampling if Shift button isn’t pressed.
File / Show Tooltips – while transmissing mouse cursor over interface elements with some delay there are some Tooltips. Turn this option off if you do not want to see them.
File / Disable Timeline Docking – doesn’t allow Timeline to be fixed in the application window after it was carried away to its own window. See also Timeline Docking usage.
File / Assistant – is not the same as Office assistant, there is much more use here as it is designed to set up the tools for drawing. Recent file List is the list of the last four opened files.