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CONTENTS AT A GLANCE
Chapter 1: Learning the Flash CS3 Professional Interface
• The Start page and creating a Flash document
• Managing your workspace
• Setting document preferences and properties
The Property inspector
Zooming the stage
• Exploring the panels in the Flash interface
The timeline
Frames
Using the Property inspector
The Tools panel
The library
Where to get help
• Using layers
• Your turn: Building a Flash movie
Adding the mountains and playing with color
Using trees to create the illusion of depth
Using a motion tween to create a twinkling star
A moon over Lake Nanagook
Breaking the stillness of the night at Lake Nanagook
Testing your movie
Your turn: Moonrise over Lake Nanagook
• What you’ve learned
Chapter 2: Graphics in Flash CS3
• The Tools panel
The Selection and Subselection tools
The Free Transform tool
The Gradient Transform tool
Object Drawing mode
Your turn: Moon rise at Lake Nanagook
• Drawing in Flash CS3
The Pencil tool
The Brush tool
The Eraser tool
The Pen tool
Your turn: Trees grow at Lake Nanagook
• Working with Color in Flash
Creating persistent custom colors
Your turn: Playing with color
• Using bitmap images in Flash
Working with bitmaps inside Flash
Your turn: Tracing bitmaps in Flash
JPG files and Flash
Using GIF files in Flash CS3
Importing Fireworks CS3 documents into Flash CS3
Importing Illustrator CS3 documents into Flash CS3
Importing Photoshop CS3 documents into Flash CS3
Notes from the Photoshop File Importer front
• Creating a banner ad
• What you’ve learned
Chapter 3: Symbols and Libraries
• Symbol essentials
Symbol types
Editing symbols
• Symbols and 9-slice scaling
The 9-slice “gotchas”
• Sharing symbols
Sharing libraries
• Filters and blend modes
Applying a Drop Shadow filter
Playing with blends
• Managing content on the stage
Aligning objects on the stage
Stacking order and using the Align panel
• Masks and masking
A simple mask
Using text as a mask
• Your turn: Creating a soft mask in Flash
Creating the cutout for the mask
A mask without a mask layer
• What you’ve learned
Chapter 4: ActionScript Basics
• The power of ActionScript
• The Actions panel
ActionScriptvs behaviors
• Everything is an object
Classes define objects
Properties
Methods
Events
• Syntax
Commenting code
Dot notation
Variables
Data types
Operators
Conditional statements
Class files
Document class
• How to read the ActionScript 30 Language and Components Reference
Search tactics
Checking syntax
• Your turn: Using ActionScript
Pausing the main timeline
Looping the timeline
• What you’ve learned
Chapter 5: Audio in Flash CS3
• Flash and the audio formats
Bit depth and sample rates
Flash and MP3
• Adding audio to Flash
• Using audio in Flash
• Your turn: Adding sound to a button
• Controlling audio with ActionScript 30
Playing a sound from the library
Using a movieclip to play a sound
Playing a sound from outside of Flash
Turning a remote sound on and off
• Your turn: Building an MP3 player
• What you’ve learned
Chapter 6 Text in Flash CS3
• Fonts and typefaces
• Working with device fonts
• Types of text fields
Static text
Your turn: Playing with static text
Dynamic text
Input text
• HTML formatting
• Hyperlinks and Flash text
Using HTML for hyperlinks
Using hyperlinks to trigger ActionScript
• Embedding font outlines
• Checking spelling
• Your turn: A visit to the pond
Scrolling text
• What you’ve learned
Chapter 7: Animation in Flash CS3
• Shape tweening
Scaling and stretching
Shape tween modifiers
Altering shapes
Shape hints
Altering gradients
• Motion tweening
Rotation
Motion tween properties
Scaling, stretching, and deforming
Easing
Custom easing
• Using animation
A closer look at the Timeline panel
Onion skinning
Editing multiple frames
Combining timelines
Motion tween effects
Motion guides
Tweening a mask
• Your turn: Making an animated button
An even cooler animated button
Copy motion as ActionScript 30
• What you’ve learned