Flash Site Design - newbie in a big way

Author

newbie in a big way

LuciBrown

2005-08-27, 11:25 pm

I know I know, it sounds like a dumb question, but how do you upload the
graphics, jpg or gifs on the flash. I purchased a template which I am trying to
learn on. I managed to get through most of it but two parts have stumped me and
all my reading today has not come close to helping me understand what to do.

I would like to change an icon that was used to display where a logo would go
to graphic. I managed to change the type of the logo or the company name or the
personal page. I just don't know how to upload to flash and use a graphic of my
own.

Second stump if you could please help me out. I change all the links to new
names -- and I have or thought I had gone through all the layers to find all
the headings, naivigation and so forth. I saved it as a mov...file and then I
noticed that when I moused over they went back to the originals. I have hunted
for the originals...and can only assume they are what is in the symbols. What
can I do to fix this problem so that the links display the same link on the
mouseover.

This was my very first attempt at learning Flash and I am haulted by no
knowledge of what to do. I did read everything I could read on the site before
coming here. I even previewed several pages of logs here, but none have helped
me.

Please help a newbie that happens to be in a rut here.

Kind Regards
Alexan

tralfaz

2005-08-27, 11:25 pm

"LuciBrown" <webforumsuser@macromedia.com> wrote in message
news:deqv19$bjh$1@forums.macromedia.com...
>I know I know, it sounds like a dumb question, but how do you upload
>the
> graphics, jpg or gifs on the flash. I purchased a template which I
> am trying to
> learn on. I managed to get through most of it but two parts have
> stumped me and
> all my reading today has not come close to helping me understand
> what to do.
>

It would help you a lot to learn Flash BEFORE messing with someone
else's template. Do all the tutorials that come with the program.
Seems like you are trying to jump completely over the beginner stage
where you learn all the basics.

Just a comment on templates.. Some templates were made to prevent
others from stealing them for resale. They hide stuff and put in
complicated sections that are difficult to make sense of (on purpose).
tralfaz

LuciBrown

2005-08-28, 4:17 am

Dear Newsgroup User,

Thank you very much for you little peice of infomation. You use the word
stealing as if you are famuilar with it well. I happen to pay for my products
and my programs. I joined a site called www.boxedart.com. Once you are a member
you can download the templates. I wanted to explore the flash design -- which
it in clear english ask you to edit it before using. It even gives you open
editible source files. Yet it offers you the ability to try to do it on your
own. As I thought that perhaps it would be nice to buy the flash program at a
cost of almost 500.00 I can not afford to purchase it and not know how to use
it. So it too is not stollen it is downloaded with a free trial. I have 30
days to try to understand it and see if it would be something that would be
useful for me. I have decided that usefull no, but it does seem like fun and so
I ventured into trying to edit the .fla without simple source files. I
downloaded the template to take a part and text and delete not use on my
personal site. I think this covers all the corners when it comes to the word
stealing. As for resell that too is something entirely unjust in the forum.
Again you say this with knowledge something I do not have. All I ask for was a
little help as I am in my beginner stages of learning and the clock is ticking
on the demo download, but I would like to thank you for you useless advice for
I know it took an effort to type in the keys and put your comment that was so
nagative.

No tutorials come with the template except for the source files and the offer
to take it apart and change the look of it if you can.
What tutorials that come with the demo I have read and do not totally
understand. I have been all over the main site of macromedica.com and at last
resources I have found my way into this forum.

I am sure you have been around a while and know all about it and find this
annoying but it would be most polite if you have something so negative to say
to keep it to yourself for I am not in the mood for lectures. I just want to
find out if this program is going to be worth it for me to invest the cost of
buying it. NOTHING MORE NOTHING LESS.

Kind Regards

tralfaz

2005-08-28, 4:17 am

Oh, my dear luciBrown! I am afraid that you mis-understood my remarks
completely! What I was trying to tell you in my clumsy way is that
templates are sometimes the most difficult of all examples for a new
Flash user to study. I have been programming for many years and using
Flash for over 6 years now (almost every day too) and when I look at
some of the templates (when someone needs help changing one), I can't
believe some of the tricks they used to prevent the average user from
making changes to it or understanding it. They do this so their
product doesn't end up in someone else's product line. In no way was
I suggesting that you were trying to steal the template. The thought
didn't even enter my poor ole head. I should have realized that you
might read that into my comments.

The tutorials I mentioned come with Flash and will get you started on
all the basics. Was only suggesting that you not skip this vital step
if you want to learn Flash. It is too frustrating to just jump in and
start using the program.

My comments were meant only to be helpful, not hurtful so please
forgive me for making you think otherwise.
Please have a happy day. I hate to think I upset you like that. I
would never do that on purpose. This is just Flash stuff after all,
not real life!
tralfaz

LuciBrown

2005-08-28, 7:27 pm

Thak you for clairfying things. I hated to have to feel so defensive when I am
only trying to understand things. Also with over 6 years of knowledge you could
have given me the answers I am seeking. Thanks anyway.

Kind Regards

T1212

2005-08-30, 7:39 pm

I was hoping to find an answer to Luci's original question here...how do you
download graphics to the Library in Flash? I downloaded the trial program and
have spent a couple of hours a day, for over a week, going through the
tutorial. Nowhere has the tutorial explained how to download a graphic. In
every lesson I've gone through, graphics have already been on the page or in
the library.
So, if you wouldn't mind, could you explain how to download a graphic into the
Flash Library, please? (I know how to download a graphic to a folder on my PC,
so I just need to know how to get it into the Library.)
This info will hopefully flatten my learning curve a little. Flash is hardly a
program one picks up in 10 minutes, as Macromedia promises.
Thanks for your time and effort!
T

tralfaz

2005-08-30, 7:39 pm

"T1212" <webforumsuser@macromedia.com> wrote in message
news:df28l1$lnv$1@forums.macromedia.com...
>I was hoping to find an answer to Luci's original question here...how
>do you
> download graphics to the Library in Flash? I downloaded the trial
> program and
> have spent a couple of hours a day, for over a week, going through
> the
> tutorial. Nowhere has the tutorial explained how to download a
> graphic. In
> every lesson I've gone through, graphics have already been on the
> page or in
> the library.
> So, if you wouldn't mind, could you explain how to download a
> graphic into the
> Flash Library, please? (I know how to download a graphic to a folder
> on my PC,
> so I just need to know how to get it into the Library.)
> This info will hopefully flatten my learning curve a little. Flash
> is hardly a
> program one picks up in 10 minutes, as Macromedia promises.
> Thanks for your time and effort!
> T

Sure, no problem.
File->Import (after selecting a frame to put it on)
or
File->Import to Library
I would recommend putting the images into the same directory as the
fla file before importing to keep things together.

BTW.. this sitedesign forum isn't the best place to ask questions
about Flash. Better to use the macromedia.flash forum. This forum is
mainly for critiques on design work. no biggie though.
tralfaz

T1212

2005-08-30, 7:39 pm

Thanks! I'll use macromedia.flash in the future. I was actually just popping
back on to tell you that I found the answer to my question in the online
documentation provided by MacroMedia. It sure was buried, though. The whole
layering thing is new to me, and I've only worked once before with a timeline,
using Windows Movie Maker.
Anyway, thanks again for taking the time to answer my question and point me in
the right direction.
T

tralfaz

2005-08-30, 11:18 pm

"T1212" <webforumsuser@macromedia.com> wrote in message
news:df2jk1$83i$1@forums.macromedia.com...
> Thanks! I'll use macromedia.flash in the future. I was actually just
> popping
> back on to tell you that I found the answer to my question in the
> online
> documentation provided by MacroMedia. It sure was buried, though.

You're very welcome. Yeah, the Flash documentation isn't the
greatest. For other questions not answered in the help files, the
next best source of information about Flash is google groups. Here is
the base location for all the Macromedia Flash folders.
http://groups.google.com/groups/dir...614636&expand=1
tralfaz

Centerpoint Computer

2005-09-01, 7:22 am

There is yet another way to get your images to display in Flash. When you add
a JPG to your library, you embed it into the SWF file when you publish it.
This can increase your main SWF file size and therefore cause the end user to
have to wait until the content has completely downloaded. If the image is
located in a part of the flash document that they may not even view, why would
you want to force them to load it until they needed to see it?

So, using the loadMovie() function in action script, you can tell flash to go
get an image from your website's image folder or local folder and display it on
the stage.

Create a new blank movie clip and call it myContainer (this is insignificant,
you can call it whatever you want.)

Open that clip for editing and create a rectangle within the clip. Adjust the
size of the rectangle to match the size of your photo, or not. Not terribly
important.

Close the clip and drag it to the main stage.

Give it an instance name in the properties panel. Call it myContainer_mc (or
whatever you want, making sure you have no spaces in the instance name)

Now, create a new layer in your main timeline and label it 'actions.'

Insert a keyframe in whichever frame you want the image to load during the
main timeline animation (try frame 1 to start). Make sure that you have this
frame selected, then...

Press F9 to open the action panel and type the following code...

myConatiner_mc.loadMovie("path to image.jpg");

The path to the image needs to be relative to your main flash swf file. For
instance, if your images are located in www.yourdomain.com\images and your swf
file is located in www.yourdomain.com, then the loadMovie code will look like
this:

myContainer_mc.loadMovie("images\yourimage.jpg");

If your SWF file is located in www.yourdomain.com\flash\ and your images are
also one folder below the root of the site (www.yourdomain.com\images\, you'd
need to type this:

myContainer_mc.loadMovie("..\images\yourimage.jpg");

The two dots returns flash to the root path before looking for the image
folder. If you don't put the two dots, you'd be telling flash to look for your
images in the www.yourdomain.com\flash\images\ folder, which doesn't exist.

Close the action panel.

code translated: Flash, when you get to frame 1, load my image into the empty
movie clip on the stage which has the INSTANCE name myContainer_mc.

The cool thing about the instance name is that you can drag another copy of
the myContainer movie clip from the library to the stage on another layer in
the main timeline, give it another instance name like myContainer2_mc and then
change up your action script to load another image (or swf file) into that
INSTANCE of the myContainer movie clip, e.g.:

myContainer_mc.loadMovie("images\myfirstimage.jpg");
myContainer2_mc.loadMovie("images\mysecondimage.jpg");

The cool part about this is that you don't need to create multiple movie clips
to contain external images. You only need to give each instance of the same
movie clip a different name and prefix your action script with the instance
name to address that instance.

I hope this gave you insight to loading external images so you don't clog your
swiff with tons of unecessary images. This is not the only way to do this, as
I have been discovering. I believe there are 4 separate methods within action
scripting to load external resources. I may be mistaken.

I'm a total beginner by the way.

LuciBrown

2005-09-05, 7:37 pm

Yah Right, beginnger by buddy, I havn't been back in a while so I lost track of
what was happening here. Also didn't think I would get the right reply so had
to work on it on my own.

I found out how to get the JPG's in there and a bit more. I managed to edit it
all and do a few cool things...what I am really having trouble with now....is
linking them dang buttons...or so called buttons.

I did everything that I could comprehend in the directions. I clicked on the
button....made it a symbol.... clicked on the sympol went to behaviors clicked
on the little + and entered my http: thought it went great until I uploaded
the thing and linked a page which none of the links in the files where active.
-- a quick question here.

This took me a while to discover but its pretty simple once you know its
there. Click on the tools , click what you want to edit, click edit in place
and the button shows in the time line a UP OVER DOWN AND HIT...... Which I did
not realize in the first edit...I edited only the main word on the button. Now
my question is do I have to link....all the words in the button...seperately to
the http:

That seems a lot of work if you ask me. I mean your doing it 4 times...making
4 sets of symbols and linking them to an http address. Am I thinking right here
or wrong? Come on guys try a little harder to give me the answer. NewsGroup
User you know how, share with me your thoughts here, and CC you're something
else.

Lucy Brown