ANIMATION FOR NEW MEDIA COMM2720 Tutor: Catherine Stones c'm'stonesleeds'ac'uk Office Hours: Mon 23,

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ANIMATION FOR NEW MEDIA COMM2720Tutor Catherine
Stonesc.m.stones_at_leeds.ac.ukOffice Hours Mon
2-3, Wed 12-1
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Today! Getting Interactive

• Taking control of the playhead
• Stopping the playhead
• Moving the playhead
• Creating Buttons
• Events and Types of Scripts
• Loading and Unloading Movies
• Linking to a website

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We need to build in interactivity!

• Otherwise the movie will continually loop and the
  user cant change anything
• To make the experience more memorable
• To give the user choice
• To get the user to our site

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Actionscript Basics

• How to type Normal vs Expert mode
• Keep organised - set up an actions layer
• If you want a command to run on a certain
  frameinsert a new keyframe

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Stopping the Playhead

• Dead Easy -
• Stop()
• Put this command in the frame where you want the
  playhead to stop.

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Moving the Playhead

• Just as easy
• Gotoandplay(framenum)
• Or
• Gotoandstop(framenum)

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Where do I put scripts?

• Put them on frames if you want something to
  happen on its own, without user interaction.
• Put them on button instances if they should run
  WHEN someone clicks there.
• and other places that well deal with in further
  lectures

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Buttons

• To create one go to Modify New Symbol
• Click on Button as the type
• Youll see 4 states in a timeline UP, OVER,
  DOWN and HIT.
• Youll need a different keyframe if you want the
  button to change during these four stages.
• Whats HIT???? REALLY IMPORTANT. Hit is the
  hotspot area..ie. The user doesnt see it - but
  it tells flash which bit of the button is active
  and clickable.

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Button Events

• What can you do to a button?
• Press it
• Release it
• Rollover it
• Rolloff it
• So we have EVENTS in actionscript which let us
  specify which each interaction could do.

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To attach script to a button

• Drag the button symbol onto the stage.
• Click on the instance and go to the Actions
  Window
• Select EXPERT mode
• Typeon(press)Stop()

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Loading Other .swf files

• Create two flash files and publish each one (or
  test-movie) to get 2 swf files.
• In one flash file create a button.
• Attach script to the button..
• On(press)loadMovieNum(nameof2ndmov.swf,1)
• 1 stands for the LEVEL

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Linking to a website

• Create a button
• Drag onto the stage
• Attach script
• On(press)getURL(nameofdoc.html)