Flash - being organized: Difference between revisions

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* Learn about F4 (hiding/showing panels)
* Learn about F4 (hiding/showing panels)
* Learn how to pin down the AS panel (pin at the bottom of the panel).
* Learn how to pin down the AS panel (pin at the bottom of the panel).
== Drawings ==
Unless you are gifted,
* keep your drawings simple
* Use external [[clipart]].


== Layers ==
== Layers ==

Revision as of 15:15, 26 September 2007

Draft

This article or section is currently under construction

In principle, someone is working on it and there should be a better version in a not so distant future.
If you want to modify this page, please discuss it with the person working on it (see the "history")

This is part of Flash CS3 tutorials.

The workspace

  • Learn how to dock panels and to save the workspace
  • Learn about F4 (hiding/showing panels)
  • Learn how to pin down the AS panel (pin at the bottom of the panel).

Drawings

Unless you are gifted,

  • keep your drawings simple
  • Use external clipart.

Layers

Use a separate layer

  • for each object you want to animation
  • for each script
  • for each sound
  • for each complex background drawing

Use layer folders if you get too many layers

Names

Name:

  • Layers
  • Scenes
  • Keyframes into which users can navigation
  • Symbols in the library
  • Instances

Use conventions for naming (more later)

Scenes

If you can divide an animation into scenes, use different scenes

  • Name each scene

Library

Use folders
  • at least for complex projects
Create your own external library
  • If you work on several projects copy your important artwork to a separate *.fla file.
  • You can use your own *.fla file as library: Menu File->Import->Open External library.
  • Dock it next to the "normal" library.
Remove junk
  • Remove really useless stuff from the library of each project
  • Remove teen objects made by error (but make sure that they are not used in an animation). If they are, break these apart, insert the object as symbol in the library, then and rebuild your animation with these symbols. Only then kill the tween.

Quality

Even for small projects:

  • Identify clear goals, i.e. what the user should experience
  • Work with a simple but effective user-centered design method.
  • Make sure that he will be able to experience (cognitive ergonomics)
  • Make sure your application is usable.
  • Make sure you understand what you did (use explit names for instances, library objects and AS variables and function names)
  • Remove errors (broken tweens for example)
  • Document, i.e. use comments in AS code, fill in the documentation (menu Modify-Document).

[[Category: Tutorials]