Flash Article

Encode, Deliver, Design: Getting a Grip on Flash Video

Step 1: Create Your FLV File

A lot of folks get hung up on this very first step, but it's actually quite easy. Why do they get stuck? Some may not understand that, although Macromedia provides the FLV Exporter, you don't use that within Flash (although you do need to have Macromedia Flash MX Professional 2004 installed to run it). You run the Flash Video Exporter using video editing tools that support standard QuickTime export.

With Flash, you can:

• Play back Flash Video on the web using Flash Player
• Build custom video players that match your site design
• Integrate or layer your video with other elements in Flash, such as animation, text, or interactivity

Here are a few guidelines to point you in the right direction.

If You're Not a Video Editor…

Many of you may create or edit video at work or at home. However, if you don't, you may have video that is pre-encoded as QuickTime, Windows Media, or another type of video file. If this is the case, there are a couple of easy-to-use tools for you to convert your file to FLV.

Note: Compressing and recompressing video is not great for quality. It's always better to start with a version of the video that is closest to the original source as possible—you'll really see a difference in the results.

Sorenson Squeeze

The encoding experts over at Sorenson have produced a great tool in Sorenson Squeeze 4.0, which you can use to encode your FLV files.

Figure 2. Sorenson Squeeze provides video compression setting presets for various user bandwidth targets

A special version of Sorenson Squeeze is included as part of the Macromedia Video Kit. The kit also has a Dreamweaver extension for adding Flash Video to your site. You can purchase the Macromedia Video Kit from the online store.

QuickTime Pro and Flash Video Exporter

If you have Flash MX Professional 2004, you already have Flash Video Exporter. (It's included on the Flash CD. You can also download it from the Flash Support Center as part of Flash Video Updater 1.2. Also, you need to have Flash MX Professional 2004 installed to run Flash Video Exporter.) This exporter hooks into all QuickTime-based exporters that ship with popular video editing software including Final Cut Pro and Express; Avid Media Composer, Xpress DV, and Xpress Pro; and batch encoding applications such as Discreet Cleaner and Anystream Agility.

Figure 3. Flash Video (FLV) Exporter options

However, if you're not a video editor, but you have Flash MX Professional 2004, a cheap and easy way to convert video files to FLV files is to purchase Apple QuickTime Pro for Mac or Windows. Simply install the Flash Video Exporter, and your FLV export options will appear automatically in QuickTime Pro. You can save any video file that you can open in QuickTime Pro as an FLV file.

If You Are a Video Editor…

Many of you edit your own video with applications such as Final Cut Pro or Avid Media Composer. Since the Flash Video Exporter works as a plug-in to the QuickTime Export architecture, once you install it, it will show up as an export option in applications that support it, such as Final Cut Express/Pro and Avid Xpress DV/Pro.

For more information on how the FLV Exporter integrates with different applications and how to get the latest version, check out "Creating Flash Video Files with Flash Video Exporter."

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