TechNote Index
Subscribe to the Macromedia EDGE newsletter.
Getting Started
Getting Started with Flash
- 4ca37de4—Flash Publish keyboard shortcut (Shift+F12) is used by Mac OS X 10.4
- 47b37750—Missing Font Warning opening Flash MX 2004 files in Flash 8
- 47a026b2—Long delay launching Flash when internet connection is lost
- tn_14769—Using Flash with an HTML Editor
- tn_14727— Naming strategies for Flash
- tn_14659—Flash FLA files cannot be opened in previous versions of Flash
- tn_14642—Can JavaScript resources help in learning Flash 5?
- tn_14547—Using multibyte fonts in Flash
- tn_14509—Symbols within the Library window are not editable
- tn_14437—How big can a Flash movie be?
- tn_14404—How to 'park' a movie clip so it can be preloaded and reused
- tn_14363—How to create a pop-up menu in Flash
- tn_14087—How to target variables in a Flash movie
- tn_14023—How to loop over some frames a given number of
- tn_12863—How to combine two Flash movies in to one?
- tn_12852—Unable to open a Windows FLA file on a Macintosh
- tn_12839—How to change the movie size in the Flash editor
- tn_12686—How to create a color fade effect in Flash
- tn_12206—Quick Tips for Flash
- tn_4152—FTP Upload settings for Flash Player movies
- tn_4109—Can a Flash Player movie (SWF) file be edited or imported?
Common Questions
- tn_15909—How to center a Flash movie in a Web browser
- tn_15841—What is the difference between "Track as Button" and "Track as Menu Item"?
- tn_15695—Sending email from Flash 5
- tn_15649—Macromedia Flash Player cannot write to a text file
- tn_15427—Document-relative, site root-relative and absolute paths
- tn_15412—Flash does not support the Unicode Standard
- tn_15403—Using fonts in Flash 5 and later
- tn_15392—Troubleshooting Macromedia Flash Player for Pocket PC
- tn_15381—Flash Player (Netscape Plug-in) for Solaris ReadMe
- tn_15380—Flash Player (Netscape Plug-in) for Linux ReadMe
- tn_14311—Common questions about Flash
- tn_12632—Creating advanced buttons
Installation
- 614bb5a9—Uninstall a custom Installed Flash 8 does not remove/delete all the folders
- 6064952b—MSI error when uninstalling or reinstalling Macromedia Studio 8 products
- 382c6367—Flash 8 Video Encoder cannot be installed or used on a machine that had Flash 8 Basic
- 19840ac9—Installing Studio 8 Products: Can not select another drive when primary drive is full
- 16208—What is CarbonLib and where do I get it?
- 16202—Installing extensions for Macromedia Flash
- 16189—Attempts to uninstall Macromedia Flash MX on Mac OSX are unsuccessful
- 16178—Windows XP error installing Macromedia Flash Player ActiveX control
- 15922—Flash won't launch after OS 10.1 update
- 15896—Memory errors on Macintosh computers
- 15797—Macromedia Flash Player 5 does not work in OS X
- 15728—'No such interface' error when installing Flash on Windows 98
- 15324—Why has my trial version expired before the elapsed time?
- 15257—'WinSock Lib' error message when launching Flash
- 15191—Flash stage appears gray or invisible
- 15158—Error launching Flash on Windows 2000
- 15149—Flash crashes due to corrupt font
- 15139—'Quicktime Initialization Error' on launching Macromedia Flash
- 15137—Incorrect splash screen when launching Macromedia Flash 5
- 15098—Web Design Studio serial number not installing Flash 5
- 14776—General Windows 95/98/Me/NT/2000 Troubleshooting
- 14735—Text appears incorrectly in Flash interface
- 14712—Windows may require a restart after installing Flash Player
- 14334—Items become invisible when dragged in the Flash editor
- 13674—Rendering problems with Macintosh ATI Rage or Radeon cards
- 12396—Prompted for Serial Number When Flash Launches on Macintosh
- 3533—General guidelines for software installation
- 3528—What programs can I use to install my finished projects onto my customers' machines?
- 3500—General Macintosh Troubleshooting
Testing and troubleshooting
- 3c420a67—After first launch, Document Properties dialog box comes up very slowly
- 3821bd75—Save as Flash MX 2004 feature increases FLA file size
- tn_15896—Memory errors on Macintosh computers
- tn_15579—GetURL action does not launch default browser from Windows projectors
- tn_15538—Indent fails in text field when URL link present
- tn_15525—Very small print area when printing from projector
- tn_15512—Cause for the 'Script causing Flash Play to run slow' Error Message
- tn_15507—Version test for Macromedia Flash Player
- tn_15501—Using FScommands or JavaScript with IFRAME tags or DHTML layers
- tn_15438—'I'm crushing your head!' error appears after leaving open a pop-up slider
- tn_15287—LoadVariables action fails in Macintosh projectors
- tn_15257—'WinSock Lib' error message when launching Flash
- tn_15254—Date object may report incorrect time during daylight savings
- tn_15229—Colors in Illustrator 6 files shift when imported into Flash
- tn_15191—Flash stage appears gray or invisible
- tn_15190—'Send using POST' does not work with projectors
- tn_15147—Macromedia Flash crashes on Power Mac G4 Cube
- tn_15137—Incorrect splash screen when launching Macromedia Flash 5
- tn_14987—Text may overflow field boundaries when using embedded fonts
- tn_14981—SWFs with high frame rates may slow system performance
- tn_14776—General Windows 95/98/NT/2000 Troubleshooting
- tn_14719—Goto actions may not work with expressions in Macromedia Flash Player 5
- tn_14677—Variable names conflicting with object names
- tn_14659—Flash FLA files cannot be opened in previous versions of Flash
- tn_14442—Library items cannot be dragged to the stage on Macintosh
- tn_14437—How big can a Flash movie be?
- tn_14426—Button actions are not working
- tn_14256—Bitmaps shift in Flash
- tn_14217—Flash movie with space in file name is not displaying in Netscape
- tn_14129—Some Flash features do not work in exported QuickTime movies
- tn_14106—Netscape crashes when executing a GetURL action on an IIS Web server
- tn_13989—Flash returns erroneous results for certain mathematical calculations
- tn_4157—Using Relative URLs with Get URL Action
- tn_3500—General Macintosh Troubleshooting
Flash Concepts
Video
- 2c9e25a3—Incorrect warning installing Flash 8 Video Encoder to full drive
- 4fc56aef—Moving the playhead may cause crash when trimming video in encoding
- 5fbb18f0—Flash 8 Video Encoder hangs when system sleeps while encoding
- 60dcf627—Unable to export QuickTime or QuickTime Movie with Alpha channel
- d14ddafd—Encoding 16:9 aspect ration source material resizes to 4:3 ratio
- 608abffd—FLVPlayback skin SWF must be in same directory as HTML file
- 4d2dd150—Sorenson 2 pass encoding is no longer available in Sorenson FLV exporter after installing Flash 8 Professional
- 479daf71—FLVs cannot be created on Mac OS X 10.4.x [Tiger] with Flash MX 2004 and QuickTime 7
- tn_4151—Web server MIME types required for serving Flash movies
- 3121b301—Flash video playback from a non-system drive fails on a Macintosh
- tn_19439—Windows 2003 Server does not stream FLV videos
Design and Animation: Designing in Flash
- db45b49f—Filter effects applied to invisible buttons do not function properly
- 6ba11b71—Item snaps to partial-pixel location with "Snap to Pixels" on
- 1eb2abdc—9-slice scaling guides not visible when editing in place
- tn_15781—Creating a mask that follows a motion guide
- tn_15643—Creating an object without a fill or stroke
- tn_14766—Creating transparent fills in Flash 5
- tn_14765—Notes on the Bezier Pen Tool in Macromedia Flash 5
- tn_14650—3D approaches in the Macromedia Flash and Shockwave Players
- tn_14571—Video strategies for Flash websites
- tn_14494—Flash for Videographers and 3D Animators
- tn_14264—Problems using movie clips in mask layers
- tn_14201—How to make a Flash movie with a transparent background
- tn_14111—How to simulate video in Flash
- tn_13987—Text in editable text fields do not display below mask layers
- tn_13490—Pencil and Brush Tools draw an extra line on stage
- tn_13238—Where is the center point crosshair indicator of the object in the Flash editor?
- tn_13177—How do the Trace Bitmap settings in Flash work?
- tn_12837—How to import an animated GIF, AVI movie or PICT sequence into Flash
- tn_12804—Transparency support in Flash
- tn_12752—How to paint a shape using a bitmap image as the fill
- tn_12686—How to create a color fade effect in Flash
- tn_12632—Creating advanced buttons
- tn_12624—How to control the number of times an Animated Symbol loops in a movie
- tn_04104—Motion path animation doesn't follow path
- tn_04103—Resources for creating and troubleshooting tweened animations
- tn_4101—How to create a simple button
Design and Animation: Animation in Flash
- 711de1cd—Animated static text flickers if using Bitmap text anti-aliasing option
- tn_15914—Adding actions to shared buttons
- tn_15905—Learning Interaction resources
- tn_15692—An example of communication between Flash movies
- tn_15683—An example of communication between JavaScript and Flash
- tn_15645—Actions attached to shared button assets do not execute
- tn_15069—How to create a roll-out animation for a button
- tn_14831—How to make a 'Back' button in a SWF file
- tn_14809—Pausing a Macromedia Flash 5 movie for a given number of seconds
- tn_14808—Using HTML text formatting in Flash 5
- tn_14786—Using font symbols
- tn_14767—Using shared libraries
- tn_14677—Variable names conflicting with s?object names
- tn_14661—Macromedia Flash 5 Player and image linking
- tn_14646—Frame actions are not editable in button states
- tn_14509—Symbols within the Library window are not editable
- tn_14461—Detecting a double-click in the Flash Player
- tn_14442—Library items can't be dragged to the stage on Macintosh
- tn_14417—How to track the cursor
- tn_14404—How to 'park' a movie clip so it can be preloaded and reused
- tn_14363—How to create a pop-up menu in Flash
- tn_14264—Problems using movie clips in mask layers
- tn_14193—How to create password verification
- tn_14192—How to create pop-up browser windows in Flash
- tn_14190—How to use Load Movie
- tn_14143—URL Encoding: Reading special characters from a text file
- tn_14123—How to go to a frame in another scene from a movie clip or loaded movie
- tn_14087—How to target variables in a Flash movie
- tn_13987—Text in editable text fields do not display below mask layers
- tn_13931—How does Macromedia Flash handle secure information?
- tn_13238—Where is the center point crosshair indicator of the object in the Flash editor?
- tn_12900—Working with Libraries
- tn_12791—Why doesn't a Get URL Action load the URL correctly?
- tn_12632—Creating advanced buttons
- tn_4101—How to create a simple button
Working with Text
- d619c577—Slow performance adjusting custom Anti-alias with large blocks of text
- 69e25404—Text may shift by a pixel when turning anti-alias on or off or changing Flash Player publish versions
- 4048227a—Check Spelling fails with an unknown error or does not begin checking
- 21dfb54d—Flash 8 text rendering blurry with vector-based pixel font emulations
- 18590e39—Character glyphs display incorrectly in Flash MX 2004 and Flash 8
- f01edf45—Auto-kern fails for dynamic and input text on Macintosh
- bd6584de—Fonts deactivated using font management applications still appear in the Font menu
- 42f4a853—Korean fonts incorrectly display Chinese characters in Flash 8
- 1959eceb—Subscript and superscript fail in dynamic and input text fields
- 144b4be2—Static text published for Flash Player 8 does not appear on Flash Player 7
- 2178a075—Blank space wraps to next line of HTML text
- tn_19186—PostScript font not displaying in font menu
- tn_19033—Text artifacts with PostScript fonts on Mac OS X 10.3
- tn_16540—Masking Device Fonts in Macromedia Flash MX
- tn_16184—Flash MX Text fields have instance names and variable names
- tn_15865—Bitmap fonts appear blurry
- tn_15830—How to detect a corrupt font on the Macintosh
- tn_14786—Using font symbols
- tn_14420—Small fonts are blurry and hard to read
- tn_14193—How to create password verification
- tn_14143—URL Encoding: Reading special characters from a text file
- tn_13987—Text in editable text fields do not display below mask layers
- tn_4105—What types of fonts can be used with Flash?
Publishing and Exporting
- 425cd013—9-slice feature disabled when exporting as bitmap format
- 3925b10e—Black boxes replaces icons when printing Movie Explorer contents
- bd55fd42—Publish error if OS X folder name or filename is longer than 32 characters
- tn_15212—Auto run for Flash Projectors
- tn_15133—How to change the default browser for Publish Preview or Help
- tn_14894—Internet Explorer 5.5 and Macromedia Flash Player 5 integration
- tn_14819—HTML colors look different than SWF colors
- tn_14769—Using Flash with an HTML Editor
- tn_14757—Windows projector does not immediately go fullscreen
- tn_14756—Flash HTML templates invalid after saving in Dreamweaver
- tn_14743—How to prevent caching of SWF files
- tn_14661—Macromedia Flash 5 Player and image linking
- tn_14437—How big can a Flash movie be?
- tn_14423—Getting rid of margins
- tn_14339—Using the Get URL Action to target a named anchor fails across framesets
- tn_14201—How to make a Flash movie with a transparent background
- tn_14159—A comprehensive list of supported Flash features, specific to each browser
- tn_14129—Some Flash features do not work in exported QuickTime movies
- tn_14041—Tips for troubleshooting QuickTime in Flash
- tn_13093—Why does my Shockwave Flash movie display elements that are animated off stage?
- tn_12838—Printing Flash movies from a browser
- tn_12791—Why doesn't a Get URL Action load the URL correctly?
- tn_12685—What effect does the version have in the codebase attribute of the OBJECT tag?
- tn_12701—Flash OBJECT and EMBED Tag Attributes
- tn_12588—How to create movies that download before playing
- tn_4152—FTP upload settings for Flash Player movies
- tn_4151—Web server MIME types required for serving Flash movies
- tn_4150—Flash OBJECT and EMBED Tag Syntax
Rich Internet Applications
Building Applications using Components
- 60b46608—Data Connection Wizard fails in Flash 8
- 3c6784bc—PendingCall.onFault cannot capture SOAP:FAULT responses
- dbc8de3f—DataGrid created dynamically in Flash shows missing or extra rows
- 83d422a3—Swap Symbol not available when components selected
- 42a7ed8e—Select Unused Items in Library doesn't remove some components
- fe3b749b—ComboBox Component at higher depth renders child menu below components at lower depths
- tn_18938—Using a class to initialize the properties of a component on the stage
- tn_19435—removeMovieClip action fails when button component is on stage
- tn_19417—Scroll Bar component in Macromedia Flash MX 2004 requires Snap to Objects
- tn_18930—Adding components to the stage using ActionScript
- tn_19443—Components become unresponsive when style is set
- tn_19377—Components fail in multiple linked shared libraries
- tn_19457—Remoting Components and Libraries lost during uninstall of the 7.2 Updater
- tn_19140—Installing Remoting components into non-English versions of Macromedia Flash
- tn_19174—How to enable type checking for the Data Connector Components in custom classes
- tn_19138—Component properties not available to ActionScript
- tn_19372—DateField component cannot receive keyboard input
- tn_19361—DataSet component is not able to resolve data typed as Date from the XMLConnector component
- tn_19442—Progress Bar does not sync with Loader Component in a movie clip
Imported Images and Video
- tn_14661—Macromedia Flash 5 Player and image linking
- tn_14650—3D approaches in the Macromedia Flash and Shockwave Players
- tn_14571—Video strategies for Flash websites
- tn_14494—Flash for Videographers and 3D Animators
- tn_14329—Using Flash movies in Director projects
- tn_14292—Why does the Flash Player display some bitmap images as aliased and others anti-aliased?
- tn_14129—Some Flash features do not work in exported QuickTime movies
- tn_14111—How to simulate video in Flash
- tn_14047—Can an AVI or MPEG movie be imported into Flash?
- tn_14041—Tips for troubleshooting QuickTime in Flash
- tn_12837—How to import an animated GIF, AVI movie or PICT sequence into Flash
- tn_12804—Transparency support in Flash
- tn_12752—How to paint a shape using a bitmap image as the fill
- tn_4109—Can a Flash Player movie (SWF) file be edited or imported?
Sound
- 418c2b49—Understanding Sound: Streaming MP3 sound always compressed at Publish Setting values
- tn_16063—Why is Event sound quality better than Streaming sound quality?
- tn_15946—Sounds in a movie clip trigger at unexpected times
- tn_15854—Why do my looping sounds pause between loops?
- tn_15253—Imported sound distorted upon SWF playback
- tn_14821—How to create a simple sound toggle
- tn_14274—Flash sound resources
- tn_14226—Why are sounds accompanied by a clicking noise in the Flash editor?
- tn_14108—What are some ways to synch audio in Flash?
Working with Multiple Languages
- 16275—Macromedia Flash MX and Unicode text
- 16274—Macromedia Flash MX Top 5 topics
- 15412—Unicode Standard and Macromedia Flash
- 14143—URL Encoding: Reading special characters from a text file
ActionScript
Using ActionScript
- 7025e357—Error when using #include statement to specify an absolute path for AS file
- b4525247—Error when Defining a "Load" Event handler in a Loader Object subclass
- tn_15737—How to preload and 'park' movies at different levels
- tn_15715—Creating and using custom functions in Flash 5
- tn_15197—Using external data to customize the Flash 5 Menu smart clip
- tn_15184—How to make a simple clock in Flash
- tn_15174—Using the radio button smart clip
- tn_15144—How to create multidimensional arrays in Flash
- tn_15140—Customizing the Flash 5 Menu Smart Clip
- tn_14999—Objects with same name may cause playback problems
- tn_14982—Differences between the Equality operator (==) and the Assignment operator (=)
- tn_14964—Incorrect hour returned by getHours() and getUTCHours()
- tn_14831—How to make a 'Back' button in a SWF file
- tn_14809—Pausing a Macromedia Flash 5 movie for a given number of seconds
- tn_14727—Naming strategies for Flash
- tn_14690—Differences between loadMovie and loadMovieNum
- tn_14686—Differences between _root and _level0
- tn_14677—Variable names conflicting with object names
- tn_14646—Frame actions are not editable in button states
- tn_14642—Can JavaScript resources help in learning Flash 5?
- tn_14526—How to detect the presence of the Flash Player
- tn_14461—Detecting a double-click in the Flash Player
- tn_14437—How big can a Flash movie be?
- tn_14417—How to track the cursor
- tn_14339—Using the Get URL Action to target a named anchor fails across framesets
- tn_14294—Detecting Flash Player version information with $version
- tn_14280—Using FSCommand in Flash projectors
- tn_14267—How to make an ActionScript that formats currency
- tn_14250—Finding square roots in Flash
- tn_14213—External data not accessible outside a Flash movie's domain
- tn_14192—How to create pop-up browser windows in Flash
- tn_14143—URL Encoding: Reading special characters from a text file
- tn_14123—How to go to a frame in another scene from a movie clip or loaded movie
- tn_14087—How to target variables in a Flash movie
- tn_14023—How to loop over some frames a given number of times
- tn_13989—Flash returns erroneous results for certain mathmatical calculations
- tn_12791—Why doesn't a Get URL Action load the URL correctly?
- tn_04160—Using JavaScript with Flash Player
- tn_04157—Using relative URLs with the getURL action
Flash Player
Working with Flash Player
- tn_15797—Macromedia Flash Player 5 does not work in OS X
- tn_15576—How do older Flash Players handle newer SWF formats?
- tn_15511—Macromedia Flash Player Support FAQ
- tn_15043—Netscape 6 and Macromedia Flash Player
- tn_14965—Older SWFs may playback faster in newer Players
- tn_14894—Internet Explorer 5.5 and Macromedia Flash Player 5 integration
- tn_14743—How to prevent caching of SWF files
- tn_14712—Windows may require a restart after installing Flash Player
- tn_14661—Macromedia Flash 5 Player and image linking
- tn_14437—How big can a Flash movie be?
- tn_14292—Why does the Flash Player display some bitmap images as aliased and others anti-aliased?
- tn_14280—Using FSCommand in Flash projectors
- tn_14266—Archived Macromedia Flash Players available for testing purposes
- tn_14250—Finding square roots in Flash
- tn_14242—Flash Player localization information
- tn_14226—Why are sounds accompanied by a clicking noise in the Flash editor?
- tn_14213—External data not accessible outside a Flash movie's domain
- tn_14192—How to create pop-up browser windows in Flash
- tn_14159—A comprehensive list of supported Flash features, specific to each browser
- tn_14157—How to uninstall the Flash plug-in and ActiveX Control
- tn_14023—How to loop over some frames a given number of times
- tn_14015—Where can I get the Macromedia Flash Player for different platforms?
- tn_13931—How does Macromedia Flash handle secure information?
- tn_13093—Why does my Shockwave Flash movie display elements that are animated off stage?
- tn_12838—Printing Flash movies from a browser
- tn_12588—How to create movies that download before playing
Flash Player Detection
- tn_14712—Windows may require a restart after installing Flash Player
- tn_14526—How to detect the presence of the Flash Player
- tn_14294— Detecting Flash Player version information with $version
- tn_14266—Archived Macromedia Flash Players available for testing purposes
- tn_14157—How to uninstall the Flash plug-in and ActiveX Control
- tn_12685—What effect does the version have in the codebase attribute of the OBJECT tag?
Working with Other Programs
ColdFusion
- There are no TechNotes for this topic
Director
Dreamweaver
- tn_16244—Compressed Flash MX SWF file properties are not recognized by Dreamweaver
- tn_16237—Flash MX files do not preview in the Document window
- tn_14819—HTML colors look different than SWF colors
- tn_14769—Using Flash with an HTML editor
- tn_14756—Flash HTML templates invalid after saving in Dreamweaver
- tn_14423—Getting rid of margins
FreeHand
Generator
- 14670—Problems with Linked Assets and Sound Actions with Generator enabled
- 14668— Enhancements to the Publish Settings HTML templates
- 14667—Using Generator variables in Flash 5 ActionScript
- 14664—Organizing custom Generator Objects in Flash 5
- 14376—Sending Flash variables to Generator using LoadMovie
