ptg 160 Chapter 4 An instance can have only one color style (Brightness, Tint, or Alpha) applied. To apply multiple color styles, you must use the Advanced fea- ture in the Property Inspector's Color list arrow menu. This option allows you to change the percentage of Red, Green, or Blue (0% -100%) added or subtracted as well as the constant values of RGB (-255 to +255). Additionally, there is an Alpha scale that can be applied to each of these options. Apply a color, brightness, or alpha style to an instance and then access the Advanced options to make adjustments. The applied color style is preserved. Experiment with this features until you get the effects that you need. Using Advanced Color Options Modify the Color and Transparency Simultaneously Select the instance on the Stage. Click the Style list arrow in the Property Inspector, and then click Tint, Brightness or Alpha and apply an effect. Click the Style list arrow again, and then click Advanced. Add or subtract percentages or values of RGB and Alpha. 4 3 2 1 4 Tint of 100% Alpha of 25% Tint of 100% Reduce the color values or alpha by a percentage. Increase or decrease the constant color or alpha values. Did You Know? You can go directly to the Advanced panel to add color effects without hav- ing applied any Brightness, Tint, or Alpha. If you have already chosen one of these options and then enter the Advanced settings, your previous applied effect will be preserved and the sliders in the Advanced Settings window will reflect this change. For example, if you have added a tint of red to your instance, the sliders in the Advanced setting will show that red has been added. 3 2 From the Library of Wow! eBook ptg Chapter 4 Working with Groups, Symbols, and Instances 161 In previous versions, Flash scales movie clips equally in height and width. For many rectangular movie clips, this method of scaling doesn’t work very well at the corners. In Flash, a method called 9-slice scaling is used. A movie clip is visually divided into nine areas, or slices, with a grid overlay (dotted lines called slide guides). Each area of the grid is scaled separately, except the corners, which provides more accurate results. The slide guides are set at 25% of the symbol’s height and width by default. Before you can scale a movie clip, you need to enable 9-slice scaling. To edit a movie clip, you need to use symbol-editing mode. Using 9-Slice Scaling on a Movie Clip Symbol Enable 9-Slice Scaling Select the movie clip symbol you want in the Library panel. Click the Options menu, and then click Properties. Click Advanced. Select the Enable guides for 9- slice scaling check box. Click OK. Scale a Movie Clip Symbol Double-click the movie clip symbol in the Library to enter symbol- editing mode. To se e the scaling on the St age , click the Control menu, and then click Enable Live Preview. Drag the horizontal or vertical guides to scale the symbol. The new position of the guides provides the new scaling. 3 2 1 5 4 3 2 1 4 2 3 Drag any guide 1 5 3 From the Library of Wow! eBook ptg 162 Chapter 4 Setting Highlight Color Preferences Set Highlight Color Preferences Click the Flash (Mac) or Edit (Win) menu, and then click Preferences. Click the General category. Select the Use Layer Color option to use the current layer’s outline color, or select the option, and then select the color you want for the following elements: ◆ Drawing Objects. ◆ Drawing Primitives. ◆ Groups. ◆ Symbols. ◆ Other Elements. Click OK. 4 3 2 1 Flash allows you to set general preferences to customize the highlight, or selection, color of elements in Flash to make them easier to see. In the General category of the Preferences dialog box, you can select dif- ferent colors for different types of elements, including drawing objects, drawing primitives, groups, symbols, and all other elements. If you don’t want to set individual colors, you can use the layer color for all ele- ments. 4 2 3 From the Library of Wow! eBook ptg Working with Text Introduction In Flash, you can create two types of text: TLF (Text Layout Framework) or Classic. TLF provides advanced text capabili- ties (New!) for text in Flash targeted for Flash Player 10 and ActionScript 3.0 or later, while Classic provides the standard capabilities available in previous versions of Flash. There are three types of Classic text: static, dynamic, and input. Static is text that doesn’t change. Dynamic is text that updates, such as stock quotes, weather reports, or sports scores. Input is text entered by a user in forms or surveys. You can create editable text boxes for use as static display text or to implement dynamic text objects with the Text tool. In the program's text menu, as well as the Property Inspector, there are a number of attributes to choose from such as Font type, style, size, color, indentation, orientation, and direction. Also included are familiar letter form format- ting procedures for kerning, tracking, and anti-aliasing. Because text boxes are editable, you can change any text attribute—as well as the content in the text box—after it is created. Use the Break Apart command to break editable text boxes into shapes and edit them with any of the selection tools or pen modifiers. This is especially useful for creating new font forms, and it also allows you to implement shape tweening. Create dynamic text boxes that can be updated from a text file on a server or some other source using ActionScript. In Flash, you can now configure the Find and Replace feature to target text contained in specific elements in your Flash document and swap these out with new entries from the built-in Adobe dictionaries or from a personal dic- tionary you create. Other features include the implementation of Cascading Style Sheets for consistent HTML text format- ting and the built-in Spell Checker for enhanced productivity. 5 5 What You’ll Do Create Classic Static or TLF Text Link Text Together Change Font Type, Style, Size, and Color Modify Tracking and Kerning Change Text Alignment Create Text Columns Change Text Direction and Orientation Change Advanced Text Options Use Break Apart to Modify Characters Use Anti-Alias Text Use Font Mapping Set Device Fonts Versus Embedded Fonts Create Classic Dynamic Text and Input Text Check Spelling Use Find and Replace Use Cascading Style Sheets with HTML Text 163 From the Library of Wow! eBook ptg 164 Chapter 5 Classic static text refers to any classic text box that isn't dynamic or input text. The Text tool creates an editable text box wherever you touch down on the Stage. Flash will keep the text on a single line until you press Enter (Win) or Return (Mac). If you need a text box with a predefined width, you can create a text box before you start typing. The entered text will automatically wrap relative to the boundaries of the box and any formatting settings you've applied. To re-enter an existing text box to change the text, simply double-click any character in the Text box or click it with the Text tool to activate it and make it ready to edit. Creating Classic Static Text Create Classic Static Text Click the Text tool on the Tools panel. The pointer becomes a crosshair with a small "T" in the corner. TIMESAVER Press T to quickly select the Text tool. Click the Text Engine list arrow in the Property Inspector, and then click Classic Text. Click the Text Type list arrow in the Property Inspector, and then click Static Text. Click the Stage where you want to create a single line text box or drag to create a text box the size you want that automatically wraps. Begin typing in the box that appears. Click anywhere on the Stage outside the text box to deselect it. To re sel ect a te xt box, click to select it. A black bounding box with square handles appears around a text box when it’s selected. To re siz e a text bo x, drag any of the black resize handles, the white small circle (single line) or white square (text block) to resize. The text in the box wraps to accommodate to the new size 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 1 5 6 Small square indicates text box Small circle indicates single line of text. 2 3 8 From the Library of Wow! eBook ptg Chapter 5 Working with Text 165 TLF (Text Layout Framework ) text (New!) provides advanced text capabilities in Flash documents targeted for Flash Player 10 and ActionScript 3.0 or later. You can create columns, rotate text, indent text, change text direction and orientation, change text case, adjust the text baseline, and apply text blending and color effects in the Property Inspector. TLF text created in Flash is read-only by default, however, you can change it to selectable or editable. If you need a text box with a predefined width, you can create a text box before you start typing. The entered text will automatically wrap relative to the boundaries of the box and any formatting settings you've applied. To re-enter an exist- ing text box to change the text, simply double-click any character in the text box or click it with the Text tool to make it ready to edit. Creating TLF Text Create TLF Text Click the Text tool on the Tools panel. The pointer becomes a crosshair with a small "T" in the corner. TIMESAVER Press T to quickly select the Text tool. Click the Text Engine list arrow in the Property Inspector, and then click TLF Text. Click the Stage where you want your text box to begin or drag until the box is the size you need. Begin typing in the box that appears. Click anywhere on the Stage outside the text box to deselect it. To re sel ect a te xt box, click to select it. A black bounding box with square handles appears around a text box when it’s selected. To re siz e a text bo x, drag any of the black resize handles, the white small circle (single line) or white square (text block) to resize. The text in the box wraps to accommodate to the new size 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 1 2 4 5 Small square indicates text box 7 From the Library of Wow! eBook . (New!) for text in Flash targeted for Flash Player 10 and ActionScript 3.0 or later, while Classic provides the standard capabilities available in previous versions of Flash. There are three. can now configure the Find and Replace feature to target text contained in specific elements in your Flash document and swap these out with new entries from the built-in Adobe dictionaries. Together Change Font Type, Style, Size, and Color Modify Tracking and Kerning Change Text Alignment Create Text Columns Change Text Direction and Orientation Change Advanced Text Options Use Break Apart