ptg 496 Chapter 20 Saving Flash profiles is a great way to cut down on repetitive publish settings. However, the disadvantage is the user-defined settings only relate to the original source document. If you open a new file, you're starting from scratch. It would be great to be able to create a series of setting files, and then use them over and over again on a new Flash document. Flash understood this need and gave Flash users the ability to create settings files, and then export them as a separate file. Then, if you need to use the settings in a new Flash document, all you have to do is import the settings file. Exporting Dreamweaver profiles gives you the ability to import and use the profile on multiple Flash projects. In addition, you can send copies of exported profiles to other Flash users, so they can benefit from your efforts. When you export a Flash profile, you have the ability to reuse it, via the Import option. It's a good idea to save (export) all of your profiles into a single location. That way, when you go to import a specific profile, you will know exactly where to point your finder. Exporting and Importing a Profile Export a Profile Click the File menu, and then click Publish Settings. Click the Current Profile list arrow, and then select the profile you want to export. Click the Import/Export Profile button, and then click Export. Navigate to the drive or folder location where you want to save the exported profile. Click Save. 5 4 3 2 1 2 3 4 5 From the Library of Wow! eBook ptg Chapter 20 Publishing a Movie 497 Import a Profile Click the File menu, and then click Publish Settings. Click the Current Profile list arrow, and then select the profile you want to import. Click the Import/Export Profile button, and then click Import. Navigate to the drive or folder where the profile is located. Select the file name of the exported profile. Click Open. IMPORTANT Once a profile is imported into a Flash document, it becomes a copy of the original item. You can use it in the active document, or make some minor adjustments, and export it out as a new profile. 6 5 4 3 2 1 2 3 5 6 4 From the Library of Wow! eBook ptg 498 Chapter 20 When you work with a profile, you're creating a time-saving file that lets you use the same settings over and over again. Not only does Flash make the creation of a profile easy; it will let you create a duplicate of the file. In truth, a duplicate file would not serve much of a purpose: Why would you want an exact copy of something that already exists? Actually, creating a duplicate can be a very smart thing to do. For example, say you create a profile for a specific job that involved sev- eral changes to the default settings, and you name it: Output_A. Then, two weeks later you need another profile that's almost exactly the same as Output_A, with one or two minor changes. Rather than start from scratch, you create a duplicate of Output_A, make the minor changes, and Export it using the name: Output_B. It's fast and easy, and it means you're working smart. Duplicating a Profile Duplicate a Profile Click the File menu, and then click Publish Settings. Click the Current Profile list arrow, and then select the profile you want to duplicate. Click the Duplicate Profile button. Give the duplicate a new name. Click OK. 5 4 3 2 1 2 3 4 See Also See “Exporting and Importing a Profile“ on page 496 for more informa- tion on how to export a Flash publishing profile. 5 From the Library of Wow! eBook ptg Chapter 20 Publishing a Movie 499 Previewing a Flash movie is an important part of the design process. As you work, you should periodically stop and preview the movie. It's also a good idea to periodically save your document. In fact, you should always save the Flash document before previewing. That way, if there happen to be any problems, it's an easy matter of restoring the file from the last-saved version. To preview your Flash SWF file with the publish- ing format and settings you've selected, you can use the Publish Preview command. This command exports the file and opens the pre- view within the default browser. Previewing a Movie Preview a Movie Click the File menu, point to Publish Preview, and then select from the following options: ◆ Default (HTML). Select this option to display the Flash document within an HTML document. ◆ Flash. Select this option to create and play a Flash .swf file. ◆ HTML. Same as Default (HTML). ◆ GIF. Select this option to create a GIF version of the currently selected frame in the Timeline. ◆ JPEG. Select this option to create a JPEG version of the currently selected frame in the Timeline. ◆ PNG. Select this option to create a PNG version of the currently selected frame in the Timeline. ◆ Projector. Select this option to display the Flash document in a self-contained projector file. 1 1 Changing Magnification in Flash Player In the Flash Player, you can increase or decrease the magnification of the current Flash movie (SWF), as well as play, rewind, step for- ward, or step back. To zoom in or out in a browser, press Control+click (Mac) or right-click (Win) anywhere in the movie win- dow, and then click Zoom In or Zoom Out. Click Show All to see the entire Flash movie. For Your Information From the Library of Wow! eBook ptg 500 Chapter 20 As you work, you should periodically stop and test your movie as a Flash SWF. The Test command allows you to quickly see your movie on different devices and players—Flash Professional, Device Central (New!) or Air Debug Launcher (Desktop or Mobile) (New!)—without leaving the program. The Test command tests the movie based on the current test option. Flash uses the document type the default until you change it. Each time you test your movie as an SWF, Flash creates a log entry in the SWF History in the Property Inspector (New!). The SWF History shows you the difference in file size between the different tests. If there is over a 50% increase in size, a warning icon appears next to the log entry. In the SWF History, you can view or clear the log entries. Testing a Movie Test a Movie and View a SWF History Click the Control menu, and then point to Test Movie. Select the option where you want to test your movie: ◆ in Flash Professional. Plays the movie in a separate window in Flash Professional. ◆ in Device Central. Opens Adobe Device Central CS5 and displays the movie. ◆ in Air Debug Launcher (Desktop). Opens Adobe Air Player for the desktop and displays the movie. ◆ in Air Debug Launcher (Mobile). Opens Adobe Air Player for mobile devices and displays the movie. ◆ Test. Performs a test with the currently selected test option. TIMESAVER Press Ctrl+Enter (Win) or A +Return (Mac). To vie w an d wo rk w it h th e SW F History log, click the Window menu, and then click Properties to open the Property Inspector. ◆ Clear the SWF History. Click the Clear button. ◆ View the SWF History Log. Click the Log button. 3 2 1 1 2 3 From the Library of Wow! eBook ptg Chapter 20 Publishing a Movie 501 To vie w th e pe rf or manc e of a Fl ash do cu ment u si ng a gra ph , us e th e Bandwidth Profiler. The Bandwidth Profiler displays how much data is sent for each frame in the active Flash document, according to the speed you specify. The Bandwidth Profiler has two windows. The left window shows information about the active document and the current download settings, and the right window displays information about each frame in the document. In addition, the Bandwidth Profiler lets you view how the page loads, based on a specific bandwidth. For example, you could specify to load the Flash document using a speed of 28.8Kbps. To maintain an accurate download test, the Bandwidth Profiler compensates for added compression support applied to SWF files, which reduces the file size and improves streaming performance. Using the Bandwidth Profiler Use the Bandwidth Profiler Click the Control menu, point to Test Movie, and then click Test. Click the View menu, and then click Bandwidth Profiler. Click the View menu, point to Download Settings, and then select from the available bandwidth options, or click Customize, and then create a user- defined setting. Click the View menu, and then click Simulate Download. This tests the load of the Flash movie against the current settings. 4 3 2 1 Test mov ie bandwidth settings. Timing Rule A timing rule used in Web design is called the 10-second rule. If doc- uments load too slowly, there's a good chance that your visitors will not wait for the document to load, and will move on to other pages. The Bandwidth profiler gives you a real taste of what your visitors are going to experience when they download your Flash movies. For Your Information From the Library of Wow! eBook . the option where you want to test your movie: ◆ in Flash Professional. Plays the movie in a separate window in Flash Professional. ◆ in Device Central. Opens Adobe Device Central CS5 and. from the following options: ◆ Default (HTML). Select this option to display the Flash document within an HTML document. ◆ Flash. Select this option to create and play a Flash .swf file. ◆ HTML PNG. Select this option to create a PNG version of the currently selected frame in the Timeline. ◆ Projector. Select this option to display the Flash document in a self-contained projector