Lesson 2.2 Flash MX 2004
Flash MX 1004 Professional Update
Updates for Flash MX 2004 have not been addressed in the body of the lessons. Updated features, tools or technique will be included at the end, if applicable for a specific lesson. Here are updates for the Flash Interface for MX 2004, Professional for the Interactive Flash Demo.
The PolyStar tool - creates multi-sided shapes and stars. It is hidden beneath the Rectangle Tool. If you will use this tool a lot, you can position it to its own place on the Toolbar Panel to customize the Toolbar, to the Edit Menu - Edit>Customize Toolbars in Windows and Flash MX 2004 Menu > Customize Toolbars on the Mac.
The Text tool - is the same in both versions, but I mention it because of the addition of Spell Check in MX 2004. To access Spell-check, go to the Text Menu - Text>Spelling Setup to set up your libraries and options. Then go to the Text Menu - Text>Check Spelling to use the spell checker.
A new panel to MX 2004 is the History Panel. The history panel is a large undo list. Open the history panel by going to the Window Menu - Window > Other Panels > History. By default, you can have 100 history states but you can set the amount in your Preferences by going to the Edit or Application Menu (Mac) - Edit>Preferences>Undo Levels. The more undo levels you select, the more memory is being used by your computer. The History Panel is really quite a robust little window which enables you to explore your actions and view specific details about the action. To access these details, click on the Options menu at the top right of the History Panel and select Arguments in Panel. You will only have history in your History Panel if you've done something in Flash. The History Panel will lose all its states when you close the file. Each time you open a file, you will have a clear History Panel. One of the best features of the History Panel is the feature to automate repetitive tasks.
The Snap Align command is a new feature in Flash MX 2004. This command is accessible through the View Menu - View>Snapping>Snap Align. The Snap Align option enables you to line up and arrange groups and symbols on the stage by snapping objects to the edges of other objects. It will also make sure that objects do not overlap. The Flash MX 2004 textbook has a lesson in creating an emerald using the Snap Align feature in the chapter on "Managing Content." The Snap Align feature is not accessible from the Align Panel which is used to align objects (left, center, right, top, center, bottom), distribute objects, or match size and space either to the Stage or to other objects.
Note that the Case Study in the textbook for MX 2004 is different from the Case Study in the textbook for MX.
This is the end of this lesson. Please proceed to the Assignments area.
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