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Macromedia Flash 5
Macromedia Software Requirements for PC
· A 133 MHz Intel Pentium processor,
running Windows 95, Windows 98,
Windows NT 4.0, Windows 2000 or later Software Requirements for Mac
· Power Mac, running Mac OS 8.5 or later Cost: Flash 5-$399, Flash 5 Upgrade-$149 Flash MX Training SolutionsFlash 5 Training Solutions |
Review of Macromedia Flash 5
When it comes to vectors and animation on the Web, Macromedia Flash is the overwhelming tool of choice. Previous versions have had a very limited tool set for creating graphics and the advanced features were beyond the reach of most users. So on that note we're going to look at Macromedia Flash 5 to see how it addresses these issues along with other new features.
A lot of work was put into updating the interface so that Flash would have more of an "industry standard" interface. What this really means is that Flash makes heavy use of tabbed palettes to modify settings just as in Photoshop. While this does make Flash easier to work with, it has gotten Macromedia into a legal tangle with Adobe. I say let the lawyers fight as long as the users get a product that is easier to use. Above are just two of the palettes that are available. Another great addition is the ability to customize shortcut keys to your liking. Predefined sets are provided to closely match Photoshop 5, Illustrator 9, Freehand 9, Fireworks 3 as well as the default Flash 5 set.
Flash certainly doesn't have the illustration tools to match Freehand, Illustrator or CorelDRAW. But the addition of a bezier drawing tool is a huge step in the right direction. Most artists will still prefer to use their favorite illustrator tool and then import the results into Flash. Filters for Illustrator and Freehand make this much simpler. And the fact that all the major illustration tools can export to Flash format can also come in quite handy.
One of the new features that seems to get overlooked by many people is Web-Native printing. As you are viewing a page in the browser, you'll see one version of a graphic. But when you print that same page, you'll get a different version of that same graphic. A good example of this might be a banner ad. On screen it would fit in the standard 468 x 60 size, but when printed it would give all the details and maybe fill a whole page.
For developers who work on projects as a group, Symbol Libraries can now be shared throughout a workgroup. If changes are made to any of the symbols within the library, the changes will be reflected throughout the project. If users are viewing a Web site, Shared Symbols are only downloaded once even if they are used multiple times within a project. This can save users a lot of downloading time. Another great feature for developers working together is the Movie Explorer shown at left. Each of the elements within your project is shown in a tree list. If you need to find a particular element, you can search for it or use a view filter to see just what you want. Lastly, the document structure can be printed.
Upon first reading that HTML text was supported by Flash 5, I just scratched my head. With the ability to embed WYSIWYG text in a Flash file, why go back to HTML? Well, after looking a little closer, it makes perfect sense. The HTML Text can be stored externally. So you can update it without changing the Flash file itself. You can also generate it dynamically. And since it is stored externally, it will be seen by search engines. All of these reasons make it a valuable addition. For those of you who are moving forward to XML, you'll also find that it is supported by Flash 5. The ability to transfer data in XML format to and from Flash allows for a new level of e-commerce applications. Flash can be used to create a dynamic interface with the structured data flowing to a back end server for processing.
Flash has always contained some form of scripting ability. But it wasn't a true development environment. That has all changed with the many extensions to ActionScript. It has been extended to match the syntax and structure of JavaScript. Novices can easily drag and drop elements to add some life to their projects as shown at right while experts can directly type their code into the ActionScript Editor. Heck, you can even export to an ASCII file and edit it in your editor of choice. To catch the mistakes we all make, a debugger is provided. A big bonus is the inclusion of a very thick manual detailing all the features of ActionScript. Good thick manuals will always get an extra brownie point from me.
Probably the coolest use of Action Script is with Smart Clips. Smart Clips combine Action Script with graphical elements to provide interactive parameterized movie clips that can be inserted into other projects. In plain English that means that developers can create cool interactive elements that the average user can use in their projects. As time passes, you'll probably find a number of Smart Clips available for download from developers. As each Smart Clip can be a new "feature", the possibilities are wide open.
A related product to Flash is Generator. You use Flash to create templates and then Generator manipulates those templates with live data. For example, you could create live stock charts as a vector Flash file instead of a low quality bitmap. While Generator itself is not included, the ability to create templates for use in Generator is included.
Flash has been one of the hottest graphics products on the market in the past few years. And as such, it is starting to see competition. Adobe introduced LiveMotion this Spring as a way to create SWF (Flash) files. Corel is set to release R.A.V.E. in November as their answer. Each of these products uses the interfaces of their more established illustration applications to be more familiar to users of those programs. While R.A.V.E. or LiveMotion might be enough for low-end users, they just can't compete on the high-end with all the development tools in Flash. I still think there are plenty of things that can be done to make Flash a better product, but this is still a must-have upgrade for users of previous versions.
Do you have a product you would like to have reviewed? Send press releases to reviews@unleash.com.
Foster D. Coburn III has written six best-selling books on graphics software and is currently the Webmaster of the Graphics Unleashed Web site.
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CorelDRAW X6 Font List · CorelDRAW X5 Font List · CorelDRAW X4 Font List · The Terms of Adobe Photoshop and Corel PHOTO-PAINT · CorelDRAW X3 Font List · Cropping and Rotating Files in Corel PHOTO-PAINT · The Magic of Color Styles · CorelDRAW's Find and Replace Wizard · Shorten Your Design Time with Templates · CorelDRAW's Multi-Faceted Eyedropper Tool · CorelDRAW and Special Characters · The Easy Way to Create Calendars in CorelDRAW · The Wide World of Labels in CorelDRAW · Including Variable Data with Print Merge · Resaving, Resizing & Resampling Files in Corel PHOTO-PAINT · Creating Your Own Fonts in CorelDRAW · The Evils of Using JPEG Files · Speeding Up CorelDRAW 11 and Windows XP · Symbols and Imposition · The Easiest Way to Recreate Logos · A Few Guidelines to Follow · Square Corners Can Be Sticky -- Rounding Corners in CorelDRAW · Creating Complex Shapes Easily with CorelDRAW · Identifying the Mystery Font · Two Ways to Create a Split Front Design · Last Word in Font Management · Calibrating Your Printed Colors with a Color Chart · Graphics Computing in 2001 · Hottest R.A.V.E. In Town · Get the Red Out of Eyes · Secrets of Color Management · Dressing Up Your PDF Files · How Adobe Acrobat Can Make Life Simpler · Why You Want PDF in Your Workflow · Converting a Scanned Logo to Vector in CorelDRAW · Designing 360 Degrees · Customizing Your Interface in CorelDRAW 8.0 · Fitting Text to a Path · Creating Cool Graphs Without a Spreadsheet · From CorelDRAW to Macromedia Flash, A Simple Example · Getting Rid of That Darned White Box · Converting a Bitmap Logo to Vector in CorelDRAW · Finding Clipart with ROMCAT
Xara Xtreme Pro 5.0
Serif WebPlus X2
Xara Web Designer 5.0
Xara Xtreme Pro 4.1
Macromedia Flash MX 2004 Professional
Fuji FinePix 2800 Zoom Digital Camera
Procreate KnockOut 2
Hemera Photo Objects Volume I and II
Wildform SWfx
Macromedia Fontographer 4.1 and FontLab 4
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Xara X
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Web Site Design Made Easy
Alien Skin Eye Candy 4000
Swish 1.51
Macromedia Flash 5
Corel KPT 6
Dreamweaver Ultradev
1st Page 2000
Adobe Illustrator 9
Corel KnockOut v1.5
Xara 3D 4
Cool 3D 3
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