What is Best Size for a Website?

Question: What is Best Size for a Website?

Answer:
You need to look at the most popular monitor resolution if you want to make sure that all of the flash stage is visible.

Most common resolution is
1024 x 768 for Desktop monitors
and 1200x 800 for Laptops.

You must allow for the Internet Browsers’ menus, address bar, navigation bar and status bar, then there is the drag bar and the scroll bar.
In addition I like to leave room for Macintosh use of the Dock (medium sized) and Windows use of the Start Menu at bottom of screens.

Final Size of Flash Document:
Suggest a minimum of a 800x600 for a large file view, much more will get cut off on some screens. If you are OK with a Larger flash File then can be seen at one time, then the Internet Browser will, in most cases, provide you with scroll bars to access larger area.


Remember, Flash documents can be a smaller frame in a larger HTML page, Flash does not have to take over the entire screen.

Mix multiple SWF files together in one HTML file.

What are some reasons why my Flash file is too big?

Question: What are some reasons why my Flash file is too big?


Answer:
Deal with the file size problems in this order.
Size Problem 1:
The library can become full with items that you are not even using.
To deleted unused items,
Go to library, click on the menu or right mouse click and choose select unused items.
Then hit the delete button.
Choose File-Save and Compact – This makes sure to eliminate what you are not using.
Make movie again and compare sizes.

Size Problem 2:
Another major cause for big files is Bitmap images that are too big in resolution and then brought in and scaled down in Flash.

Size Problem 3:
You should set the compression either in Photoshop with a save for web, which is good to make JPEGs that are compressed to JPEG 55 or
Save files either as best quality or as PSDs and then set lower compression for images in Flash.  (To set compression: Double Click on the Bitmap File Name in the Library this will open the settings window. Turn off the “Use Document Default”.Set the compression from 1 to 100.

Solution: If after compressing images as JPEGs or in Flash, the files are still big, try replacing image with fewer colors (black and white photos or line art) with GIFs in the Save for Web menu in Photoshop.  While saving lower the number of colors 256- down to 16 if it does not destroy the look of your art. Reduce them to the minimum colors necessary. Quality will not look to good, unless you use it on only some images.  Avoid images of people and smooth gradients (sky and skin).  Try it on low color line art (logos) or gray scale images.

Can I import an Bitmap file with Transparency into Flash?

Question: Can I import an Bitmap file with Transparency into Flash?

Answer: Yes


Photoshop file format with a layer with transparency on it.

Import from Photoshop as a PSD.

Viola. Transparency is retained.

Note: You must set compression manually or your project will get huge, quick.

Set the compression setting: Double Click on the Bitmap File Name in the Library to open the settings window.
Turn off the “Use Document Default”.
Set the compression from 1 to 100.

Note: Around 60 and up compresses and looks great and 75 and up looks almost perfect. I rarely go below 60, except on small thumbnails. Then I go to 15 or so.

This image is captured from Flash Player.
After making a movie of a file saved earth file,
saved as a .psd file from photoshop,
with no background. 1 layer no background.

In Flash the Bitmap was placed over a rectangle with a gradient.
You are seeing the result from the Flash SWF playing.

How do I export it to play on say quick time or iMovie so How do I export it to play on say quick time or iMovie so

Question: How do I export it to play on say quick time or iMovie so
people without flash can view it?

Answer:
Start by Planning How to set up your project for Going to Video
Start by making the Document 720 x 480 resolution (miniDV resolution)
Set the Frames per second to 30 (video is actually 29.97 fps)

You will need to set the File-Publish Settings
Open the Flash Tab - Set the version to "Flash Format 5"



























Use the File - Export Movie menu Inside the save dialog box change the file format from SWF to .... QuickTime.














The exported file will be large, but can be imported into a variety of movie editors.
Including a cool video editor online.
http://www.jumpcut.com (I cant figure out how to get video out, but others can see it and remix it)

Video edit programs will work much better if you immediately export the video as a "compressed DV QuickTime" file. this is still QuickTime file, but the compression is that of video tape. Programs work faster with compressed video because file is much smaller, but may look almost identical as original uncompressed video.

How Do I control the Compression of imported Bitmap image files?

Question: How Do I control the Compression of imported Bitmap image files?

Answer:

• Double click on the name of the file in the Library. The Bitmap Properties window allows you to: Allow Smoothing: Ads Blur, Can be used to soften images that have too much compression or look to noisy in flash. Good also when you scale images.


• Compression: Lossless Compression (Makes files much larger) to keep maximum quality.


• Photo (JPEG) to make smaller.


• Turn off checkbox for “use document default quality” to allow you to control the compression setting of Jpg file from 1 to 100.


• Click TEST button to see, as text, compressed file size.

Update Button replaces current image with the source Bitmap file to show any changes.
Import Button replaces Bitmap with another file.
Flash will import JPG, GIF, PNG, AI, and PSD(Photoshop) with Transparency!

I want to keep that image visible until the viewer chooses another button

Question: I am placing art in the Over state of a button. This works. My artwork appears when I hover over their buttons, but I want to keep that image visible until the viewer chooses another button. How do I do that?

Answer: You need to create an invisible extension to the button that does not block other buttons. Go into the button. Add a new layer. Move new layer down to bottom of stack. Draw a large rectangle or even a group of same colored rectangles (forming irregular shape).Click on this new shape and in the color palette set the slider for Alpha to 0%.  Note: The Selected Object  will stay a solid color and will only turn transparent when it is no longer selected.  It will act as an invisible button extender. Make this shape the size of button area as well as art work, but not over other bottoms or plain area. I would draw the additional area in flash then delete away the areas over the other buttons. This can be easy when buttons are touching each other and with simple shapes. This gets more complicated when buttons are separated by a gap or have unusual shapes.