Flash is one of the most engaging and innovative, and versatile technologies available allowing the creation of pretty much anything from simple slideshows, animated banners and icons and cartoons, to Rich Internet Applications, Interactive videos, and dynamic user interfaces for web sites, kiosks, or DVDs. The possibilities are endless, except that now, it just got better. In 2007, Adobe released Flash CS3, which boasts a whole host of new features, including fully customizable workspace, full ActionScript 3.0 support, a PSD importer, a tween-to-code animation converter, and much more. And this book is all you'll need to learn Flash CS3 from the ground up, or learn about all these new features, if you already have previous Flash experience Flash experts Tom Green and David Stiller take you step-by-step through all facets of Flash CS3, with the emphasis firmly on good design techniques that you use in your own projects. * Learn Flash design from the ground up, or just get to grips with the new features, with a series of step by step tutorials. * Provides an easy introduction to ActionScript 3.0 coding, but the focus is mainly kept on design.*Learn from the experts written by renowned Flash designers Tom Green and David Stiller. What you ll learn * The ins and outs of the Flash CS3 interface * How to use all of Flash CS3's essential features, such as text, graphics, and animation * How to use video and sound effectively in Flash * The basics of ActionScript 3.0 * Building Flash user interfaces rapidly using components. * How to populate a Flash movie with dynamic data such as XML. * The Basics of creating Flash Lite applications (Flash for mobile devices) * Using Cascading Style Sheets with Flash * Optimizing and publishing your Flash movies

If you're a Flash designer looking for a solid overview of Flash CS4, this book is for you. Through the use of solid and practical exercises, you will soon master the fundamentals of this fourth edition of the Adobe Flash authoring tool. Using a series of carefully developed tutorials, you will be led from basic Flash CS4 techniques to the point where you can create animations, MP3 players, and customized Flash video players in no time. Each chapter focuses on a major aspect of Flash, and then lets you take the reins in a "Your Turn" exercise to create something amazing with what you've learned.

This book focuses on the core skill set you need to feel at home with Flash CS4, and also introduces you to some of the biggest names in today's Flash community through interviews and actual "How To" examples, so you can learn from the masters. You will start by studying the Flash CS4 interface, and while you're at it, you'll be guided toward mastery of the fundamentals, such as movie clips, text, and graphics, which will lead you into some of the more fascinating aspects of Flash, including audio, video, animation, and 3D transformations.

By the time you finish, you will have created an MP3 player and a Flash video player, been introduced to the basics of ActionScript 3.0, learned how to combine Flash with XML, styled Flash text with CSS, created animated scenes, and worked your way through a host of additional projects. All of these exercises are designed to give you the knowledge necessary to master Flash CS4 from the ground up. If you're already a seasoned Flash designer, this book will get you up to speed with the fourth version in relatively short order.

This book covers all of the new Flash CS4 features, such as the new animation and 3D tools, the new Adobe Media Encoder, and a pair of the coolest new additions to the tools panel: a spray brush tool and a deco tool.

You can discover more about this book, download source code, and more at the book's companion website: www.foundationflashcs4.com.

'No matter what your background, the pages that follow will provide you with some excellent knowledge, insight, and even a little bit of wisdom in the realm of Flash and ActionScript. Happy learning!' - Branden Hall, from the Foreword. Written by Flash insiders with extensive knowledge of the technology, this guide is designed specifically to help Flash designers and developers make the leap from ActionScript 2.0 to the new object-oriented ActionScript 3.0 quickly and painlessly.Formatted so you can find any topic easily, "ActionScript 3.0 Quick Reference Guide" explains: Object-oriented programming (OOP) concepts, such as packages and classes; ActionScript 3.0 features and player enhancements that improve performance; and, Workflow differences between ActionScript 2.0 and ActionScript 3.0 including tools, code editing, component sets, and image and font rendering. Where did it go? This is a guide to help you find familiar features in ActionScript 3.0, such as global functions, operators, properties, and statements. How do I? It includes step-by-step solutions for performing tasks with ActionScript 3.0, including input, sound, video, display, events, text, and more. Also included are overviews of Flash and ActionScript features and workflows. ActionScript 3.0 is a huge upgrade to Flash's programming language - and this guide helps you upgrade your skills to match it.