Adobe Flash CS3: Actionscript

Overview:

Adobe Flash CS3: ActionScript provides experienced Flash designers with the knowledge and hands-on practice they need to create dynamically generated event-driven animation and interactive games with Flash. The course teaches fundamental programming techniques. It begins by introducing core concepts including instance names, variables, functions, properties, and methods; then proceeds through conditions, loops, event handling, and animating with ActionScript.

Description:

Prerequisites:
To take this course, you should have:

Completed the Macromedia Flash 8: Rich Content Creation course, or have equivalent experience.
The desire to learn how to program Flash content using ActionScript.
 
Course Outline:  
   
Unit 1:  Introducing the Course

Understanding the course format
Reviewing the course objectives and prerequisites
Looking at the course outline

Unit 2: Controlling Visual Objects with ActionScript

Using the Actions and Help panels
Declaring variables and their data types
Using the trace() function
Using code hinting
Assigning instance names and using them to assign runtime property values
Using the with operator
Introducing core properties of visual built-in classes: MovieClip, Button, and TextField
Controlling Button and MovieClip position and visual state
Controlling TextField content
Introducing core properties of non-visual built-in classes: Math
Using mathematical operators
Understanding data type conversion

Unit 3: Using and Writing Functions

Working with Flash Player global functions
Converting values returned from functions and assigning them for display
Writing user defined functions
Returning, or not returning, data from a function
Understanding variable scope
Adding code within a MovieClip symbol's own timeline
Introducing the this operator
Understanding object methods
Introducing core methods of visual built-in classes: MovieClip and TextField
Controlling the MovieClip playhead within its timeline
Loading external MovieClip content
Understanding cross-domain security issues
Exporting and attaching MovieClip symbol instances at runtime
Writing and using user defined functions to create visual content
Understanding depth
Dynamically referring to instance names and property names at runtime

Unit 4: Using Text, Dates, Math, and Paths

Controlling TextField formatting through code
Creating and formatting TextFields at runtime
Using Date objects
Working with String concatenation
Generating random numbers and integers using the Math class
Understanding relative path names
Controlling nested MovieClip objects

 Unit 5: Understanding and Handling Events

Understanding event driven programming
Working with event handler syntax
Moving from symbol-based to timeline-based event handling
Introducing core events of visual built-in classes: Button, MovieClip, and TextField
Controlling the playhead within an event handler
Understanding the this keyword inside an event handler
Creating rollover effects
Responding to TextField focus events
Calling a single function from multiple event handlers
Referring to a parent object from within an event handler

 
Unit 6: Managing Color, Sound, and Data with Built-In Classes

Understanding complex (aggregate) variables
Working with Arrays
Working with generic Objects
Transforming MovieClip objects using Transform and ColorTransform objects
Generating random color transformations
Using Sound objects
Creating audio feedback with event-driven sounds linked from the Library

Unit 7: Making Decisions and Repeating Yourself

Understanding looped code
Using loops and arrays to attach, name, and control MovieClip objects
Using loops to create, name, and control TextFields to display data object values
Understanding conditional code execution
Surveying the comparison and logical operators
Using if/else comparison to toggle MovieClip visual states

Unit 8: Animating with ActionScript

Dragging and dropping a MovieClip object
Testing for collision between MovieClip objects
Initializing attached MovieClip objects
Using the onEnterFrame event handler
Controlling visual change rate
Testing and responding to position at runtime