Flirting with Flash Exercise 1

1. We will be creating a Flash movie with animation.
2. Do: Open a new Flash file and save it in your folder as BouncingBalls.fla.
3. Do: Click the Oval tool one time.
4. Do: Choose a color for your ball.
5. Do: Draw a ball somewhere on your screen. If you hold the Shift key down, it will make a perfect circle.
6. Do: Click the Selection tool. Draw a box (marquee) around the ball. You know it worked if there are little dots all the way around the edges of the ball.
7. Notice: Now you have an Object on your stage. Notice the Properties of your object. You can add animation to an object over time.
8. Do: Click Insert -> Timeline -> Create Motion Tween. You know Flash understands that there will be an animation if the dots disappeared, and a blue box surrounded the ball.
9. Notice: You have chosen which object will be animated now (the only one on the stage,) but you haven't told Flash how long the animation will last.
10. Do: Click on frame 60 on the Timeline and go to Insert -> Timeline -> Keyframe.
11. Notice how Flash added another frame with a dot (another keyframe) at 60 and filled in the frames between with an arrow. That arrow shows that there is a tween and the movie will last 5 seconds because our movie has been left at the default of 12 frames per seconds. However, there is no movement in the ball because we haven't told it to move.
12. Do: Click on the keyframe in Frame 60 and then move the ball somewhere else on the stage.
13. Now you have a Flash file with animation.
14. Do: Play the animation.
15. Do: Save the animation file.
16. Do: Close the file