Here's a question that really gets to the core

[Thepoet]

Since I've gotten some excellent help from a cool guy named Jason from this

list, now I can do a motion blur and also allow the text blocks(symbols) to

flow off the screen (rt. left up down)...

However, I want to be able to create a scrolling effect, like the one my

fellow Coloradan, Marjorie is doing.  But the answer that David mentioned is

that you create an animated symbol. This gets me because symbols by them

selves are static in nature. How does one create a movie that is a symbol in

it's self.  Yes, a button has 4 states and yes thats a symbol - plus you can

add extra frames to extend its capabilities...no problemo there. But is

David referring to building extra frames in the button state? Or is there

some other method for creating an encapsulated symbol that is a series of

frames?


It may be a real no brainer but could someone please explain...



********************************

copy of David's post



Marjorie,


The effect that you are trying to create is easy to do with tell target

actions.  All you need to do is:


1) Create your scrolling text within a movie clip symbol. Get the

animation and the timing and everything set up the way you like it.


2) Return to your main movie and place your new movie clip symbol within

the main movie. Position it, size it, etc...


(TIP: Movie clips only show their first frame when you are positioning

them in the editor, so sometimes I like to create a "positioning dummy"

in the first frame of my movie clip, so that I can move it around and

position it on the stage in the main movie and see what the dimensions

of the entire animation will be - relative to the other stuff on my main

movie stage. Then when I have it in place, I return to the movie clip

symbol and delete the positioning dummy from the first frame).


3) Open "Instance properties" for your movie clip instance on the stage,

and give it an instance name. You can call anything you want - but name

it something that will help you remember what it is/does. Say, for

example, that you name it: text scroller.


4) Create and place 2 buttons on the stage that will tell your movie

clip when to start/stop scrolling. These are just normal buttons like

any other flash buttons.


5) Open instance properties of your "stop" button. Switch to the actions

tab of the instance properties dialog, and assign the following actions

to it:


On (Release)

   Tell Target

       Stop

   End Tell Target

End On


For the tell target instance name, type in: /text scroller (or /whatever

your instance name is). Note, in the Tell Target UI on the right side,

there will be a list of the possible targets that you can assign actions

to. This UI SHOULD show ALL movie clips that have instance names

assigned to them in the current lifetime of the buttons you have on the

stage (in other words, any target that is on the stage WHILE the button

is on the stage should be visible in the UI on the right hand side).

Double clicking the little movie clip icon next to the target that you

want will automatically create the path name to that target for you.


6) Hit OK and close instance properties. So you now have a button that

tells your movie clip instance to stop playing when it is the mouse

button is released.


7) Repeat step 5 for your play button, but relpace tha stop action with

a play action.


That's it! You now have a movie clip that scrolls your text, and a set

of buttons that tell it to start or stop scrolling when the user

presses, then releases them.


MORE HINTS:


1) REMEMBER: Movie Clips ONLY WORK IN THE PLAYER. To see them behave you

NEED to export the movie using Control>Test Movie from the menus. MOVIE

CLIPS DO NOT PLAY IN THE EDITOR.


2) Movie Clips Start playing automatically. If you want your text to be

stopped until someone presses the "play" button, put a stop action in

the first frame of your Text Scroller Movie Clip Timeine.


Give this a try. There are also a lot of fancy things you can do once

you get the basics under your belt. Experiment, and let us know what you

come up with...


Hope this helps!


-DB



Date: Sun, 26 Apr 1998 12:37:19 -0600

From: Marjorie Alexander <

msalexconcentric [dot] net

>

Subject: Tell Target Flash 3 question: Pausing a scrolling screen


Using Flash 3, exporting a Flash 3 site.


I want to have a panel of text (a movie clip) move slowly down the

screen. I want the viewer to be able to pause/stop this moving panel at

their discretion, then have this panel resume it's scrolling downward.


I have been playing with the Tell Target feature in my Flash 3 Beta and

it's not working. Have looked all over for help, no help has surfaced.


Sure I can create a similar result with a series of buttons, but this

scroll feature would be much cooler.


Any Tell Target help out there? (The online Beta help is very limited in

it's Tell Target assistance.)


Thanks again group,


Marjorie

Boulder, CO

- --


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