Flash 8: Projects for Learning Animation and Interactivity

Book Description

Macromedia Flash is fast becoming the Web's most widely used platform for creating rich media with animation and motion graphics, but mastering Flash isn't easy. Most entry-level books teach through simple examples that concentrate on either animation or scripting, but rarely both together. To get the most from Flash 8, you not only need to be proficient in programming/interface design, you need the creativity for story telling and the artistic insights to design fluid animation.

Flash 8: Projects for Learning Animation and Interactivity teaches Flash design rather than simply Flash itself. With a standalone series of walkthroughs and tutorials for Flash beginners coming from a graphics field, this book teaches Flash in the context of real-world projects. Rather than learn a Flash tool for the sake of it, you learn which areas of Flash are important, and which are less used, simply by seeing how typical content is actually created. And rather than a text-heavy approach, this graphically rich book leads you through hands-on examples by illustration.

Each project in the book starts with goals and broad sketches before moving to design and scripting. This helps you understand design intent-the why of the process-rather than just learning the interfaces and the how of it all. Along the way, you'll create Flash content that includes traditional animation techniques (as seen in full-length animated features), and ActionScript-based interactive animation, such as custom web site interface designs. You also learn how to combine both traditional animation techniques and ActionScript to create feature-rich Flash assets from the ground up.

Co-authored by educational developers with years of experience creating compelling content, interfaces, and applications, Flash 8: Projects for Learning Animation and Interactivity offers a content-driven approach that is also inspiration-driven. You learn because you're accomplishing something tangible, not because you think you need to know how a tool works.

If you want to understand how various features of Flash come together to create a final end design, this book provides you with both the insight and the know-how.

Reviews From AMAZON.COM

VERY VERY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!!

Are you a beginning Flash user who wants to bring their project ideas to life? If you are, then this book is for you. Authors Richard Shupe and Robert Hoekman, have done an outstanding job of writing a book that includes everything you need to get started in Flash.

Shupe and Robert Hoekman, begin by showing you how to use Flash's vector drawing tools. Then, the authors describe how you can set up your work environment the way you feel most comfortable. The authors then show you how to use a few essential techniques to create your first animated Flash movie. Next, they show you how to give your audience some control through the use of buttons and ActionScript. The authors also show you how Flash can work with other applications to help you meet your project needs. They continue by showing you how movie clips allow you to create animations that play independently of one another. Then, the authors show you how to create an animated advertisement for the sale of a home; as well as, other experience with some of these techniques. Next, they show you how to work with sound. They continue by showing you how to add video to your projects, with and without Action Script. Then, the authors describe how you can composite bitmap and vector assets on the fly and learn how to inject a heightened sense of expression into your files with real-time filter effects. The authors then show you how to use text. Next, they focus on solving one problem: Keeping initial download times to a minimum without compromising too much quality or creativity. The authors also show you how to use a template and components to construct a three-question quiz about what you've learned so far. They continue by exploring two slightly less conventional distribution methods for Flash content. Finally, they show you a few projects that demonstrate some of Flash's less common uses.

Several techniques are used in this most excellent book to help you better understand and retain the information you are given. More importantly, the preceding approach is what makes this book more effective learning tool than other books on the shelf.

Learning Flash animation for beginner

The Flash 8 projects for learning Animation and Interactivity book is a good resource for beginner to learn animation. It takes you step by step using practice examples to teach you basic animation techniques. The title of the book show two issues the first one is learning animation and I think the writer covered this part very well for beginners. The second issue is Learning Interactivity, which is covered along with the animation. The chapter that causes confusion for me is the 13th chapter. As it talks about e-learning in Flash, which is a very big issue that can not covered in one chapter, even for beginners. I think this part needs another book to cover deeply and give the beginner a strong beginning step in the field of e-learning.
Regardless the 13th chapter I see the book focused well and this helps the beginners to grasp the idea of the animation in Flash.