Using Director DIRECTOR ® 8 macromedia ® macromedia ™ ® ii Trademarks Afterburner, AppletAce, Attain, Attain Enterprise Learning System, Attain Essentials, Attain Objects for Dreamweaver, Authorware, Authorware Attain, Authorware Interactive Studio, Authorware Star, Authorware Synergy, Backstage, Backstage Designer, Backstage Desktop Studio, Backstage Enterprise Studio, Backstage Internet Studio, Design in Motion, Director, Director Multimedia Studio, Doc Around the Clock, Dreamweaver, Dreamweaver Attain, Drumbeat, Drumbeat 2000, Extreme 3D, Fireworks, Flash, Fontographer, FreeHand, FreeHand Graphics Studio, Generator, Generator Developer's Studio, Generator Dynamic Graphics Server, Knowledge Objects, Knowledge Stream, Knowledge Track, Lingo, Live Effects, Macromedia, Macromedia M Logo & Design, Macromedia Flash, Macromedia Xres, Macromind, Macromind Action, MAGIC, Mediamaker, Object Authoring, Power Applets, Priority Access, Roundtrip HTML, Scriptlets, SoundEdit, ShockRave, Shockmachine, Shockwave, Shockwave Remote, Shockwave Internet Studio, Showcase, Tools to Power Your Ideas, Universal Media, Virtuoso, Web Design 101, Whirlwind and Xtra are trademarks of Macromedia, Inc. and may be registered in the United States or in other jurisdictions including internationally. Other product names, logos, designs, titles, words or phrases mentioned within this publication may be trademarks, servicemarks, or tradenames of Macromedia, Inc. or other entities and may be registered in certain jurisdictions including internationally. This guide contains links to third-party Web sites that are not under the control of Macromedia, and Macromedia is not responsible for the content on any linked site. If you access a third-party Web site mentioned in this guide, then you do so at your own risk. Macromedia provides these links only as a convenience, and the inclusion of the link does not imply that Macromedia endorses or accepts any responsibility for the content on those third-party sites. Apple Disclaimer APPLE COMPUTER, INC. MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EITHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, REGARDING THE ENCLOSED COMPUTER SOFTWARE PACKAGE, ITS MERCHANTABILITY OR ITS FITNESS FOR ANY PARTICULAR PURPOSE. THE EXCLUSION OF IMPLIED WARRANTIES IS NOT PERMITTED BY SOME STATES. THE ABOVE EXCLUSION MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU. THIS WARRANTY PROVIDES YOU WITH SPECIFIC LEGAL RIGHTS. THERE MAY BE OTHER RIGHTS THAT YOU MAY HAVE WHICH VARY FROM STATE TO STATE. Copyright © 2000 Macromedia, Inc. All rights reserved. This manual may not be copied, photocopied, reproduced, translated, or converted to any electronic or machine-readable form in whole or in part without prior written approval of Macromedia, Inc. Part Number ZDR80M100 Acknowledgments Writing: Jay Armstrong, Barbara Herbert, and Stephanie Gowin Editing: Peter Fenczik, Rosana Francescato, and Anne Szabla Multimedia Design and Production: John Lehnus and Noah Zilberberg Print Design and Production: Chris Basmajian Web Editing: Jane Dekoven and Jeff Harmon Project Management: Joe Schmitz Special Thanks: Sarah Allen, Chris Campbell, Margaret Dumas, Grace Gellerman, Lisa Gelobter, Tom Higgins, Buzz Kettles, Valerie Liberty, Dan Sadowski, Jake Sapirstein, and Ian Starr First Edition: February 2000 Macromedia, Inc. 600 Townsend St. San Francisco, CA 94103 1 CONTENTS INTRODUCTION Getting Started . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 System requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10 Installing Director . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10 What’s new in Director 8 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11 Resources for learning Director . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12 Director Support Center . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .14 Conventions used in Director Help and printed books . . . . . . . . . . . . .15 CHAPTER 1 Director 8 Tutorial . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .17 View the completed Shockwave version of GardenChat . . . . . . . . . . . .18 View the completed DIR version of GardenChat . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .19 Set up the movie . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .20 Create media in Director. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .22 Import cast members. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .25 Create sprites from cast members . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .29 Create simple tweening animation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .36 Blend sprites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .38 Create frame-by-frame animation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .39 Attach behaviors to sprites. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .41 Add sound. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .44 Control streaming . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .45 Publish your movie for the Web in one step . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .46 Add multiuser chat functionality to GardenChat. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .47 Create a Shockwave chat movie. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .52 Continue learning about Director . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .54 Contents 2 CHAPTER 2 Director basics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55 Creating a new movie . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .55 Introducing the Director workspace . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .56 Using many Score windows. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .69 Changing Score settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .70 Using markers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .71 Selecting and editing frames in the Score. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .72 About adding interactivity with Lingo. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .74 Converting movies created in previous versions of Director. . . . . . . . . .75 Managing the Director authoring environment. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .75 About using Xtras to extend Director functionality . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .81 About distributing movies. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .83 CHAPTER 3 Cast members and Cast windows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85 Creating new casts. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .87 Creating cast members . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .88 Using the Cast window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .89 Naming cast members. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .93 Using Cast List view . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .94 Using Cast Thumbnail view . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .96 Moving cast members within the Cast window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .97 Organizing cast members within the Cast window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .99 Setting Cast window preferences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .100 Changing Cast properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .102 Viewing and setting cast member properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .103 Finding cast members . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .104 Importing cast members . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .106 Launching external editors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .112 Managing external casts. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .114 Creating libraries. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .116 Setting cast member properties using Lingo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .116 Setting Xtra cast member properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .117 Contents 3 CHAPTER 4 Sprites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .119 Creating sprites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .120 Changing sprite preferences. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .121 Selecting sprites. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .122 Layering sprites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .125 Displaying and editing sprite properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .125 Locking and unlocking sprites. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .132 Positioning sprites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .133 Changing the appearance of sprites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .142 Using sprite inks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .150 Assigning a cast member to a sprite with Lingo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .155 CHAPTER 5 Behaviors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 157 Attaching behaviors. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .158 Changing the order of attached behaviors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .161 Getting information about behaviors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .161 Creating and modifying behaviors. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .163 Writing behaviors with Lingo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .167 Setting up a Parameters dialog box . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .168 Setting behavior properties with Lingo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .168 Customizing a behavior’s property. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .169 Creating an on getPropertyDescriptionList handler. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .171 Including a description for the Behavior Inspector . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .171 Example of a complete behavior . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .172 Sending messages to behaviors attached to sprites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .173 Using inheritance in behaviors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .175 Contents 4 CHAPTER 6 Writing Scripts with Lingo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 177 Scripting basics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .177 Lingo terminology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .182 Lingo syntax . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .184 Writing Lingo statements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .186 Using handlers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .191 Using lists . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .194 About variables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .199 Expressing literal values. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .202 Using operators to manipulate values . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .207 Controlling flow in scripts. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .210 Creating and attaching scripts with the Script window . . . . . . . . . . . .213 Using linked scripts. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .217 CHAPTER 7 Color, Tempo, and Transitions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 219 Controlling color . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .220 About tempo. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .232 Using transitions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .236 CHAPTER 8 Animation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 239 About tweening in Director. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .240 Tweening the path of a sprite . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .241 Accelerating and decelerating sprites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .243 Tweening other sprite properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .244 Suggestions and shortcuts for tweening . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .245 Changing tweening settings. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .246 Switching a sprite’s cast members . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .247 Editing sprite frames . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .248 Frame-by-frame animation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .249 Shortcuts for animating with multiple cast members. . . . . . . . . . . . . .252 Using film loops . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .255 Animating sprites with Lingo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .256 Contents 5 CHAPTER 9 Navigation and User Interaction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .257 Creating basic navigation controls with behaviors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .258 Jumping to locations with Lingo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .259 Detecting mouse clicks with Lingo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .261 Making sprites editable and draggable. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .262 Making sprites editable or moveable with Lingo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .263 Checking which text is under the pointer with Lingo . . . . . . . . . . . . .263 Responding to rollovers with Lingo. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .264 Finding mouse pointer locations with Lingo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .264 Checking keys with Lingo. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .265 Equivalent cross-platform keys . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .265 Identifying keys on different keyboards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .266 About animated color cursors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .266 Creating an animated color cursor cast member . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .268 Using an animated color cursor in a movie . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .270 CHAPTER 10 Movies in a Window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 271 Creating a MIAW using Lingo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .272 Opening and closing a MIAW. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .273 Setting the window type for a MIAW . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .274 Setting the window size and location for a MIAW. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .275 Cropping and scaling a MIAW . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .275 Controlling the appearance of a MIAW. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .276 Listing the current movies in windows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .276 Controlling interaction between MIAWs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .277 Controlling events involving MIAWs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .278 CHAPTER 11 Parent Scripts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .279 Similarity with other object-oriented languages. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .280 Parent script and child object basics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .280 Ancestor basics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .281 Writing a parent script . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .282 Creating a child object . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .285 Removing a child object . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .287 Using scriptInstanceList . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .287 Using actorList . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .288 Creating timeout objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .289 Contents 6 CHAPTER 12 Vector Shapes and Bitmaps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 291 Drawing vector shapes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .293 Editing vector shapes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .298 Defining gradients for vector shapes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .300 Controlling vector shapes with Lingo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .301 About importing bitmaps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .302 Using animated GIFs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .303 Using the Paint window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .304 Changing selected areas of a bitmap . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .311 Flipping, rotating, and applying effects to bitmaps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .311 Changing registration points . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .315 Changing size, color depth, and color palette for bitmaps . . . . . . . . . .317 Controlling bitmap images with Lingo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .319 Using gradients . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .322 Using patterns. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .323 Creating a custom tile . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .323 Using bitmap filters. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .325 Using onion skinning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .327 Using shapes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .331 Compressing bitmaps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .332 CHAPTER 13 Text . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 335 Embedding fonts in movies. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .336 Creating text cast members . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .338 Editing and formatting text. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .339 Creating a hyperlink . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .346 Working with fields. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .347 Using editable text . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .348 Converting text to a bitmap . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .348 Mapping fonts between platforms for field cast members . . . . . . . . . .349 Setting text or field cast member properties. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .350 Formatting chunks of text with Lingo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .353 Formatting text or field cast members with Lingo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .354 Controlling scrolling text with Lingo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .356 Checking for specific text with Lingo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .356 Modifying strings with Lingo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .357 Contents 7 CHAPTER 14 Sound, Video, and Synchronization . . . . . . . . . . . 359 Importing internal and linked sounds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .360 Setting sound cast member properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .362 Controlling sound in the Score . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .362 Looping a sound . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .364 Using sound in Windows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .364 Playing sounds with Lingo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .365 About Shockwave Audio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .367 Compressing internal sounds with Shockwave Audio . . . . . . . . . . . . .368 Streaming linked Shockwave Audio and MP3 audio files . . . . . . . . . .369 Playing Shockwave Audio and MP3 audio with Lingo . . . . . . . . . . . .370 Importing digital video . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .372 Using the Video window. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .373 Setting digital video cast member properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .373 Playing digital video direct-to-Stage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .375 Controlling digital video in the Score . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .376 Playing digital video with Lingo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .377 Controlling QuickTime with Lingo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .379 Cropping digital video . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .382 About using digital video on the Internet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .383 Preloading digital video. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .384 Synchronizing media. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .384 Synchronizing media with Lingo. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .385 CHAPTER 15 Using Interactive Media Types . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .387 Using Flash Movies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .388 Controlling a Flash movie with Lingo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .391 Controlling a Flash movies’s appearance with Lingo . . . . . . . . . . . . . .392 Streaming Flash movies with Lingo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .394 Playing back Flash movies with Lingo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .394 Sending Lingo from Flash movies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .396 Using Lingo to set and test Flash 4 variables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .397 Playback performance tips for Flash movies. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .398 Using Director movies within Director movies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .399 Using PowerPoint presentations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .400 Using ActiveX controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .405 Contents 8 CHAPTER 16 Playing Movies over the Internet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .411 About streaming movies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .412 About network operations. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .413 Setting movie playback options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .414 Setting Shockwave playback options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .415 About creating multiuser applications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .416 About streaming with the Score and behaviors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .423 Checking whether media elements are loaded with Lingo . . . . . . . . . .424 Downloading files from the Internet with Lingo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .425 Retrieving network operation results with Lingo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .427 Using Lingo in different Internet environments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .428 Testing your movie . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .431 About downloading speed. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .432 CHAPTER 17 Packaging Movies for Distribution. . . . . . . . . . . . . 433 Shockwave browser compatibility . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .433 Previewing a movie in a browser . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .434 About Xtras. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .435 Managing Xtras for distributed movies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .437 About distribution formats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .438 Creating Shockwave movies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .440 Setting movie options for browser resizing. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .447 About projectors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .449 Creating projectors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .449 Processing movies with Update Movies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .453 Exporting digital video and frame-by-frame bitmaps. . . . . . . . . . . . . .454 Setting QuickTime export options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .456 About organizing movie files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .459 INDEX . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 461 [...]... the Director Installer icon If prompted, restart your computer What’s new in Director 8 One of the most important changes in Director 8 is a Property Inspector that automatically switches context to match the current selection The Property Inspector is referred to throughout this book For basic information about it, see “The Property Inspector” on page 58 Other new authoring features in Director 8 include... illustration shows Director running on Windows When Director is running on a Macintosh, the keyboard shortcuts reflect Macintosh keys.) Getting Started 13 Director Support Center The Director Support Center Web site (www .macromedia. com/support /director/ ) contains the latest information on Director, plus additional topics, examples, tips, and updates Check the Web site often for the latest news on Director and... shows you how to create a basic movie with some of Director s most useful and powerful features The tutorial appears in Director Help and in Chapter 1 of this book Using Director This book is a printed excerpt of Director Help It includes all the main topics in Director Help, but omits some topics that are less frequently used or becoming obsolete as Director evolves 12 Introduction Lingo Dictionary... Macromedia Director 8 Shockwave Studio is the world’s foremost authoring tool for creating interactive multimedia Developers rely on Director to create attention-grabbing business presentations, advertising kiosks, interactive entertainment and educational products To see some of the exciting and varied ways in which developers use Director, visit Macromedia s Gallery at www .macromedia. com... you can visit the Director Support Center for additional information about these topics: Using Director 8 behaviors Working with Multiuser behaviors Using the Shockwave Multiuser Server XML parsing Troubleshooting Lingo Authoring from Lingo Controlling vector shapes with Lingo Specifying chunk expressions with dot syntax Optimizing bitmaps in Fireworks Creating Java applets with Director Creating dialog... bitmaps in Fireworks Creating Java applets with Director Creating dialog boxes from the MUI Xtra Director 8 keyboard shortcuts 14 Introduction Conventions used in Director Help and printed books The help system and printed books use the following conventions: The terms Lingo and Director refer to version 8 of Director Within the text and in Lingo examples, Lingo elements and parts of actual code are shown... this location Note: As you complete the tutorial, remember to save your work frequently Director 8 Tutorial 21 Create media in Director You can create media in Director or import it from other programs Simple media, such as text and backgrounds, are ideally suited for creation in Director Create a vector shape Director lets you create multiple-curve vector shapes: mathematical descriptions of shapes... easy The best place to start learning Director is the Guided Tour included with Director Help The Guided Tour provides a quick conceptual overview of how to use key features to create and distribute a movie Click the Help button in any dialog box to open the relevant help topic Director Tutorial When you’re ready to actually start working in Director, proceed to the Director Tutorial The tutorial shows... 15 16 Introduction 1 CHAPTER 1 Director 8 Tutorial You’re about to see how easy it is to master basic tasks necessary to create a movie in Director 8 With a few more simple steps, you can add multiuser functionality to a movie and export the entire project for distribution By completing this tutorial, you’ll learn Director fundamentals and acquire... Power PC 120 Macintosh running System 8. 1 or later; 32 MB of installed RAM; Netscape Navigator 4.0, Microsoft Internet Explorer 4.5, or America Online 4.0 Web browser; and a color monitor Installing Director Follow these steps to install Director on either a Windows or a Macintosh computer To install Director on a Windows or a Macintosh computer: 1 Insert the Director CD into the computer’s CD-ROM . Using Director DIRECTOR ® 8 macromedia ® macromedia ™ ® ii Trademarks Afterburner, AppletAce, Attain,. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3 98 Using Director movies within Director movies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .399 Using PowerPoint presentations .