| | Next | |
| |
| |
| |
Introduction
ScreenTime for Flash V3 you to create professional, dynamic, interactive Flash-based screen savers with powerful access to the Mac OS X and Windows APIs. Some of the capabilities ScreenTime V3 adds to Flash include - file downloading, reading and writing to files on the end users computer, setting the active wallpaper, creating shortcuts,and the ability to create and utilize a unique user identifier.
To enable these extended capabilities, you will need to ScreenTime V3's Flash extension package (mxp) installed in your Flash MX 2004 (or later) authoring environment. If you have Macromedia's Extension Manager, the mxp will install as part of the ScreenTime's installation. If you do not have the Extension Manager installed, ScreenTime will open a web browser to a page on Macromedia's web site where you can download the free application. Once the Extension Manager is installed, download the ScreenTime V3 extension package and install it.
If you have trouble installing the mxp, quit Flash, open the Extension Manager, uninstall any previous versions of the ScreenTime mxp for ALL versions of Flash on your computer, and try again.
After installing the extension, you will find a new "ScreenTime" topic in the Flash Help panel, and a "ScreenTimeScreenSaver" component inside the Flash Components panel, in the ScreenTime folder.
The Help reference includes documentation for all ScreenTime ActionScript commands, as well as general information on how to create great looking, stable screen savers with ScreenTime and Flash.
The component installed by this package is required for creating both Windows and Macintosh OS X screen savers which use the ScreenTime extensions to Flash (STF Methods.) The component is NOT required if your screen saver doesn't use any of the STF Methods.
To create a screen saver: design your screen saver in Flash, add the ScreenTime V3 component to your movie, by dragging and dropping the component onto the first frame of your movie's root actions layer, allow the component one frame to initialize itself, add ScreenTime commands to subsequent frames for required desktop functionality, and publish your SWF. Launch ScreenTime V3, and select your screen saver content. Choose your screen saver settings, and build your screen saver.
1) Design your screen saver in Flash.
Design your screen saver in Flash as your would any web application. Include STF methods to implement any required desktop functionality. ScreenTime's STF classes follow ActionScript (AS) syntax, and are documented online and in the Flash Help panel. Integrated support for Flash "code completion" and "function parameter tips" make it easy to write ScreenTime code.
To find the ScreenTime docs in Flash, open the Help panel, select the "Help" tab, open the Help Contents pane by clicking the arrow on the leftmost window border of the Help panel, and scroll the Contents pane until you see the "ScreenTime" book.
2) Add the ScreenTime V3 component to your movie.
The ScreenTime V3 component is required if you use the STF Methods in your SWF. You can find this component in the ScreenTime folder in the Components panel.
Drag and drop the component on the first frame of your movie. If you see the ScreenTime V3 icon in your FLA, your project is "desktop ready". Make the component invisible in your screen saver by giving it an instance name and setting its _visible property to false, or by moving it off the Stage.
Allow the component one frame to initialize itself. Add ScreenTime V3 commands to subsequent frames for required desktop functionality.
If your saver is just great eye candy and doesn't use STF commands, the component is NOT REQUIRED.
3) Launch ScreenTime V3 and select your screen saver content.
Once you complete the development of your screen saver's swf(s), launch the ScreenTime builder, and drag and drop your swfs onto the ScreenTime V3 workspace pane.
4) Select your screen saver settings.
Choose your screen saver settings in ScreenTime V3 -- identify any external files you need, check exit on key down and mouse move boxes, specify your preview and installer graphics, etc.
5) Build your screen saver.
Click "Build" in ScreenTime V3 to build your screen saver installer.
If you need to debug your ScreenTime commands, enable automatic tracing, and review the debug log file created by your saver. For more information on debugging, please read Debugging Your Screen Saver
| |
| |
| |
| Questions or Feedback? | | Next |