Flash MX - Online Course

This series provides a practical guide for using Macromedia Flash MX to create animations and interactive Web sites. The Flash MX series presents information for intermediate to advanced media designers and developers who want to learn the latest techniques for animating graphics and enhancing visual media with sound and music. Topics covered include: Drawing tools, design concepts, animation techniques, text and forms in animation, compound objects, scenes, timelines, layers, filters, and masks. One full course in this series is devoted to the incorporation of sound and music into Flash movies. Each topic covered includes tips and techniques for maximizing the effectiveness of Flash MX when viewed on the Web.

This series is for intermediate and experienced media designers and developers who want to learn graphics animation skills and use Flash MX. This online course contains 5 lessons and should take approximately 18 hours to complete.

Lesson 1: Flash Overview (5.0) hours

Flash Overview teaches you how to recognize the basics of Flash animation, recognize the Flash work environment, use Tools, panels, and menus, create keyboard shortcuts, work with frames, keyframes, layers, and scenes, use the Color options, organize objects, import graphics, create, modify and use symbols, and create basic animation using individual keyframes. This course introduces what is new in Flash MX, explains what Flash does as a media animation tool, and shows how to use its drawing tools. Topics include How Flash works, Basics of Flash animation, Tools, panels, and menus, Creating keyboard shortcuts, Layers, Drawing tools, Other tools, Colors, Organizing objects, Importing graphics, Symbols, and Animation using individual keyframes.

Lesson 2: Animation (4.0) hours

Animation teaches you how to distinguish frame types, create Shape and Motion tweens, identify object properties that can be tweened, describe the advantages of tweening, and orchestrate the dynamic object elements. This course shows how to orchestrate the dynamic elements of objects in Flash, including tweening and using various frames. Topics include Frames and tweening, Shape and Motion tweening, Using tweening, Working with multiple layers, Movement along a path and toward the viewer, Tweening color, Morphing, and Web site opener.

Lesson 3: Text and Forms (3.0) hours

Text and Forms teaches you how to format text, animate text blocks, create micro-animations and graphic text, morph text, and create an animated text banner. This course shows how to transform text into graphics and animated objects. Topics include Formatting text, Animating text blocks, Micro-animations and graphic text, Morphing text, and Animated text banner.

Lesson 4: Coordinated Animations (3.0) hours

Coordinated Animations teaches you how to plan and organize a Flash movie, create and control a compound object, create and organize scenes, create and edit movie clips, and create and use masks. This course shows how to develop rich animations by integrating layers, scenes, and timelines. Topics include Setting the scene, Compound object, Animating compound objects, Organizing scenes, Independent timelines, Editing movie clips, Masking layers, Filters and masks, and Creating a three-scene cartoon.

Lesson 5: Sound and Music (3.0) hours

Sound and Music teaches you how to select sounds for recording, import sound files into a movie, apply sounds to buttons, modify sounds by looping and streaming, and create a music video. This course shows how to use sound and music along with animation to create a movie. Topics include Sound files, Importing sounds, Using sound in a movie, Sound control in buttons and frames, Controlling sounds in a movie, Editing, looping, and streaming, and Music video.