Hot Adobe Flash How-Tos


How To: Use animated GIFs in Flash
Learn how to incorporate animated GIFs into Flash projects.

How To: Change the pivot point position in Flash
This simple video tutorial teaches you how to change the pivot point position when using Flash. The tutorial handles drawing basic shapes, such as squares and rectangles and converting them to movie clips.

How To: Create a glowing object animation in Flash
This video shows you how to create a glowing object in Adobe Flash CS3 Professional software. This is a tutorial video for beginner level viewers. Making objects glow is one of the many effects that can be applied in Flash. In this video the narrator draws a shape, converts the shape into a movie and adds a glow filter to the object. Watch this video and learn the correct parameters to be supplied to the program to get the desired glow effect.

How To: Create a black & white mask animation in Flash
In this flash tutorial the instructor shows how to make a black and white mask animation. To do this, first start by importing your image into the flash tool and bring it on to the scene. The image should be wider than the scene. Now select and distribute the layers. Now convert those images into movie clips. Now go to frame 80 and add all frames. Get back to the first layer and create a shape that is the your mask. Now go to frame 40, select key layer and add free transform tool. Now, mask t...

How To: Create an image gallery (slideshow) in Flash CS4
Slideshow is such a dirty word. Most people immediately think of boring family reunions or 1980's corporate meetings when they hear it. That's probably why web designers prefer using the term image gallery to refer to their slideshow-like works. This video will teach you how to make an automatic image gallery using Flash CS4, which is a slideshow where the images advance automatically on a timer.

How To: Use the Bone tool in Adobe Flash CS5
Learn how to apply constraints and springs using the new Adobe Flash CS5 Bone tool. Whether you're new to Adobe's popular Flash-development platform or a seasoned web developer looking to better acquaint yourself with the new features and functions of the latest iteration of the application, you're sure to benefit from this free software tutorial. For more information, watch this video guide.

How To: Use 3D rotation in Adobe Flash CS4
The new Flash CS4 includes 3D tools that allow users to rotate perspective around a movie clip. This tutorial goes over some of the basic controls.

How To: Animate puppets in Flash CS4
Flash CS4’s new inverse kinematics tools allow users to create and arrange symbols in a collection called an Armature. These armatures contain bones that have relationships with other elements which can be animated. Users can create and control their own dancing puppet. You could be the next South Park and you never need a stop motion camera! Just the new inverse kinematics tools in Flash CS4 and this tutorial. Animate puppets in Flash CS4.

How To: Smooth and straighten lines in Adobe Flash
First select the pencil tool then click on pencil mode which is located at the bottom of the toolbar, select straighten and draw a line as in the video. Now you can see that the line is automatically adjusted, it will make the round and straight shape in the line depending on how you drew it. Now delete your shapes and select the smooth in pencil mode and draw a line as in the video. Now you can see that the line is automatically smoothed. And finally select the ink in pencil mode and draw a ...

How To: Create a big to small text animation in Flash
A great free video training from tasktutorial on how to create a cool movie text effect in Flash. Start by creating the text; type in "cool", rename the layer and lock it. Now type "movie" and rename the layer. Type in "effect" and rename this layer as well. Now focus on the first layer. Convert it to movie clip. Now convert the other two layers to movie clips as well. Stack the three layers on top of each other. Next add a key frame starting from frame 10. Select the "cool" layer. Re-size it...

How To: Lip Sync a character in Flash CS4
Syncing the lips of animated characters to dialogue is one of the most painstaking tasks that any animator has to perform, especially when working on the localization of foreign animated films. This video will teach you the basics of how to sync the lips of animated characters in Flash CS4. You need to have a set of mouths already created to make this work, but once you have that this video should be able to help you put them together and create a really professional Flash movie.

How To: Apply bones to images and Photoshop files in CS4
This video tutorial will help you to use the bone tool on an imported or Photoshop image while in Flash. If you want to use an image from Photoshop you must first pull the image up in the Photoshop program. Once the photo is pulled up in Photoshop you can save it by going to, file, and save us. Save your file as whatever file extension you would like to use (Photoshop, jpeg, etc). Pull up the Flash program and find file, and import. At this point you can import your Photoshop picture to your ...

How To: Create a volume slider in Flash
Learn how to create a sound or volume slider using Flash and Actionscript.

How To: Prevent your image from pixelation by smoothing out your bitmap in Flash
Pixelation is a dreaded effect which can corrupt your image when you try to resize or rotate an image and end up with jagged edges. This tutorial shows you how you can use Flash to smooth out your images and prevent pixelated images.

How To: Code Flash objects to be able to spin, rotate and accelerate
This tutorial shows you first how to create an object using Adobe Flash CS3, and then you're shown how you can use ActionScript code to make them spin and rotate. You can even cause the spinning to speed up using the right code!

How To: Create textures and add them to a character in Flash
Creating textures in Photoshop and applying them to Flash animations is one of the most effective ways to make your characters look unique (watch the anime series Gankutsuou if you need proof). This video will teach you how to import custom textures from Photoshop into Flash and then apply them to parts of your characters. This allows you to apply a limitless variety of colors and effects to sections of your characters and make them much more lifelike.

How To: Create a 3D page flip effect using Flash CS4
The 3D page flip is one of the coolest and most underutilized effects that you can put on your website using Flash CS4. You may also know it from the iPod interface. This video will teach you how to create the effect yourself with Flash and Actionscript 3, giving your websites greatly increased accessibility and flair.

How To: Link to a URL in Flash
1. The following Steps shows how to open a URL in a Web Browser, using a Button Click from a Flash Application. 2. Open a new Flash Application and place a Rectangle Shape from Tools and inside place a Text Box and Enter a Text named "URL". 3. Then convert it to Symbol by Right Click->Convert to Symbol and selecting type as Button. 4. Goto Button Properties and Name the button instance as "btnurl" 5. Then in the Action Screen Create a OnRelease() Event function for Button "btnurl" 6. use a me...

How To: Create a rollover button in Flash
You can make a rollover button in Flash by following the instructions shown. You start by opening up Flash to work on your project. You then follow along and draw a shape for the actual button. Then follow the steps given to turn your shape into a button that is click-able and links to your movie clip. This is great for placing on a website instead of placing a bulky video clip on the site. If you complete the directions correctly you will have a fully working click-able button that will link...

How To: Make animation using clipping mask in Flash
clipping mask Sponsored by SimpleRetouch.com Start by creating a task with the name Mask, then Choose a color and a font size.

How To: Animate a walking stickman with Flash
A tutorial on character animation in Flash that teaches you how to create a walking stickman or stick figure. You'll also learn how to mulilate him and create blood effects.

How To: Design a cartoon environment in Adobe Flash
In this tutorial, we learn how to design a cartoon environment in Adobe Flash. Start out by picking the color for the green. Use different types of green, making a gradient so it transitions from a lighter to a darker color. After this, draw on the sky making it go from darker at the top to lighter blue at the bottom near the grass. Add in a fence on the grass, then draw on circles with gradient layers to create mountains. Create a new layer to make dirt and grass on the front of the picture ...

How To: Include the Text Input component to your Flash-based websites
Add extra interactivity to your website by incorporating the Text Input component. This tutorial shows you how to build your own component and customize it for your website's needs. Text input allows your users to interact with the website by typing in information - like names or email addreses.

How To: Incorporate the Scroll Pane component to your Adobe Flash design
Scroll panes can create frames within your website, which can be condensed and then scrolled through. Scroll panes help you optimize the screen space without losing out on content. Follow along with this tutorials and add a scroll pane to your own website or other Flash-based content.

How To: Add Radio Button components to your project in Adobe Flash CS4
Radio buttons let you build quizzes, surveys and polls which you can incorporate into your website, game, animation or other Flash-based project. Follow this short tutorial, which explains how to code radio buttons and then customize their appearance in Adobe Flash CS4.

How To: Create a Klingon 'Hello World' application for Facebook using Adobe Flash
Create a Star Trek-themed Facebook application! This tutorial shows you how to make a simple Flash application with a Klingon theme. You're walked through all the steps using Flash Builder in Adobe Flash CS5 to create the Hello World application for Klingon Facebook users.

How To: Create a CSS Style Sheet and import it into Flash using Action Script 3
A style sheet can ensure a uniform appearance for your website, as it gives you the ability to standardize font appearance, layout and spellings of unusual words on your website. This tutorial shows you how to create a style sheet and then import it into the Adobe Flash CS5 program using ActionScript 3.

How To: Rewind or reverse animations created using Flash CS3
This tutorial shows a beginner how to reverse their timeline animations, both by using Action Script code or by using the timeline functions. Set up your Adobe Flash CS3 animation timeline going in one direction, and then completely reverse it!

How To: Create a spinning square animation in Adobe Flash CS4
Updated from the old CS3 tutorial! This video demonstrates how you can set up a simple spin animation using the most recent version of Adobe Flash, Creative Suite 4. Start with a simple square animation, and then make it spin!

How To: Create a graphic symbol using Adobe Flash CS4
This Adobe Flash CS4 tutorial shows you how to create a graphic symbol. Creating a graphic symbol lets you reuse the image in other projects, and set up a few other interactive and dynamic functions when you incorporate graphic symbols into your animations.

How To: Adapt your Flash content to fit multiple screens
Flash can play on a laptop screen, a mobile device or even a wide-screen HD televsion. A Flash developer needs to make sure that, whatever your video is, you have coded it so that it can still play on any size screen without losing any content.

How To: Add depth to an animation in Adobe Flash Professional CS5
This clip presents a guide to adding the final, finishing touches to an animation created within Adobe Flash Professional CS5. Whether you're new to Adobe Flash or merely unfamiliar with Flash Professional CS5, you're sure to benefit from this free video software tutorial from Lynda. For more information, including detailed, step-by-step instructions, take a look.

How To: Make a cartoon character in Flash
This video will show viewers how to use Adobe Flash and how to make a cartoon character talk in this program. This tutorial covers aspects such as recording the voice of your characters, drawing their mouths to speak, and how to sync the recorded speech to the animation. Furthermore, this video will also show how to create subtle facial expressions that display emotion in the character. In order to record the sound, the host recommends a program called Audacity which has a free downloadable v...

How To: Change object colors via ActionScript in Flash 8
Change object colors via ActionScript in Flash 8

How To: Use the bone tool to create animation in Flash CS4
The bone tool is one of the most important tools in Flash for creating basic animations. It allows you to give your characters virtual bones which you can manipulate to make them move. This video tutorial will show you how to use the bone tool to create a simple animation of a dancing cartoon cow. It is very cute, and this tool will be the basis of many of your future, more cinematic works.

How To: Use motion tween to make a character walk in Flash CS4
After you've created an animated character in Flash CS4, one of the first things that you are probably going to want to do is make them walk. This video will show you how to do so quickly and easily using motion tweens. Whether you are making a banana man or a model of Barack Obama, these techniques will have you well on your way to making walking animated characters.

How To: Shade characters in your Flash animation
Creating really cool animated characters in Flash is an art form that can take years to master. This video tutorial will teach you how to use shading to make your characters looks more dynamic and interesting. The more effects you know, the more that you can do in Flash, so watch this and get back to animating!

How To: Create 3D logos using Flash CS3 and Swift 3D
The value of having a good logo for your enterprise, no matter what it is, is not new and very great. Flash and other modern digital art tools have taken the art of logo creation to heights never before imagined. This video will teach you how to create a cool 3D logo using Flash CS3 and Swift 3D version 5. Brand yourself.

How To: Create and use a virtual camera in Flash CS4 animation
Virtual cameras enable you to add all sorts of cool effects to your animations by making it seem like they were filmed with a camera that could move and focus. This video will show you where to acquire and how to use the vcam software plugin for Flash CS4 to create all of the aforementioned effects and more! This can also be useful for video games.

How To: Use the Behaviors panel in Adobe Flash
Need a little bit of help figuring out how to use the Behaviors panel in Adobe Flash? This clip will show you what you need to know. Whether you're new to Adobe's popular Flash-development platform or a seasoned web developer looking to better acquaint yourself with the new features and functions of this particular iteration of the application, you're sure to benefit from this free software tutorial. For more information, watch this Flash developer's guide.