Find/make flash animations to embed into Articulate

Apr 26, 2011

Hi, folks. This is one of the questions asked in advance of the European Conference in Leeds - I am hoping that, by posting it here, we may get some more ideas for the participants to ponder over on the day. Also, apologies if these questions have already been answered elsewhere - the fault is entirely mine for not looking properly. Now the question and many thanks in advance to you all for your suggestions:

 

Are there any resources on how to find/make flash animations to embed into Articulate?

8 Replies
David Anderson

Hey Dragos-

There really aren't any specific requirements for creating animations in Flash for Articulate. We have the Flash Best Practices article that outlines settings, ActionScript formats, etc.

Are you asking more around tutorials or existing assets that can be quickly customized and inserted into Articulate courses?

Dragos Ciobanu

Thanks a lot for this, David. I am guessing our participant would like to know if there are any freebies anywhere (both in terms of tools and ready-made files). I am guessing she would like to learn about similar things to those discussed when talking about images (e.g. there are free online sign builders, copyright-free image repositories, etc...) But I am guessing a little here as I am only working with the question that was submitted to the conference... sorry and thanks for helping.

David Anderson

Another tip would be to understand how masking works in Flash and how using it/not using it can affect your Flash movies in Presenter.

Here's a published example: http://articulate-community.s3.amazonaws.com/david/forums/flash-masking-stage/player.html

In the first slide, the animation extends beyond the Flash movie--the quad runner is seen outside the main movie. This is because the animation extended beyond the stage in Flash. Once inserted, everything is fair game.

The way around it is to use a masking layer in Flash to "hide" everything outside the stage area. Simple technique in Flash, but an important one if you're working with objects or animations that reside animate beyond your published Flash stage area.

Here's a Screenr on what's going on: https://player.vimeo.com/video/204930285

David Anderson

The Flash community is one of the more generous so yes, there are lots of free resources. The big challenge is very few will be "ready to wear" without opening Flash and making some modifications.

Do you think your participants will be comfortable enough in Flash to make modifications? I'm not talking code changes but basic symbol editing-type work. Will participants have Flash?

I'm happy to pull some resources together for you either way.

Dragos Ciobanu

Thanks a lot for this, Dave. I think a live demo of advanced Flash techniques at the conference may be a bit complex (at this stage, the number of self-confessed beginners is higher than that of advanced users), so I would go for a few useful links in the forum, followed by an online discussion with the interested ones (who can also get together during the breaks at the conference to chat more about this).

On the other hand, new practical examples and tips on building more engaging and effective online resources will be of use to everyone present, and I am so looking forward to your session on the 17th.

What I'll write to Santa this year (but to the three of you beforehand) is whether there is a chance of having Jeanette, you and Tom with us next year - we could extend the conference, have some more parallel sessions, and sample some English ales among lots more things (I guess I am still under the influence of the latest developments in the Storyline thread

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