FLASH: Flash Action script Basics...

[David Gilden]

I'd like to share this with the list.

Comments are not only welcomed but encouraged!


A special thanks is in order to Randy for 

taking the time to answer a few questions.


Thanks Randy (:


'''''' ' '  '  '   '    '     '      '        '


From: Randy Kato - Web Master Braincraft


Here are some brief answers for you (within your quoted message)...


David Gilden wrote:



> I've seen mention of .as, what kind file format is this?


It's an external ActionScript file, just a text file full of AS that you

can import, like a .js external JavaScript file.


>

>

> Also please let me know if I have any the following concepts

> wrong, (Flash 4)

>

> GetProperty ("", _currentframe)

>

> This targets the current time line

> (if your in the main time line then it would be referencing

> the main time line)

>

> GetProperty ("/", _currentframe)

> This targets the main time line

>

>

> This also targets main time line

> But is it legal?

>

>   /:_currentframe


All correct up until this last one. It targets the main timeline because

of the slash, then the colon means it's a variable. Here's where the

problems start. You're using a property identifier in what should be a

variable name. F4 didn't have many reserved words, but I'm not sure if

you can start a variable name with an underscore (never tried it since

it's a gray area). I don't think it's legal, and even if it works as

expected, the results may be unpredictable.


>

>

> ------

>  // where "start" is a frame label

>

> if(GetProperty ("/", _currentframe) eq "Start")

>

> where Start is a frame label (are frame labels case sensitive ?)

>  should I use "eq" or =


_currentframe usually returns the frame number. Not sure what it will do

with a frame label...it shouldn't do anything and this shouldn't work

according to the documentation, but we all know the 'documentation'

isn't

the final word. Try it out and see. You would use eq for this since it's

a

string.


>

>

>  I am off to test if the following is this the correct syntax:

>

>  if (GetProperty ("/", _currentframe) eq "/:Start")


This is correct IF you're trying to compare the value of the main

timeline's _currentframe - which should return a number - and the value

of

the variable named "Start" that is on the main timeline. This might

work,

but = would probably be more appropriate here than eq since the

comparison

should theoretically be of numbers. F4 AS isn't nearly as

syntax-dependent

as F5 script, and data types (string, numerical, boolean, etc.) are

loosely

typed so sometimes things work that you might not expect to.


>

>

> Is it true that all variables need to start with a leading ":"


The colon is the slash-syntax (F4) signifier of a variable, so you see

paths like /MC1/MC2:myVar, or just /:myVar.


>

>

> It would seem sometimes that Flash follows its syntax and then other

> times lets you get by with incorrect code (Like bad html in IE!!!)


Yup. But F5 does away with a lot of that looseness. However, it makes it

quite a bit more complex because things do work according to a fairly

strict set of rules and sometimes you'll get weird results only to

realize much later that it is in fact doing exactly what it's supposed

to.



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