Creating Web Graphics and Animation > Exporting Flash movies |
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Exporting Flash movies
You can export any FreeHand document in Macromedia Flash (SWF) format, for display in the Flash Player plug-in in a Web browser, such as Netscape Navigator or Microsoft Internet Explorer, or in a stand-alone Flash Player.
You can export still graphics in SWF format, to preserve vector artwork attributes while reducing file size. You can choose to export layers, pages, or both in FreeHand documents as separate frames in a SWF file, or as separate SWF files. If you export layers as frames, all the layers below the separator bar in the Layers panel become one background layer in all frames in the SWF file.
If you have added Flash actions to a file, the actions are enabled in the exported SWF.
You can export a FreeHand file in SWF format using the Export command, as described in the following procedure. You can also export a file in SWF format using commands in the Controller or the Control menu. For more information, see Using the Controller or Control menu with SWF files.
Note: To display anti-aliased artwork on the screen as it will appear when exported to Macromedia Flash SWF format, test the SWF file using the Controller or Control menu. For more information, see Using the Controller or Control menu with SWF files.
To export a FreeHand file in SWF format:
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Choose File > Export. |
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Choose Macromedia Flash (SWF) from the Save As Type (Windows) or Format (Macintosh) pop-up menu. |
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Click Setup. |
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In the Movie Settings dialog box, choose a Path Compression option to control how precisely to convert FreeHand paths to Flash pathsfrom None (no compression and the greatest number of points) to Maximum (for the most compression but lowest quality and fewest points).
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If the artwork contains dashed lines, select Trace Dashed Strokes to convert each dash segment to a separate object. This option increases export time and file size. |
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For Image Compression, choose the image quality and compression for converting bitmap images to JPEG formatNone (highest quality, lowest compression) to Maximum (lowest quality, highest compression). |
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Choose a Text option to control how to export text: |
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Select Maintain Blocks to keep all the text together in a FreeHand text block for editing in Flash 3 or later. |
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Select Convert to Paths to convert text to vector paths, so the text is no longer editable as text. Text attached to a path or text flowing inside a path is automatically converted to paths and therefore is not editable in Flash. (This option yields a smaller file size than Maintain Text Blocks.) |
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Select None to omit all text from the exported file. |
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Select the pages to export. |
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Choose an Animation option to export layer-based frames, page-based frames, or both: |
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Select Layers and Pages to export one SWF file that contains all the FreeHand document content. All layers of the first page are exported as a sequence of frames, followed by all layers of the second page, and so on. Each page can be used as a scene. |
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Select Layers to export each page as a separate SWF file, with the layers of each page becoming frames in the respective SWF file. The frames are sequenced from the bottom layer to the top layer. Objects on layers below the separator bar in the Layers panel are exported as one background layer that appears in each frame in the SWF file. However, the Guides layer and hidden layers are not exported. |
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Select Pages to export each page as a Flash frame in one SWF file. The layers of each page make up the image for that page (or frame, in Flash). |
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Select None to export each page of the FreeHand file as a separate SWF file. The layers of each page make up a still image for that page. |
Note: If you choose Layers and Pages or Pages, each frame is the same size as the first page exported. If you choose Layers or None, each page is a separate SWF, and the movie size is the same as the page size. |
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Specify a frame rate for the Flash movie in frames per second (fps). As in Flash, choose a frame rate from 0.01 fps to 120 fps, in increments of 0.01. For the smoothest animations, use 12 fps. |
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Select Autoplay to begin the animation automatically at the specified frame rate in the stand-alone Flash Player. Deselect the option to stop the animation at Frame 1 in the stand-alone Flash Player; choose Control > Play to start the animation. |
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Select FullScreen Playback to play the entire animation at full screen until you press Esc.This option has no affect on Flash animations played in a Web browser. |
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For Compatibility, choose the Flash version format to which to export the file. |
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Select Protect from Import to prevent a SWF file exported by FreeHand from being imported by other users. |
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Select High Quality Printing to print each frame in the SWF animation at high resolution from the stand-alone Flash player, version 4.0 or later, or browser plug-in. When this option is deselected, the file prints using the browser's screen resolution (72 dpi). |
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Click OK, and then click Save (Windows) or Export (Macintosh). |
To test your movie, see Using the Controller or Control menu with SWF files. |
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