Adobe Flash CS3 Professional How-Tos: 100 Essential Techniques
by Mark Schaeffer
from Adobe Press

Editorial Review:

Flash is the most ubiquitous technology today for creating and deploying dynamic content on the Web. From button rollovers to video animations, Flash not only brings pizzazz to the Web but also makes difficult concepts easier to understand through illustrations, diagrams, and so on. Now that Flash CS3 Professional is part of the Adobe family, users new to the software as well as veteran users unfamiliar with added Adobe feature need quick access to key features and fundamental techniques. Adobe Flash CS3 Professional: 100 Essential Techniques provides users with what they need to know to start working in Flash. Each technique is presented in a self-contained unit of one or two pages so users can dive in and start working right away, unencumbered by lengthy descriptions or technical detail. For example, if readers want to know how to use Flash's new QuickTime export feature, they can turn directly to that page, quickly grasp the technique, as well as pick up a few tips along the way.

Customer Reviews:

• Avg. Customer Rating: 4.0 / 5.0

• Worst technique book ever
  I've only been in Flash for several months now, gotten through the basics and was hoping to expand my skills. Found this book and thought it would be good. Well I couldn't have been more wrong. One of the essential techniques is saving a file. A full page on adding a keyframe. I can explain that in two letters F6. Seriously this book is page after page of the most mundane basic stuff they could cram into a book. So if you've never been on a computer or seen an Adobe app this might be for you. Otherwise stay... more info

• OK for a first book on Flash
  Frankly, I had hoped that a book on "100 Essential Techniques" would be more useful than this. Basically, if you have ANY other book on Flash, then you don't need this one.
  Imagine a book on "100 Essential Driving Techniques" that includes separate listings for "Unlocking the car door", "Adjusting the mirror", etc. and you'll get an idea of what this book covers...
  

• A fast way to get started with Flash.
  Sometimes, I think we get so wrapped around the axle about ActionScript programming that we forget about what Flash can do as a creative tool. This book is here to remind us. Aimed squarely at the Flash program, the book includes a tour of the interface along with techniques for using the drawing tools, getting started with keyframe animation, using filters and fills, importing artwork from various sources, working with sounds and bitmaps, and working with and exporting video in Flash and Quicktime formats,... more info

• The Perfect Way to Learn Flash!
  I have been trying to learn flash for a few months now. I first used another book by Todd Perkins about flash and I found it very confusing. The tutorials and instructions it told me to follow often didn't work like I expected and I was forced to read the book page by page, paragraph by paragraph to gain any sort of understanding. On a whim, I bought THIS book to see if it was helpful at all. And it was so helpful. It gives you the essential information, without giving you information overload. Each lesson... more info