These are the Instructions for the Eighth module of this course:

This week we are going to be working on the Foundation of an Interactive Application: Stopping the Main Timeline to create an "Interactive Moment".
This will let us structure Actions or Events triggered by your buttons, and organize navigation paths within your Timeline (using frame labels to visualize the Interactive structure).

Make sure that you understand the Logic and practice behind those concepts by the end of the week.

Which Action Script version to use?

The book (for flash CS4 and CS5) works with ActionScripting 3.0 and that is the version that we will be using.

Take advantage of the web: do a search for specific terms, being programming copncepts, errors...
ex. I searched for "Actionscripting 3.0 function data type" recently and i got a really good entry in wikipedia for ActionScripting 3.0. I recommended as ageneral introduction.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ActionScript

Read carefully the help pages I have linked form my web site. You need to understand how to "name a button" by entering the name in the properties panel of a button already on Stage. You also need to get familiar with functions, how to declare them and name them in the script.

Programmers regularly work with functions to organize their scripts. For us this is a difficult concept.
It makes it even more difficult the fact that functions are use to simplify the code when you have "a list of tasks to accomplish", but our buttons are right now doing one thing at a time, so using functions is actually complicating our job as beginners.
Later on, when you do much more complex projects, you will see the benefit of functions. Right now your job is to memorize the structure of the code :(

You also need to pay attention to Flash's "ready-made" functions. They are called "methods", and those are the "Timeline actions" we constantly use in flash.

Stop()
Play()
gotoAndPlay()
gotoAndStop()
nextFrame()
previousFrame()

Complete this week's assignment on ActionScripting basic use.

Download the zip folder "8_Actions1_2.zip" from the assignment window to your local computer.

Observe the structure, over time and in layers of an Interactive Timeline in your sample files.

Notice that you are going to send 2 "fla" files as your assignment.
Both contain a very similar interactive structure.
The first file contains 2 navigational buttons that use the "gotoAndStop method" and the right structure observed in the sample file.
One button takes you out of frame 1, the other (back buttons) can take you back to it.
The second file contains a button that uses the "gotoAndPlay method", there is something to play on the "answer layer", there is a stop at the end of the "answer animation" and the navigation is organized with frame-labels.

Follow those “fla” sample files with the matching pages in your Flash-help site.
Write down in a piece of paper the exact syntax for the actions used this week in the exercise.
Put the paper in a visible place in your house or office.
Check it several times a day until it becomes really familiar.

Work in a very careful manner with actionScripting and Frame labels.
Remember that both are case sensitive, so pay a lot of attention to upper and lowercase text.

Submit your assignment back before the deadline.

Post your comments and/or problems.

Advice and tricks to remember the code are also welcome!